Beau nodded at me as he spotted Robbie, but there was still no response from the boy. “He’s high up in the tree. I’m going to go up there and get him.”
“Uh, okay. Should I get the ladder? How will you get up there with your cast?”
“I’ll manage. Are you coming up here like that?” He looked me up and down suggestively, and I realized it would make it rather hard to get in a tree in my current attire of the flimsy dress and sandals I’d put on in a hurry to find Robbie.
“Get up there and get your son. I’ll be right back.” I watched as Beau grabbed the branches with his good hand, swung himself up easily, and made his way to Robbie.
He seemed so small in that big tree. A smile played on my lips as I turned away to grab the ladder from the garage. Beau didn’t think he had it in him to be a dad, but he already was. He didn’t need to think about how to do a good job because he was a natural.
After quickly changing into a pair of workout pants and sneakers, I hauled the ladder to the back yard. “Beau?”
“Up here,” he said. “The view is great from here. Come on up and join us.”
I heard nothing from Robbie, so I wondered if Beau had gotten him to talk at all. I set the ladder up and climbed the rungs until I could get to a branch. How in the hell had Robbie gotten up here? I heard whining from the ground and saw the neighbor’s dog lying down by the fence, watching us.
When I finally got into the tree, I immediately saw Beau but not Robbie. Making my way to him, I moved slowly to make sure the branches were sturdy. I wasn’t necessarily afraid of heights, but I sure as hell didn’t want to fall.
Beau’s hand reached out for me as I got closer and I took it, settling next to him on an opposing branch. Robbie was within arms length but still far enough away to seem like he didn’t want to be bothered. “Well, there you are. I’m sure glad we found you, Robbie.”
The look on Robbie’s face knocked the breath out of me, and there was no more time for joking. His gaze flitted to Beau and then back down. That’s when I saw that his knees were scraped and bleeding.
I wasn’t sure what Beau had already tried, but we needed to get this child out of the tree. I thought about all the kids I’d talked to over the years, many of them upset about being taken from their families or from what they had been through in the process. It was time to pull out every strategy I’d ever been taught.
“Robbie,” Beau said before I could say another word. “What you heard me say is not what I meant. Can I explain to you what I was talking about?”
Robbie stiffened but didn’t say anything, his gaze focused on the bark of the branch he was sitting on.
“Think about what we were talking about last night, Robbie. Do you think I don’t want you?”
I watched as he worked his lip between his teeth, thinking about what Beau was saying. When Robbie still didn’t speak, I decided to interject.
“Sometimes when you’re an adult, things happen that you aren’t prepared for. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t make you happy or doesn’t end up being the best thing, but things take you by surprise sometimes. Does that make sense?”
Robbie glanced at me briefly, nodding his head once. He was listening. I heard Beau blow out a breath. Progress was progress.
“That’s exactly what I meant by that.” Beau took over. “My whole life, I didn’t think I wanted to have kids. Remember when we talked about when we get upset and angry?”
Robbie nodded again, but didn’t speak.
“I didn’t want to ever be upset and angry with a child, so I decided not to have any. That doesn’t mean at all that I don’t want you, Robbie. I do want you. I wasn’t lying to you when I said that. I’m your dad, and I’m going to be here with you every single second. I’m sorry you had to hear me say that to April, but please believe me when I say I didn’t mean it at all the way it sounded.” Beau paused, giving Robbie a moment to absorb everything he’d said. For a man who didn’t like to talk and had been rather mute when I’d first met him, he was doing fabulous with expressing his feelings.
Robbie hiccupped and then began crying, moving carefully so he was closer to both of us. His tear-stained face looked up at the two of us, breaking my heart with every tear that slid down his face.
“Robbie, we both want to be here with you. We aren’t leaving you. No matter what happens—whether it’s good, bad, or in-between, we’re going to be here with you.” As the words left my mouth, I hoped Beau was in this for the long haul, because I wasn’t going to disappoint this child. Maybe I’d been a little premature in assuming I’d be part of Robbie’s life for the long term, but I wanted to be.