“What’s wrong? You don’t like it?”
She has tears in her eyes when she looks up at me. Shit. What the fuck did I do wrong now?
“I love it. I kinda collect little things like this … but you wouldn’t know that.”
Yes, I do.
“I love the little cat with her. This will always remind me of being here with you and Sterling. Thank you.” She wipes her eyes with her napkin. “And you got me cookies! Are you one of those rare men that actually listen?”
Taking my seat at the table, I grin over at her and slice the meatloaf, place the first slice on my own plate and the second on hers. “I never used to be. I guess I didn’t want you to go into cookie withdrawal.”
Her meatloaf turned out excellent and her mood is considerably better than it’s been before. Her eyes are brighter and she looks more alive. She’s much more animated when she talks to me, too. My own mood is better as well now that I have her to look forward to.
“Can we watch a movie tonight?” she blurts out as she’s cleaning off the table after dinner.
“A movie?”
“Yeah. I thought we could just sit on the couch together and watch a movie. Don’t you do that?”
“Not usually with a chick. I fuck them and then they go.”
She stops and stares at me as if I’ve grown five heads. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No, I’m dead serious.”
I watch her load the dishwasher, clanking the dishes together, glaring daggers at me. “How did you manage to have a child with someone? Were you married? Living together? You must have had some kind of relationship, right?”
Rage boils inside me. Is she seriously judging me? And bringing up my dead daughter?
“That shit is off-limits.” I stand up quickly in anger, banging into the table.
“Why? It’s a normal thing to be talking about.” She slams the door of the dishwasher and crosses her arms, waiting for me to say something.
“Not for me. It was a big cluster-fuck, if you must know. She was just some stripper I met and partied with. I was wasted and sloppy. I never wanted anything else to do with her and I sure as shit didn’t want to have a kid.” I take a deep breath, hating what I just said. I don’t regret Katie. She was the best thing that ever happened to me. “After the baby was born I wasn’t allowed to see her, but that bitch dragged me to court to get child support and made sure I didn’t have any visitation because I was too fucked up on drugs and alcohol. It took me three years to get straight and pass enough tests to see my own kid. I had zero relationship with her mother. I hate that bitch.”
Tabi cringes away from me. “I’m sorry I asked,” she says. “I’m just trying to get to know a little about you.”