Mack Daddy(4)

“I know.” After a long moment of silence, I said, “I can’t stop thinking about you.”

Whoa.

Back up.

I immediately regretted that admission, adding, “I mean…God, Frankie, to see you after all these years. For me, it was like no time had passed. I’m so f*cking proud of you. You always said you wanted to be a teacher. You made it happen. What you do every day, it’s the hardest job in the world.”

“Exactly what do you need in regards to Jonah, Mack?”

Ouch.

“How was he today?”

“He seemed very nervous. My teacher’s aide took him out of the classroom for a brief walk when he appeared to get anxious during a group discussion. But he seemed a bit calmer when they returned.”

I was just about at my wit’s end when it came to my son. I loved him so much, but his anxiety wasn’t something I knew how to handle very well. It wasn’t as easy as telling him to snap out of it, that was for damn sure.

“When he was younger, he was fine. Right around five years old, he started getting panic attacks, anxiety, you name it. My moving out hasn’t helped the situation.”

“What do you mean? You don’t live with him?”

“No. Torrie and I aren’t together anymore.”

In her classroom today, I’d alluded to the fact that I’d be picking him up in the mornings, but she must not have put two and two together.

She didn’t respond right away. Listening to the sound of her breaths, I let her process. I knew she needed to process that piece of information.

“When did that happen?”

“About a year ago. I tried to stick it out as long as I could for Jonah, but it was never gonna work. It wasn’t an easy decision, but I was miserable for a very long time. I couldn’t take it anymore.”

“Moses never mentioned any of this.”

“Yeah, well he and I haven’t really had a chance to discuss it. He knows I’m back here, but he doesn’t know the full details.”

Moses Vasco was our only mutual friend. The three of us once lived together in an apartment above a strip of stores in Boston’s Kenmore Square. After I left, I’d kept in touch with Moses mainly to get information on Frankie, but he and I had never been particularly close to begin with “Where are you living?” she asked.

“I bought a house in Framingham just off Route Nine. I wanted to make sure Jonah felt like he had a real home when he was with me, one with a yard and a nice bedroom.”

“Where does his mother live?”

“Not far from the school in Newton. She commutes into Boston. Jonah’s with her during the week, stays with a nanny after school while I’m working. I work from home.”

“Am I going to meet her?”

The thought of my ex and Frankie coming face to face freaked me out. But I knew it was inevitable.

“She’s planning on going in to meet with you soon.”

“Does she know about us?”

“No. She doesn’t have a clue that we used to know each other.”

“Okay. I prefer it that way.”

“Of course.” Lying my head against the back of my bed, I sighed and asked the question that had been gnawing at me. “Are you happy, Frankie?”

After some silence, she said, “Yes.”

“Tell me about the old guy you’re living with.”

“He’s not that old.”

“Fifty?”

“Forty-five.”

“Old enough. His balls still in good shape? How low do they hang?”

“Oh, my God!”

I’d almost forgotten how much I loved embarrassing her.

“How low?” I was laughing and was relieved to get the sense that she was, too.

“I see you’re still tactless.”

“I see you still can’t help but be amused by it.” I let out a breath. “Seriously, does he treat you right?”

“Yes. He treats me like gold.”

Why did hearing that hurt my chest? I wanted her to be happy. It shouldn’t have hurt so goddamn much to hear that.

“Good. That’s what you deserve.”

“Do you have anything else you’d like to discuss?”

Do you still shave your *?

Trying to ignore the rumblings of my overly excited inner thoughts, I said, “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about volunteering. What can I do to help this year?”

That’s better.

“Well, parents sometimes come in and read a book to the class or talk about their jobs. Teach some kind of lesson. You can really choose whatever you’d like.”

“How about next Wednesday?”

“What did you have in mind?”

“I’d like to read a story to the class.” I totally just pulled that out of my ass. But I’d figure something out.

“Okay, I’ll schedule it in for one in the afternoon.”

Her being so formal with me was weird. It was irking me a little. She was acting like we didn’t know everything there was to know about each other at one time. I just wanted to virtually shake her and say, “Hey, remember that time we got drunk and you begged me to f*ck you?” At the same time, her acting this way was a challenge to break down these new walls, a challenge I would gladly accept.