So Many Reasons Why by Missy Johnson Page B

of sheets,
finally managing to scoop up the phone. I quickly inspected it for damage. I
have no idea why I go through so many phones. Simon was chuckling when I put it
back to my ear.
    “Sorry.” I mumbled, embarrassed. “You have a question?” I
repeated.
    “Right.” He paused, like he was thinking the best way to
word what he wanted to say. The silence naturally made me panic. Silence was
never good. “I wanted to know if you'd like to meet Maddie.”
    Wow. I had not been expecting that. Did I want to meet his
daughter? That made everything that much more real. I didn't doubt this was a
huge step for him too.
    “Wow.” I managed. That is all I managed. I didn't know what
else to say.
    “Em, even if we just end up beings friends, I think you're
the type of person I'd love for my daughter to know. You are an amazing woman,
regardless of what you think.” I was speechless. How could I say no to that?
    “I’d love to meet her.”
     
    “You’re meeting his kid?”
    “Yes. Is that weird?”
    “A bit.” Cass replied. I clutched the phone tighter and
paced the room. Cass was supposed to be reassuring me, not making me want to
lock myself in the cupboard. “But I guess it means he is really into you.” It
did, didn’t it? I smiled as I felt myself relax. What I needed was to approach
this like it was a good thing. Which it was.
    “It is a good thing.”
    “Right.” Cass chuckled. “So keep it that way and stop trying
to make it into a bad thing.”
    “You are the best.” I declared. “Seriously. Best friend
ever.” Cass laughed again.
    “I will tell Tom you said that.” Her mention of Tom reminded
me of the weirdness between them the other day.
    “Speaking of Tom. What was with you two the other day?”
    “What do you mean?” Cass knew exactly what I meant. Her
voice became low and tense, like it did every other time she was stressed.
    “I just thought things were off. Never mind. I must have
imagined it.” Cass rambled on about a nightclub she was going to with Kally.
Smiling, I pretended to listen. I knew when my best friend was lying, but I
also knew she’d talk to me when she was ready.
    “Sounds fun. Have a good night. I have to get ready to
entertain a four year old.”
     
    The little girl stood behind Simon's leg, peering out at me
curiously.
    I smiled at her and her face disappeared out of view. She
was shy, but she was adorable. Her chocolate curls, which hung down to her
shoulders, were held off her face with a pink butterfly clip. Her bright pink
skirt completely mismatched her orange leggings and green shirt.
    I knelt down in front of her. She looked at me suspiciously,
her little white knuckles gripping Simon’s leg.
    “You look very pretty today.” I said to her. She smiled,
stepping forward proudly, momentarily forgetting her shyness.
    “I picked it myself too.” She announced, twirling so I could
get the full effect of her outfit. Just like that, her guarded exterior was
gone. We were friends.
           “She screamed when I
tried to change her leggings.” Simon rolled his eyes. “I couldn't even bribe
her with candy.”
    “And so you shouldn't!” I chided.  “A four year old
with a sugar high is never a good thing.” Simon glanced over at the mountain of
fairy bread sitting on the counter.
    “Really?” He raised his eyebrows, amused. Maybe I wasn’t in the
best position to lecture him, the amount of sugar piled into my little
triangles of bread would horrify my dentist.
    “That was the only thing I had the ingredients to make.” I
flushed. “It's not like you gave me much notice.”
    “So do you make fairy bread often? I mean, you had all the
ingredients already.” He added. I blushed again. Laughing, Simon carried Maddie
over to the couch. I followed with the fairy bread and drinks.
    “Maddie, this is daddy’s friend, Emma.” Maddie looked up at
me with her huge blue eyes. When she smiled, I could see she was missing one of
her front teeth. 
    “No