Odes To Ella.

Chapter 37: Weeds.

At first, he just froze, his hands unable to touch me. I set both hands on his cheeks and kissed gently, slowly. His lips were warm and soft.
He finally set a hand on my cheek and one on my back. After a few more kisses, I placed a hand on his chest and tried to pull him closer, but he moved the hand from my back and placed it on my hip. He pulled his lips away and leaned his forehead on mine.
"Wow." He breathed. I giggled and looked up to him.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Everything's perfect." He leaned in and kissed me again, a little harder this time. I set both hands on his shirt collar and pulled him down on top of me. He set his hands on either side of me to keep from toppling onto me and kissed me slowly. I unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt and rubbed from his collarbone to the nape of his neck and entangled my fingers in his hair. He used one hand to trace the side of my body and slipped his tongue gently in my mouth, then bit my bottom lip. I moaned softly and smiled.
In that instance, I heard the gears inside the door knob click as it began to turn. My eyes flew open and I pushed him up, following.
"What's wr-" but before he could finish, Ella walked in rubbing her eyes and yawned.
"Mommy..." She took a few steps in and stopped. Derek and I exchanged a look and I replied,
"Sweetheart, it's past your bed time."
"I had a nightmare." She said. Lola came in and invited herself to the end of the bed, laying down on the carpet in front of it. I gestured her over and she sat next to me.
"Aww, did you? Do you want to snuggle for a while?" I asked. She nodded and I laid down, inviting her to join me. After she was settled, Derek laid behind me and rested his hand on the curve of my body. I closed my eyes and let Ella's scent of soap gill my nose. Ella muzzled herself back into my abdomen and closed her eyes. After a few minutes, her breathing shallowed as she fell into sleep. I smiled and set a hand on top of Derek's.
"Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Clair." He said and placed a kiss on the back of my head. I smiled and closed my eyes.

(9:00 a.m...:)

"No, I can't tomorrow, I already made plans with Derek this weekend." I explained to Effey while washing the dishes from breakfast. The windows were still a little wet from last night's thunderstorm, but the sun was shining and the birds had come out from their hiding places. I watched as Derek and Ella walked out of the shed in the back with gardening gloves and tools in hand.
"Ooooo, where to?"
"Ella and I are meeting his sister in Helena."
"You're meeting his sister already?"
"He said he wants me to." I smiled at the thought of his sincerity.
"Well, thanks anyways, I'll just call someone else."
"Ok, talk to you later."
"Bye." She hung up. I sighed and finished the rest of the dishes. My phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hi honey, it's mom."
"Hey mom, what's up?"
"Oh, same old same old. I just called to tell you a man called me and asked to talk to you." She said. I froze up.
Christopher...
"Did he give his name?"
"No, he just said it was urgent. I gave him the address of your house, he told me he'd be there around noon, I just thought you should know."
"Thanks mom, love you."
"Love you too." She hung up. I put the phone down and thought to myself.
What has he done now?
I walked briskly up the stairs and threw on my royal blue sweater with some dark skinny jeans and threw my hair in a ponytail. After I threw some shoes on, I went outside the front door to the porch.
Ella and Derek were on their hands and knees pulling weeds from the black dirt. Ella smiled whenever Lola chewed on the weeds, surprised by their texture.
Derek wore a white t-shirt with some torn up jeans and smiled up at me.
"Hey, care to join us?"
"I can't, something came up." I said, urgency in my voice. He frowned and stood up.
"Is everything okay?"
"Everything's fine, I just have to go to my house quickly."
"What's wrong?"
"I'm fine." I said staring at him. He stood up, still wearing his gloves and walked towards me.
"Do you need gas money or anything?"
"No."
"When will you be back?"
"Probably around 2, are you ok with watching Ella?" I asked. She still hadn't noticed us and was pulling weeds from the garden without a care in the world.
He nodded.
"Yeah, of course."
"Thank you, I'll be back as soon as I can." I kissed his cheek and hoped in the car, driving off.
As I coasted to the first stop light, I received a call from my cell phone. There was no caller ID. I quickly flipped it open and put the receiver to my ear.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Clair." Colton said. I turned the corner.
"Hi, Colton, what do you need?"
"My parole officer wants an update report on my psychologcal state."
"Tell him I'll give you one on our next visit."
"Ok." And he hung up. My mind raced as I thought of who might be waiting for me. As I turned down my street I didn't see a car in my driveway. I parked in the driveway and stepped out of the car. For a moment, I just stared at the house. It was still, unliving.
I walked to the front door, reaching for my key, but before I could open it, I saw the note attached to the door. It read,
"Hey, Clair. After waiting for a few minutes I decided this might not be the best way to talk, so I drove to the Starbucks on route 42. I hope you can make it, I'll be waiting all day."
I reread it, trying to remember my handwriting analysis class.
Check the A's, the N's..
I didn't recognize the handwriting.
What are you, Sherlock Holmes?
I turned back and went to the car.
It took about 15 minutes to drive to the other side of town, but I parked in front of the shop at 1:00.
It was busy, but that was usually the case.
I walked in and was greeted by the smell of coffee. I took a quick glance around, but didn't recognize anyone. I walked to the cashier. The girl smiled and said,
"Hi, what can I get for you today?"
"Um, my name is Clair, I was wondering if anyone was, I don't know, looking for me?"
"I'm sorry, ma'am, I don't know."
"That's alright." I walked away and sighed.
As I started to walk out I felt a tap on my shoulder.
When I spun around, I almost gasped. My heart jumped out of my chest and I froze.
"Clair...Hi." he said. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. He smiled softly and stated,
"You haven't changed at all."
I finally got air and all I could say is,
"What do you want?"
"To talk." He said. I closed my eyes and nodded. He set a hand on my arm to guide me, but I ripped it away and led myself to a table. He sat across from me and I folded my arms.
"How have you been?" He asked. I took a deep breath and nodded.
"Fine. How are you?"
"I'm doing good. I've got a contract-"
"Benny, what do you want from me? I know you didn't fly from los Angeles or New York or wherever you live for small talk." I looked at him with a hint of anger in my eyes. He sighed and looked down to his hands.
"Clair, I just want to start by saying I'm sorry for the way I acted-"
"It's a little late for that."
"I know, I know Clair. But I'm not here to get back together." He looked to me.
"What then?"
"I want to meet our baby. I want to be a part of its life." He said.
I shook my head.
"No."
"Clair, I have a right to know it-"
"She's not an 'it'. She's a girl." I saids softly. He sat up and smiled a little.
"A girl?"
"Yes." I nodded while looking at him. He looked back to his hands.
"What's her name?"
I took a deep breath and breathed in.
"Ella. Her name is Ella."
"Ella." He repeated quietly. I felt my heart swell. I took in a breath.
"I don't want you to meet her now, she isn't ready."
"But I'm here now-"
"It's not about you, Benny, it's about whats best for Ella-"
"I'm best for her, I'm her father-"
"Benny, I said not now." I stood up to leave.
"Clair wait-" he grabbed my forearm. I wiggled it free.
"Don't touch me." I told him. He stared back at me. I sighed and scribbled my number on a napkin.
"Call me in a week. If you're still here, I'll let you meet her." I turned and left without another word.
I drove for a while so I could let off some steam.
How dare he? He just shows up and expects a family?
I saw a sign for a bar and parked in front of it. I stood up from my car and slammed the door shut. I walked in and glanced around. Almost no one was there, just the bar tender and a couple who sat making out in a corner booth. I went to the counter and sat down. The guy looked at me and said,
"What can I get you?"
"A shot of whiskey, please." He nodded and handed me a glass. I closed my eyes and took a swig, swallowing all of it in one gulp. I put it down and asked for another one.
I don't remember how long I was in that bar, but my vision was getting blurry. After what I estimate was my 5th or 6th glass, I took out my phone and dialed Effey's number. She picked up on the fourth ring.
"Hello?"
"Hey...I think I'm drunk."
"Do you need a ride?"
"Yeah, if...if you....don't mind." I said.
"Let me drop Frankie off at home. Where are you?"
"Gary's Bar." I said.
"Ok, just hold on, I'll be there in a minute." She hung up.
I rubbed my eyes and let my head rest in my hands. The door opened and I heard footsteps approach. They stopped and the person sat on the stool beside me. He looked at me.
"You want another drink?"
"No, I'm good th-"
"Thats not why I'm here, Clair." He reached up and set a hand on my shoulder. I froze and looked up, but he pushed my face back.
"Dont look at me. I'm only gonna say this once, stop helping Colton Norris. Just send him back." And he got up and left. I looked around for a moment, unsure. The bartender stared for a brief moment before he turned and went back to his job.
Effey walked in and took me to her car.
"Are we going to Derek's?"
"No."
"No? Where then?" She asked. I leaned against the window.
"My house please."
"But isn't Ella-"
"Yes, but I don't want her to see me like this." I closed my eyes. Effey sat for a moment then started the car.
"What happened?" She asked. I put a hand to my forehead.
"Ella's father came back. He wants to know her." I said. She looked at me and nodded. After a few minutes went by, she said,
"So what's the deal?"
"I told him if he was still here in a week I'd consider it." I looked at her. She stopped in front of the house.
"Clair, I'm not telling you what to do, but if I had the chance to show Frankie her father, I would." I nodded and got out, heading inside the house. It was quiet inside the house, but dark. I sat in the middle of the sofa and listened to the silence.

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Hope you enjoyed it and enjoy the next one bye! :).