The child flashes me an apologetic smile. And I take that as a sign to urge her to return to her father.
“Then, maybe I can help you face your mild jerk father. You can always call me when you want to talk to someone. But for now, let me take you to him,” I offer.
“No,” she answers instantly. But, then, she furrows her brow — the same way that her father did when deep in thought. Maybe these two are more alike than they know. “But, maybe if you take me shopping, then I will change my mind.”
I laugh at Myah. This girl knows how to drive a real bargain. And I’m very much aware that she is playing with me. But it is worth a try, and maybe she just needs a friend now.
“Let’s go.”
“Now?” Her eyes are full of glee. And my heart is starting to warm towards her.
I nod. “Yes. Go, change. I’ll wait for you here.”
I have a free afternoon after all. My bosses expect me to look for Myah at her school, and I don’t even need to do that.
Myah comes out after fifteen minutes, and we walk out of my apartment to hit the streets.
As we stroll up and down the avenues in downtown Manhattan, Myah drags me to different stores to check out so many outfits. Right now, she’s wearing a simple shirt and jeans. So, I’m mildly surprised to see her checking out summer dresses and even some swimsuits. But, I don’t stop her from buying everything she wants because I’m definitely putting all of this on her father’s tab when I finally return her to him.
We go to four different shoe stores, and Myah buys two pairs of shoes in each of them. This girl really knows how to shop.
“Are all of those clothes for you? Where are you going,” I start to joke, “on vacation?”
Myah throws me a sour look. “Dad doesn’t like shopping, so I may be out of outfits after a few years once I move in with him. So, I’m stocking up on clothes now.”
Smart thinking. I like that. Although, I don’t think the girl will want to wear all of these clothes when she becomes a teenager. Still, I smile at her. I even pick a few dresses for myself.
After we have exhausted ourselves from shopping, I ask Myah if she wants to get her nails done. She gives me a resounding yes. So this time, I’m the one dragging her to my favorite nail salon.
While the techs are doing our nails, Myah starts to talk more about her friends — the ones she has left behind, she explains. Her sudden move has taken her out of her comfort zone. And I begin to understand why this pre-teen detests her father. Such changes can uproot anyone at this age. So, I steer her away from the sad stories and into her favorite books, movies, and music. We have a few things that we like in common, but it is so refreshing to talk with someone and not have a care in the world.
After the nail salon, we have agreed to order takeout and go home. Myah says she likes Chinese food, so we get dumplings, fortune cookies, noodles, and chicken. On the ride home, the girl can’t stop talking about how much fun she had today. And I smile back at her, feeling the same way. Back in my place, we struggle to carry all our purchases and food to my floor.
“There you are! I have been ringing your doorbell for hours now,” Reese exclaims when she sees us. My friend is standing at my door with her daughter in her arms. She looks over the both of us. “Wow. You didn’t invite me on a shopping spree! I thought I was your best friend!”
“Hello to you too, Reese. Why are you here? I don’t remember us scheduling a hangout today.”
Reese takes some of the shopping bags in one hand so I can open my apartment.
“I badly need a sitter. Kane called me up to say he can’t come home tonight because he’s looking for a general’s daughter.” I resist the urge to look at Myah, so I don’t know how she reacts. Instead, I just wait for Reese to continue. “It was his night to look after Kaylyn. We’d talked about it several times already, and at the very last minute, he bailed on me. I have tons of paperwork for the charity to finish tonight. And I can’t work on that if I also have to take care of an adorable but fussy toddler.”
Myah steps in front of Reese before I can say anything. She’s got her eyes fixed on the gurgling three-year-old.
“Hi. I’m...um…Sarah. I’m Sloane’s second cousin. And I’m free tonight, so I can take care of your adorable toddler so you can work.”