The Wrong Man by Delaney Diamond

everybody?” she called out.
    “I’m in here,” Shawna called back.
    The inviting aroma of a home-cooked meal greeted her nose, and when she entered the kitchen she saw Shawna washing vegetables at the sink in the island. Near her feet, sitting on a red plastic mat, Ryker played with a collection of colorful plastic bowls and a wooden spoon. When Talia entered he looked up.
    “Hey, handsome,” she cooed.
    She tickled his belly and he giggled, giving her one of his dimpled smiles and then went right back to pounding on the bowls.
    “Are you okay?” Shawna asked. “You’re not getting sick, are you? You look flushed.”
    “I’m fine.” Talia waved off her comment. “I was riding with the car windows down,” she lied. “Not a good idea in this heat.”
    “Pour yourself some water and cool off.”
    “Are those his latest toys?” Talia asked to distract her friend’s attention. Meanwhile she poured chilled water in a glass.
    “I’m afraid so. He hardly touches any of the real toys we buy for him. He’d rather pull my pots and pans from the cabinet and bang them around, which makes way too much noise. I put latches on the lower cabinets, but he cried every time he couldn’t get in, so I surrendered and let him have one of the shelves. I moved the plastic bowls and some of his toys down there for him to play with. At least they don’t make as much noise as the pots and pans.”
    Talia went to the other side of the island. She sipped the water and felt her body temperature lower. Much better.
    She peeped out the window. “I see Ryan finally put the swing set together.”
    Shawna laughed. “Ryker insisted on helping him, and I laughed my butt off watching those two. Ryan tried to stay calm while Ryker kept picking up bolts and screws and moving them around. I have a video of them. One day when you have time we’ll watch it together. You’ll get a good laugh.”
    Talia watched Shawna shift vegetables into the colander to drain. “You need any help?”
    “No, I’m almost done.”
    The front door opened and the jingle of keys made Ryker look up from playing with the dishes. “Daddy!”
    “Yes,” Shawna said. “Daddy’s home.”
    “Daddy! Daddy!” Ryker scrambled to his feet, his wide-legged unstable gait taking him as fast as he could out of the kitchen.
    “How long has Ryan been gone? It’s only been since this morning, right? He acts like he hasn’t seen him in years.”
    “I think kids are like that in general. They’re always excited to see the parent they spend the least amount of time with.”
    Ryan walked in with his son hanging upside down by one leg, squealing and laughing.
    “Hi, baby,” Shawna said in a softened voice.
    “Hey, love.” Holding his son with one hand, Ryan pulled Shawna closer with the other and kissed her lightly on the mouth. Then he kissed her cheek and nuzzled her neck. “Mmm…you smell good.”
    “Like fried chicken?”
    “Mmmhmm. And macaroni and cheese.” He tickled Ryker and the little boy giggled and squirmed, still upside down.
    “If you drop my son,” Shawna warned.
    “He’ll be all right.” Ryan grinned at Talia. “A fall on the head will toughen him up.”
    “Ha-ha. Dinner’s almost ready. Go get washed up, and take your son with you.”
    Shawna dipped a baby carrot in dressing and placed it in Ryan’s mouth. Their perfectly choreographed routine must have played out a thousand times before, their affectionate behavior illustrating their love for each other. Considering the rocky start to their relationship, Talia couldn’t be happier for them. After a brief encounter that ended disastrously years ago in Chicago, by chance, Ryan and Shawna ended up in Atlanta at different times. After orchestrating a blind date with her, Ryan managed to win her back.
    Had she ever had such an intense love for Carter, or he for her? Had they ever had this sort of easy familiarity, where one anticipated the other’s actions and knew the other’s thoughts