PART 11:

You only make fancy breakfast when something important is happening.” The pancakes instead of cereal did seem to have given him away. “Yeah.” he admitted. “Today’s the day, if you still want to.” Sophie sat up, suddenly serious. “What if she doesn’t like me?” “Bug, that’s impossible. You’re extremely likable.

” “But what if I’m weird and she thinks you made a mistake and then she leaves and you’re sad again?” Daniel sat beside her, heart aching at the weight she carried. 6 years old and already worried about managing adult emotions. “First.” he said, “You’re not responsible for my happiness.” “That’s my job.” “Second, Ariana already knows about you, about how smart you are and how you ask a million questions and how you want to cook food in space.

She’s not expecting perfect, she’s expecting you.” “What if I don’t like her?” “Then you tell me, honestly, and we figure it out.” Sophie chewed her lip. “Does she know about space?” “Some.” “She’s an architect. She designs buildings.” “That’s kind of like space. Buildings go up high.” “Ah, that’s one way to think about it.” “Okay.

” Sophie nodded, decision made. “I’ll meet her.” “But if she’s mean, I’m telling her I don’t like her.” “Ms. Martinez says we should use our words when people make us uncomfortable.” “Ms. Martinez is very wise.” They drove to the park Ariana had suggested, windshield wipers beating a nervous rhythm.

Sophie pressed her face against the window, watching the rain. “What if the playground is too wet?” “We’ll figure something out.” “What if” “Bug, it’s going to be fine.” But his own stomach was churning. What if this was a mistake? What if seeing them together made everything too real, too fast? What if Sophie hated Ariana? Or worse, what if Ariana realized that dating someone with a kid was more complicated than she’d imagined? He spotted her car in the parking lot, then spotted her standing under the covered pavilion area, looking out at

the rain. She turned as they approached and Daniel saw the exact moment she noticed them. Her expression shifted something between nervous and hopeful. Sophie grabbed his hand tighter. “That’s her?” “That’s her.” “She’s pretty.” “Yeah.” “You’re being weird again.” “Probably going to be weird for a while, Bug. Bear with me.

” They reached the pavilion and suddenly Daniel didn’t know what to do with his hands. Hug? Handshake? Stand there awkwardly? Ariana solved it by crouching down to Sophie’s level. “Hi. You must be Sophie. Your dad’s told me a lot about you.” But Sophie studied her with the intensity she usually reserved for new science exhibits.

“He told me about you, too.” “Good things, I hope.” “He said you’re nice and you design buildings and you have a fancy office.” “Two out of three is accurate. My office is actually pretty boring.” “Do you have a window?” “Several.” “Then it’s fancy. Our apartment only has small windows.” “Dad says it’s because we’re on the ground floor and windows are expensive.

” Daniel winced. “Sophie.” But Ariana just smiled. “Your dad’s right. Good windows are expensive.” “But you know what’s better than fancy windows?” “What?” “Being close to the ground means you can have a garden if you want.” “High-rise apartments can’t do that.” Sophie brightened. “We have a garden.” “Well, it’s kind of a garden.

Mostly weeds.” “But Dad planted tomatoes last year and we got three whole tomatoes.” “Three is a good start. This year you might get six.” “Or 12.” “Aiming high, I like it.” Sophie’s grip on Daniel’s hand loosened slightly. He watched the two of them, something in his chest doing complicated things. “Can we sit?” Ariana asked.

“I brought cards. Thought maybe we could play something if the playground was too wet.” “What kind of cards?” “Regular ones. We could play Go Fish or War, or I could teach you this game my dad taught me called Trash.” “Your dad?” Sophie’s eyes widened. “I thought you only had a mom.” “Everyone has a dad somewhere.

Mine just travels a lot for work. When he’s home, we play cards.” “My dad’s always home because he works at home.” Sophie said it like a badge of honor. “He makes logos on his computer.” “I’ve seen some of his work. He’s really talented.” Sophie looked up at Daniel. “She knows about your work?” “We’ve talked about it.” Daniel said.

“That’s good.” “Dad doesn’t talk about his work enough. I think it’s because Mom always said it wasn’t a real job.” Silence dropped like a stone. “Sophie.” Daniel said carefully. “What?” “She did say that. I heard her tell Grandma that you played on computers all day instead of having a real career.” Ariana’s expression hardened for just a moment before smoothing back to neutral.

“Your mom was wrong.” “Design is absolutely a real job, an important one.” Sophie seemed satisfied with this. “That’s what I think, too.” “Can we play cards now?” They settled at one of the pavilion’s picnic tables. Ariana dealt for Go Fish and within 10 minutes Sophie was completely absorbed in trying to get all four threes.

Daniel watched them, his daughter’s initial weariness melting into easy conversation. “Got any sevens?” Sophie asked. “Go fish.” “Ugh, you’re too good at this.” “I’ve had practice. Used to play with my sister when we were kids.” Sophie perked up. “You have a sister?” Daniel’s stomach dropped. He’d been waiting for this, the moment when Sophie connected the dots.

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