“Daddy,” Paisley says my name all-seriously, or as seriously as a four-year-old can.
“Paisley,” I state her full name, so she knows she’s got my attention.
“What’s a date?” she asks, looking up at me from where she’s been splashing around in the bath.
“It's when two people go somewhere together, like to dinner or to the movies. Like what Mommy and Mike do sometimes,” I explain to her as best as I can.
“Who’s Lindsay?” she asks, all inquisitive.
“One of Daddy’s friends. I’ve known her since I was your age,” I tell her as I pull my phone out and open up Facebook. I find Lindsay’s page and tap on her profile picture, making it fill my screen. I flip the phone around, showing Paisley who I’m talking about. I know that they’ve met before; I just can’t place when and where that would have been. Probably at some town function.
“She’s pretty,” Paisley comments.
“She is,” I agree with my daughter. I help her wash her hair before rinsing her off and getting her out of the tub and ready for bed.
“How are you liking pre-school?” I ask once she’s brushed her teeth and is picking out a book for me to read to her before she falls asleep. Lilly thought that it might be a good thing for us to try with her this year, especially with the new baby at their house, plus, it will just help with the transition to kindergarten next fall.
“I’s love it! We get to do art and play, and my teacher, Ms. Kristen, is so nice,” she rambles on.
“I’m glad that you love it,” I tell her, patting the bed next to where I’m already sitting, waiting on her to join me. She hands me the book and crawls up on the bed. I get her all tucked in and then dive into reading to her. With the book finished, I kiss her goodnight, her little eyes hardly staying open as I do.
“Night, Daddy, loves you,” she says just as I stand up.
“Love you, too, baby girl.”
With Paisley dropped off at my parents' house for her sleepover, I head home to get ready to pick up Lindsay. I’ve got two hours, so plenty of time to get my truck cleaned out, showered, and dressed before I have to leave to be at her house by five.
As I’m driving through town back to my place, I go by the local florist, and the idea strikes me to stop and get a bundle for Lindsay. Thankfully, there's no one behind me, so I slam on my brakes in time to pull into their parking lot.
“How can I help you today?” the older lady behind the counter asks after I’ve entered the shop.
“I just need a bouquet of flowers,” I tell her, politely.
“Any specific occasion?” she asks, coming out from behind the counter.
“A first date,” I tell her, and she leads me over to one of the coolers holding already assembled bouquets.
“Do any of these catch your eye?” she asks. “Otherwise, you can select specific flowers from the loose bins, and I can arrange something special for you.”
I know absolutely nothing about flowers, outside of women love them, and that roses are what they usually want on Valentine’s Day. I look at the different options, finally settling on one that isn’t the biggest arrangement but isn’t the smallest by any means, either.
“Oh, that one’s perfect!” the lady says as I remove it from the cooler. “Let me get you a box to set the vase in while driving.” She disappears into the back room, coming back out a moment later with a box. She places the vase in it before ringing me up. I toss in a box of chocolates they have by the register from a local chocolate shop. I guess I’m going big or going home with this date.
I head home, flowers and chocolates secured in my truck. Once home, I quickly clean it out. I try to keep it clean, but a few wrappers and, of course, crumbs get in the back seat from Paisley eating in here on occasion.
An hour later, I’ve showered, shaved, and am standing in front of my closet in a pair of boxer briefs, trying to decide just what to wear tonight. I told Lindsay to keep it casual, so I need to do the same, plus, we’re going to be outside for most of the night. I pull out a pair of shorts and a polo. Nothing too fancy, but also not just a junk T-shirt, either.
Once dressed, I check the time, and I’ve still got ten minutes to spare before I’ve got to leave. I check my wallet to make sure I’ve got cash for the fall festival. Not all of the vendors are set up to take debit cards, so cash is needed for tonight. I slip my wallet in my back pocket, grab my keys and cell, and head out to my truck. I only have forty bucks in my wallet, so I head out and hit up an ATM before driving over to Lindsay’s house.
I park in her driveway, shutting my truck off and grabbing the flowers and chocolates. I make my way up to her front door, taking in the flowers that adorn her porch. She’s got a cute little place, here. I rap my knuckles against the door as I patiently wait for her to answer.
“Hey,” she says, smiling at me.
“Evening,” I greet, trying my best to bring my southern charm front and center. “These are for you.” I hand over the flowers and chocolates.
“These are gorgeous!” Lindsay exclaims as she takes the bouquet from me. She brings it to her nose, drawing in a large breath of the flowers. “And they smell amazing! Thank you so much.” Lindsay opens her door even wider, allowing me to step inside behind her as she takes the flowers over to her counter.
“How was your day?” I ask, standing just inside the door.
“It was good, and yours?” she asks, coming back over to where I’m standing.
“Good, spent the morning and afternoon with Paisley until it was time to drop her off at my parents' house. She’s having a sleepover with them tonight.”
“Aww, I bet they’ll have fun. Sorry that our date made you miss out on one of your nights with her.”
“It’s okay; I knew that she’d be just as happy at my parents' house as she is at mine. She’s adjusting a little better to having a baby brother at Lilly’s, as well,” I tell her, thinking back to a few weeks ago when Paisley was having some difficulties with the transition to having a new sibling. “You ready to go?” I ask as Lindsay comes to a stop a foot or so in front of me. I realize I’m still holding the box of chocolates, so I hold them out, first. “These are also for you.” I offer them over.
“How’d you know these were my favorite?” she asks, a little shock lacing her voice.
“Just a lucky guess.” I smirk. “That, and they were next to the register at the florist, so really you have them to thank. Perfect product placement,” I quip, but also make a mental note that they’re her favorite. That’s a good nugget of information to have for later on.
“Well, thank you,” she says, placing them on a little table near her front door. “I’ll enjoy those later. Now, where are you taking me?” she asks, and I open the door, holding out an arm for her to walk in front of me. I step aside once it’s closed so that she can lock up, then offer up my arm for her to hold as I escort her to my truck. I break our connection once we reach it so that I can open the passenger door for her. I reach in and toss the box that held the flowers into my back seat, then offer my hand to help her climb up. I, apparently, will do anything to have her skin touching mine.