{NATHAN}
"Daddy, I want Mommy's waffles. The waffles. I don't like, Daddy."
I sip on my coffee, taking my time before talking to my daughter. I'm leaning on the counter with Livie in my arms while Lia plays around with the food on her plate. She loves my pancakes, but when I make waffles, she prefers Kay's.
Because she associates waffles with her mom, and she misses her mom. So they're not good enough.
"Daddy, where's Mommy?"
Every morning, Lia asks me the same question. She asks for waffles, tells me she prefers her mom's, and then uses the occasion to ask where she is. And every day, I tell her the same lie.
"She's visiting Nanna, but she'll be back soon."
Three weeks. I've been lying to my daughter for three weeks. Lia just calls me Daddy now. Because I'm all she has.
I would have her call me Mr. Nate forever if it meant getting Kay back.
