I wished that I could calm her nerves. I would do anything to take away all of the anxiety that was radiating off of her. But since I couldn’t do that, I just walked beside her hoping that my being there was enough.
She’d mentioned before, over the months, that she was comfortable around me. That just me being around made her feel calmer and more grounded. I loved that I had that effect on her and hoped that I did now.
When we reached the large oak door she lifted her arm and knocked. When she lowered her hand back to her side she rolled her shoulders back and stood taller as if she was preparing herself for whatever was to come.
I couldn’t deny that I had my own case of nerves I was battling. I had no clue if Wayne was Cheyenne’s father. I hoped like hell he was. That would give her the answers that she needed and also it would mean that my dad was out of the running.
When the door opened, I saw a much older version of the man that I remembered working at the car lot. He was shorter and had a lot less hair than the Wayne I knew, but he had the same square jaw and sharp nose. My heart sank slightly. I didn’t see any resemblance between the man standing in front of me and Cheyenne.
“Hi, I—”
“Cheyenne,” Wayne breathed out, his eyes searching her face. “You look just like her. You look just like your mother.”
I’d asked Cheyenne once, right after she moved back to Firefly, how it made her feel when people looked at her like they were seeing a ghost. She said that she wished it made her feel closer to her mom, but actually, it made her feel even more disconnected because they obviously knew a person that she had very few memories of.
“Um…” Cheyenne shifted her weight from her left to her right foot. “I’m sorry to just show up like this but I was wondering if we could ask you some questions?” Cheyenne motioned to me.
When she did Wayne took his eyes off of her for the first time. He looked surprised that there was someone else standing on his porch.
“Hi, Mr. Lemont, I don’t know if you remember me. My name is Cash—”
“Malone, how are you?” He held out his hand and I shook it. “Wow, you’re all grown up. How are your folks?”
“Mama’s good, she actually lives not too far from here. And daddy passed a few years back.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. He was a good man.”
I had my own theory about that but I kept my opinion to myself.
“Well, come in. Sorry, I’m just…” Wayne’s head moved back and forth as he shook it slowly. “I really can’t get over how much you look like her. Even your voice, it sounds just like her.”
Cheyenne grinned as we followed Wayne inside. He led us to a large family room with a massive flatscreen TV surrounded by built-ins on one end and a sectional sofa facing it. “Have a seat. Can I get you two anything to drink? Water, pop?”
“I’m fine, but thank you,” I replied as I waited for Cheyenne to sit on the couch and then lowered beside her.
“No, thank you.” Cheyenne tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and then picked up a framed photo off the end table beside her. “Are these your children?”
I looked down and saw a photo of two teenage boys and a young girl who looked to be around five years old.
“Yeah, that’s Teddy and Cliff, my sons from my first marriage. And that little one is my youngest, Sabrina.”
“Sabrina?” Cheyenne looked up.
“Yeah. Nancy, my second wife, suggested it when she found out we were having a daughter. She knows how much I loved your mother.”
Cheyenne sat staring at the picture. I wondered if she might be thinking the same thing I was, that the little girl with blonde hair and big blue eyes in the picture looked a lot like she had at that age.
“I’m sorry.” Wayne apologized, the pain obvious in his tone.
“For what?” Cheyenne lifted her head.
“I should’ve gone and spoken to you and your brothers to your face to tell you about your mom and me. I shouldn’t have just written a letter. I’m sorry. It’s just…there are so many memories there.”
Cheyenne set the photo back on the side table. “In the letter, you said that my mom was pregnant.”
I was so proud of Cheyenne. I knew that this was tough for her, it would be for anyone. But she was handling the situation better than anyone could expect.
At the mention of Sabrina’s pregnancy, Wayne flinched. “She was.”