Single Dad Burning Up - Cathryn Fox

1

Callan

“Daddy, I’m going to miss Chester.”

I glance at my daughter, her mess of blonde hair bouncing as she skips down the near empty hallway beside me. Her bright sequined backpack is weighed down with a year’s worth of artwork and the Chester she’s referring to is the class pet, a cute guinea pig with white and butterscotch fur. With summer vacation now upon us—Kaitlyn’s last day of kindergarten behind her—Chester will be going home with the teacher until the school years starts back up in the fall.

“I’m sure he’s going to miss you too,” I say, and ruffle her hair as the last of the kids rush from the school to enjoy their summer vacation. Luckily, I have the next few days off from the fire station and I was able to pick Kaitlyn up myself.

She pouts up at me, and my heart squeezes in my too-tight chest. She’s been without a mother and baby brother for two years now, and every fucking morning, right after I peel my eyes open, I pray to God I can do right by her.

“Can we get a guinea pig?” she asks.

I swallow against the rawness in my tight throat, and grin at my little girl. I have such a hard time saying no to her, especially when she blinks up at me with those big blue eyes—her late mother’s eyes.

“Please, Daddy.”

I scrub my face, and remember the goldfish fiasco. Who knew overfeeding a goldfish would create ammonia in the bowl? I’m a firefighter, not a damn fish keeper. But, yeah, I should have Googled it. Kaitlyn shed a lot of tears in the makeshift funeral in our backyard, and I’d hate for her to go through that again. Then again, every child should have a pet, right? A guinea pig would be less work than a dog.

“We’ll see, okay?” I say.

“Yay,” she squeals and claps her hands. I can’t help but smile. At six years old, she’s smart enough to know ‘we’ll see’ really means yes. My little girl has me wrapped around her pinky finger. I’m just glad I found the nail polish remover last night, after she painted said finger neon pink. The guys at the station would have gotten a kick out of that. They’re all good guys though, even if they love to goad me. There isn’t a single colleague that wouldn’t jump to lend a helping hand, and she gets lots of motherly attention from her aunt Melissa—my late wife Zoe’s younger sister—and both sets of grandparents, who dote on her.

I arch one brow. “You promise you’ll take care of him?”

She gives me an enthusiastic nod, and I just shake my head as we round the corner. “I’m going to call him Gilbert.”

“Why Gilbert?” I ask.

Her mouth drops open, like I might be dense. She’s probably right. Just when I think I’m nailing this single parenting thing, she grows and changes, presenting different challenges and a hundred more Google searches. Can’t wait for her teen years—said no dad ever.

“Because it’s cute,” she says.

I laugh, but it dies an abrupt death when I take the hallway corner and smack straight into something…or rather someone. A squeal of surprise wraps around me as books and papers and pens scatter to the floor at my feet. I reach out to steady the woman I nearly knocked on her ass.

“Whoa, are you okay?” I ask, instantly realizing I’d plowed right into Gemma Davis, an old friend from high school. She teaches seventh grade, so we rarely cross paths in the school, but I’ve always liked her. Zoe took Gemma under her wing when Gemma moved here in high school.

“I’m okay,” Gemma says and lifts her head. A wide smile splits her lips when she sees it’s me. “Callan. Hi. It’s so good to see you, or rather, bump into you.”

I sink down and begin to gather up her books. “Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”

Her gaze goes from me to my daughter. “How are you, Kaitlyn?” she asks as she crouches with me to clean up the mess.

“I’m getting a guinea pig,” Kaitlyn sings out.

I groan, and cut Gemma a glance. “Lucky me, huh?”

Gemma grins at me. “Don’t worry. You’re not alone. I think every child in Mrs. Anderson’s class wants a guinea pig now. Chester is awfully cute.” She gives a roll of her shoulder. “I guess it could be worse. The class pet could have been a snake.”

I eye her. “Don’t tell me—”

“Not me,” she says with a quick shake of her