“Wait a minute, my cake from this morning wasn’t from here,” I said teasingly.
“No well, I had to make sure you were worth it. And after those locker room antics, you definitely earned it,” she said with a grin.
“So, speaking of Lucas,” I said, steering the conversation back. “Is his dad in the picture?”
“Lucas’ dad?” She asked.
“Yeah, his dad?”
“Right, yes, his dad. Of course. It’s just, he, well,” she stammered, it felt odd seeing her so flustered. “He hasn’t been in the picture.”
“Oh, well that’s too bad. He seems like a great kid. Any guy would be lucky to have a son like him,” I replied. It might have just been the wind, but Tinsley seemed to tear up at that moment. Something was up, I just needed to figure out what had her so shaken after our amazing day.
—
Later that day, I drove home from my date with Ryan in a haze. His words had really rocked me. He was right that any guy would be lucky to have a son like Lucas but what if he found out he was “any guy?” Then what would he think?
My cell phone cut through the confusion in my head with the tone that was reserved for Lucas. I smiled to myself. If anyone could brighten my day and pull me out of my head, he could.
“Hey buddy, I can’t wait to see you. I know it’s only been one day apart but,” I was interrupted by sobs coming from my sweet boy.
“Mommy, Tyler says I don’t have a real family because I don’t have a daddy. He says everyone has a daddy and if I don’t, then I don’t have a real family,” he said bawling.
“Oh no honey, that’s so not true. I am so sorry Tyler said such a jerky thing to you, but we’ve been over this, families come in all shapes and sizes. Yours just looks different than his,” I said trying to calm his storm.
“No mommy, he says it’s not real. He says if I don’t have a daddy then I am an orphan.”
Note to self, find this Tyler kid and kick his ass!
“Honey, that’s simply not true. I know Tyler thinks he’s right but remember the people in your class. Some of them have two mommies and no dad. Some of the kids are being raised by their grandparents. Some kids have two daddies. Those are all families,” I said.
“But mommy, do I have a daddy?” he asked in a somber tone.
I took a deep breath and begged for some sort of distraction to save me from this. I needed to talk to Ryan, I couldn’t really give Lucas too much info without knowing what he wanted out of the situation. And just like that, the skies parted and I got my miracle.
“Hey mom, I gotta go, pizza just got here. I promise to save you two slices,” and the phone line went dead.
That was too easy. I needed to make a plan. It was time to come clean with everyone.
15
TINSLEY
I had not expected to enjoy Utah as much as I did. Ryan had told me how much fun these film festivals could be but they always seemed a bit pompous to me. Just a bunch of movie stars traipsing around, collecting a bunch of free goodie bags.
In reality, it was an absolute blast. We got to see as many movies as we wanted around the clock. All the traditional movie theater snacks were there, but elevated.Truffle buttered popcorn? Yes please!
We spent the first day wandering around from showing to showing. The guys and Adrienne would spend a half hour or so out front taking pictures with various actors, directors and producers in front of their movie posters and step and repeats, while I grabbed us seats and enjoyed a break from the every day.
I loved my life as a mom but being here on a little getaway made me feel like I was in college again, or at least finishing out my college experience the way I had expected too.
Even though my parents had been willing to babysit Lucas when I was young and living in Chicago, it was hard to stay out until the wee hours of the morning when you knew you had a baby that would be waking up by 6 A.M.
I hadn’t realized how much I needed the break from reality until I’d gotten here. And even though it was work and we still had to schmooze and go see a bunch of the various projects, it was like the vacation I hadn’t known I’d needed.
My favorite part though had to be sitting in the cold, dark theaters with my guys. It was so dark and no photography was allowed inside so we were free to cuddle up.
Thiago and I chose a different film than the rest of the group for our last showing of the day. I went inside to wait for him as he posed for photos outside and talked to the press.