Keenan
Ryleigh opened the passenger door to his truck and said, “Okay, boys. Ready to meet my parents?”
Two weeks after that day at the dojo, they were about to meet Ryleigh’s family. The last weeks had been a crazy ride so far where Tommy seemed euphoric at one point but confused at the next.
His son didn’t know how to handle the shift from Ryleigh being his nanny at first, and now his father’s girlfriend. And truthfully, he couldn’t blame him.
Even though he knew his son already loved Ryleigh, Tommy had acted out more in these past weeks than he’d ever done before. It pained him he couldn’t seem to help Tommy. Maybe they should talk to a professional.
The slamming of Tommy’s door brought him back to the next step into his relationship with Ryleigh. Meeting her parents.
She’d already met his family at Tommy’s birthday party, and although he really wanted to meet her family, he also had his reservations about this next step. Tommy already shouted at Ryleigh yesterday that she wasn’t his mom, so she couldn’t tell him to go to bed.
He wasn’t entirely sure Tommy was in the right frame of mind to meet her family. He took a big breath and stepped out of his truck. He righted his shoulders and hoped for the best as he walked up to the front door.
Keenan followed Ryleigh and his son into the crowded kitchen. First thing that caught his attention was the shiny chrome of a wheelchair. The man in the wheelchair folded his newspaper and waved it in the air.
“Ah, the man of the hour has arrived,” he said with a gleam in his eyes.
Next to Keenan, Ryleigh groaned while she rubbed her forehead like she willed her headache to go away.
On the other side of the kitchen that clearly had seen better days, Liv snickered at her grandfather.
“Hi, Liv. Good to see you again. Do you remember Tommy?” he asked in a light tone of voice. He’d heard the story about Liv’s dad from Ryleigh and didn’t want to scare the girl.
Liv nodded at Keenan but didn’t say a word.
Jessie joined Liv and placed her hands on Liv’s dainty shoulders that relaxed a little at her mother’s touch. “Hi Keenan, good to see you again.”
“You too,” he responded to Jessie. He remembered Ryleigh’s sister from meeting her at Declan’s. It still unnerved him how much she resembled his ex.
“Hello, sir. I’m Keenan Mills.” He shook the man’s outstretched hand.
“Good to meet you. I’m Ron Walker. Pretty shitty last name, if you’d ask me.”
Flabbergasted at his reference to his wheelchair, Keenan busted out laughing.
“Dad! There are children present,” Jessie said before she sat down in a chair opposite of Ryleigh and Keenan.
“Ah, please! You should have seen me when my crew worked on a house, and we fell behind schedule. I think your ears would’ve fallen off if you’d heard me then.”
“You worked construction?” Keenan’s voice raised in appreciation because he was glad they had some common ground to talk about.
“Yes. Before the accident.” Ron looked away, across the table, and met his wife’s gaze. “And that lovely lady sitting over there, is my wife, Emily.”
Emily Walker waved at Keenan and said, “Welcome into our home, Mr. Mills. We’ve heard so much about you and Tommy. She’s already smitten with your boy.”
“She’d better not be the only one smitten,” Ron mumbled under his breath as he picked up his coffee cup.
Keenan gripped the back of the chair in front of him, and said, “Please, call me Keenan. I’m not that old.”
“How old are you, son?” Ron slapped the seat in the chair next to him, indicating Keenan should sit down.
“I’m twenty-eight.”
Ron nodded. “Hmm. A bit old for our Ryleigh.”
“Dad!” Ryleigh stressed, checking the living room where Liv and Tommy had started to play. Her shoulders sagged to see Tommy and Liv didn’t pick up on the banter.