Part Ninety-Four

“Katiya, hey, come on in,” Luke said as he appeared next to me and practically pulled her inside by her arm.

“Hi,” Katiya said, not looking at me.

“This is Kage and right here is our little angel, Kalen,” Luke said oblivious to the awkward tension in the room.

Neither of us had a chance to say anything as Luke gave Kalen back to me and picked up his purse as Endri dutifully followed him to the front door.

“Have fun, the first room on the left is yours, Katiya,” Luke said and they were gone, leaving me alone with the woman I had sex with less than twenty-four hours earlier.

“So this is awkward,” she said.

“Yeah uhm …”

“Listen, we’re both adults, we had a one night stand but I’m sure we can work together like professionals, you need a nanny and I need a job,” she said.

“Katiya,” I said.

“We’ll respect each other’s space and you do what you do and I’ll look after Kalen,” she continued.

“I don’t know, Katiya,” I said honestly.

“I’ll even call you Mr. Hawthorne if that would make it easier for you,” she said.

“Shit,” I said.

“You start training on Monday. You’re not going to find a replacement so soon, and I promise you, I’m good at what I do, I love kids,” she said.

“I guess I don’t really have a choice,” I said.

“You won’t regret this, I promise,” she said and took her suitcase to the first bedroom.

I was still standing in the same spot when she returned and looked around the condo. My eyes followed her as she started opening cupboards and the fridge and hummed to herself as she made notes.

“Do you have a preferred routine for meals when you’re home?” she asked me.

“No, not really, it’s just dinner you’ll have to worry about,” I said.

“You don’t eat breakfast or lunch?”

“I eat breakfast at 5 AM, and usually for lunch I’ll grab whatever’s in the fridge and easy,” I said.

“Wow, 5 AM huh,” she said.

“Like I said, you don’t have to worry about breakfast,” I said.

“Okay, well let me know your food preferences, allergies and such and we’ll just take it one day at a time,” she said.

“Okay,” I said, still looking at her.

“What would you like for dinner?” she asked me.

“Anything’s good,” I said as she turned to look at me and smiled.

“Are you imagining me naked?” she asked.

“What? No!”

“Good, relax, give me the baby and go do what you’re supposed to do,” she said and held her arms out for Kalen.

“It’s Saturday, I don’t do much on weekends,” I said.

“Go chill then, I’ve got this,” she said and disappeared down the hall to Kalen’s bedroom.

I sat down in the living room and switched the television on and shifted uncomfortably because now I was imagining her naked. She was back in the kitchen now playing soft music and I could hear Kalen making the odd noise occasionally.

I heard Katiya clear her throat and I opened my eyes, the sky was dark outside and I had fallen asleep on the couch, the movie long over and the screen now blank. She studied me closely as I sat up straight.

“That must’ve been a good dream,” she said and walked smiling towards the kitchen. “Dinner’s ready.”

It had been a good dream, too good, and I could feel the evidence of it down below. This was really a terrible idea. I couldn’t live here with her, imagining her naked almost every time I saw her. To make matters worse, she seemed oblivious to my presence.

She had put Kalen down for a nap and it was just the two of us at the table, eating in silence. I felt uncomfortable but only because snippets of memories were returning and having her in my mind and sitting across from me was becoming difficult.

“Will you be having breakfast at five tomorrow morning too?” she asked me.

“Yes, I still train in the mornings,” I said.

“That’s insane, when do you rest?”

“A few weeks between playoffs and off season training,” I said.

“Let me guess, you still train then too,” she said.

“Light training, can’t afford to be idle,” I replied.

“What’s it like playing a game for a living?” she asked me.

“It’s more than just playing a game, being an athlete is hard work, sure I love hockey but we train year round, we travel all the time, sometimes we play games two days apart and the exhaustion knocks you on your ass, they expect you to be in peak physical condition, score goals and win trophies, the pressure can get a bit much,” I said.

“Then why do it?”

“Because I love hockey,” I said and she laughed.

“I can see that,” she said.

“What about you, you like looking after other people’s kids?” I asked her.

“Kids are easy, they don’t pretend, they don’t really manipulate, sometimes for attention but when the child is in a healthy environment, none of the above apply, they love unconditionally and they don’t really ask for a lot in return, they just want you. I studied early childhood development but I’ve yet to finish my teaching degree,” she said.

“You want to be a teacher?”

“Maybe, I mean it is something solid,” she said.

“But in reality?”

“In reality I’d love to design,” she said.

“Design what?”

“Shoes, I know it sounds cliché but all kinds of shoes, to have one market brand that everybody knows, a killer name for the brand and just let it take over the market,” she said.

“Everybody needs shoes,” I said.

“True,” she said.

“Don’t worry about the kitchen, I’ve got it,” I said as I stood up.

“Are you sure? That’d really help me, I haven’t even unpacked yet,” she said.

“It’ll probably be the last time this season, so go for it,” I said and she laughed.

“Yes boss,” she said and I heard her bedroom door close softly.

“I am screwed,” I said to myself and started to clean the kitchen.