After a long time on the swings, we went back over to sit with Deira, who produced a juice box for Makayla out of her purse. I sat on the bench, and Makayla climbed up into Deira's lap.
"So, Makayla, I have some questions for you, if you don't mind," I said.
"Okay. Ask me," she replied.
I had a list memorized, about all her favorites and the kinds of things that she liked. I found out that she liked blue, and chipmunks, and "boy" toys like trucks and squirt guns, as well as making crafts and coloring. I mentally repeated all the answers to myself, wanting to be sure I could remember them long enough to write them down later.
As we talked, I could feel Deira relaxing. We'd been at the park for almost an hour, and it had gone really well. I hoped she realized that every time could be like this, and that I would do my best to make that happen.
There was a lull in the conversation, and then Makayla suddenly leaned over to Deira's ear and whispered something. Deira listened, glancing at me, and then nodded at Makayla. Makayla grinned, and then whispered something else to her.
"Why don't you ask him?" Deira replied. Makayla looked at me shyly, and then got down from Deira's lap to stand in front of me.
"Mr. Cassius, do you want to get ice cream with us?"
I couldn't help but grin widely.
"Miss Makayla, I wouldloveto get ice cream with you."
"Yay!!" she cried, clapping her hands and jumping up and down a little. "Have you ever been to Sprinkles? It's right near here."
"No, I've never been. Can you show me how to get there?"
Makayla nodded, and grabbed my hand. Deira and I stood up, and she led us over to the sidewalk and then along the street until we reached a small ice cream shop. We went in and Makayla immediately went to the counter and started looking at all the flavors through the glass.
I saw Deira glance at me, a strange look on her face.
"Everything okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, I just... she really seems to like you." She sounded surprised, and gave me a skeptical look. "She's usually a great judge of character."
"So, I passed the test?" I said, only half joking.
"Too early to say," she replied, but she smiled gently, which I took as another good sign.
Makayla picked three flavors and Deira tried to argue her down to one, and finally we settled on two flavors each after I offered to pay for everyone. We sat at one of the tiny pink tables outside and enjoyed the last of the beautiful afternoon. Apparently, ice cream and swings were all Makayla required to be fast friends, because she chatted away to me about a string of topics, seemingly whatever crossed her mind. I listened intently, glancing at Deira from time to time. At least twice, I caught her smiling at me, and smugly felt like things were going very well.
As the sun started to set, it turned a little chilly, and Deira stood up.
"Okay, baby," she said to Makayla, "time to get going."
"I can drive you guys home," I offered, bracing myself to argue with Deira when she rejected this offer as she always did. Instead, she tilted her head to look at me deeply, and then nodded. I couldn't help but smile at this progress.
I let Makayla pick the music on the drive back, which delighted her. She picked the soundtrack to an animated movie I'd never heard of, and I made a note to look it up later. She obviously loved it, singing along loudly.
"Mom, sing!" she said, shaking Deira's shoulder. Deira reluctantly joined in, singing softly and giving me a small, embarrassed smile. I returned it warmly. I hoped she knew that it wasn't embarrassing at all. In fact, it was adorable.
When we got to their place, Makayla unbuckled herself and leaned between the two front seats.
"Mom, can we play with Cassius again sometime soon?" Deira looked a little surprised, but nodded her head.
"Of course, we can, if you want to," Deira said.
"I want to!" Makayla turned to me. "Do you want to?" she asked.
"I would like that very much," I replied.
"Good!" Makayla said, and she suddenly reached up and gave me a hug. My heart felt like it might burst, and I was amazed. I hadn't realized a small thing like a hug could make me so happy.
I noticed the surprise on Deira's face, but I also noticed that she looked happy, maybe the happiest I'd ever seen her look.
After dropping them off, I drove home and went into my office. I sat at my desk, thinking over an idea that had been forming in my mind. I jotted down my thoughts and decided to sleep on it.
The next morning, a steaming cup of coffee in my hand, I looked over the notes from the night before, and decided it was a great idea. So, I took out my phone and called Deira.
"Hello?" she answered.
"Good morning, Deira," I said. "I was wondering if I could see you sometime today?"
She hesitated, and I quickly clarified.
"It's not about Makayla. I have something else I want to talk to you about. Something good."
"Something good?" she asked, and even though it was a question, her tone sounded warm and friendly. I felt like yesterday going so well had really thawed her attitude toward me.
"Okay, sure. Why don't we meet for lunch? There's a restaurant near my place that has a play space for kids."
"That sounds perfect," I agreed. She gave me the name, and we hung up.
A few hours later, we were eating sandwiches while Makayla played nearby. Makayla had already charmed us into promising we could get ice cream after we were done talking.
"So," Deira said, keeping one eye on Makayla as we chatted, "what did you want to talk about?"
"I was thinking about your job interview..." I started.
"Oh, please," she interrupted, "let's just never think about that day again."
"Well, the thing is, before we had that argument, before I knew that you were, you know,you, I actually had looked over your resume. You have a degree in media relations?"
I glanced at her, and she seemed surprised I was bringing it up.
"Yes, I do. It was a double major, with art. That's what I was interested in, doing something that made art more accessible to the general population. I thought about working for a museum in their publicity department, or possibly starting my own blog. Well, I mean, I had a blog for a while."
I didn't tell her that I had actually looked her up online, and had come across her blog and read every post. She was good at it.
"I don't think it would be a good idea for you to join the company as my assistant," I said.
"No, definitely not," she agreed.
"But we've had a lot of growth over the past few years, and we've expanded a lot, especially in the public arena. So, I was thinking there might be a place for you in one of those departments."
"A place for me?" she asked.
"Yes." I could tell she was trying to stay calm, but she perked up at the idea of a job related to her degree. "From looking at your resume," I continued, "I think there could be a good number of positions that might work for you."
She thought this over, and I could see the wheels turning. There was a small smile at the corner of her mouth.
"What kind of positions?" she finally asked.
"Well, we have a job opening on our copywriting team."
"You have a copywriting team?" she asked in surprise.
"Yes," I said, grinning. "It's part of the branding department."
"Oh, okay," she said. She nodded, but I wasn't seeing the spark I wanted to see.
"Or, we have something in our PR department..." Her eyes lit up.
"Tell me more about that one," she said, and I knew I'd hit upon something that really interested her.
"Well, it's a junior PR associate. You'd be working within the department and with several other departments to shape the company's public image. It involves online outreach, like social media, as well as creative campaigns."
"That sounds really good," she murmured, almost to herself. She had a kind of dreamy look in her eyes and was smiling without realizing it.
"Done. Come to work on Monday and I'll introduce you to your new team."
"What?" she gasped, snapping back to reality. "Don't I have to apply?"
I met her eyes and smiled. She couldn't help but grin but also shook her head.
"Come on, Cassius," she said, almost laughing. "You can't just give me the job."
"Why can't I?" I said, leaning forward. "It's my company."
She pretended to frown, but I could tell she was hiding a smile.
"How about this?" I said, leaning back and winking at her. "I'll send your resume to the team, and suggest you for the job. We'll let them take it from there."
She looked at me, and it was almost like I could see the internal fight she was having. But finally, she nodded.
"That sounds good," she said, and then after a beat, very softly, she said, "Thank you."
I reached out and very gently squeezed her hand, and she didn't pull away.