You ride. I ride.

41. Daddy

<Letty's POV>

"So how are things going between you and Deckard?" Mia inquired.

"It's going pretty well. He's amazing with Tony. But I can tell that it bothers her that she's not his."

<flashback> 

Deckard had made it a habit that he read Tony a bedtime story before she went to sleep. Even though he didn't know it, I always listen to the two of them. 

"And then the baby bear hugged her baby dad and said 'goodnight, papa'. And that's the end of the story." 

I smiled at his words. Today, he had let the door open so I saw how she was sitting on his lap following the pictures. And what I, unfortunately, I had to witness broke my heart for him. 

"DADA," Tony squealed while pointing at him. Deckard paused for a moment. I couldn't imagine what was going through his head when he heard those words but his answer brought tears to my eyes.

"No, sweetie I'm not your Dad. Someone else is your Dad. And he has no idea how lucky he is. But I'm sure he loves you very much. Just like I do, okay? Don't forget that." His voice broke a little, indicating how much the answer had pained him. 

<flashback ends>

"So her first word was dad?" Mia asked tears in her eyes. I nodded. "That's the saddest story I have ever heard. Deckard must feel awful."

"I know. And he's so great with her."

"Poor guy. Do you ever think she'll consider him the dad?"

"What do you mean?" I asked confused. 

"I'm asking whether you think your relationship will ever be serious enough for the two of you to marry." 

I really never thought about it that way. Dex and I were both pretty chill, never really talked about what was going to happen at some point. We were just living together and to some extent raising a child but I never really thought what that might mean to my girl. 

"I love Dex, I really do, it's just that-" I hesitated in telling her. 

"You still love Dom," she finished my sentence. 

I nodded. I hate to admit it but he still popped up in my daily thoughts. And it seemed so trivial at times. I'd be grocery shopping and I'd see a little kid run to his father and I'd think about how Tony would never get to do that. Or I'd hear about something in the radio and I'd wonder if Dom was listening to it too. A part of me was still convinced that we'd meet again someday. 

"I just can't get rid of him." 

"It's only been two years." 

"You're right. It's ALREADY been two years and I still think of him. And in the meantime, Deckard is being the perfect guy."

Mia nodded along, not knowing what to say. 

"I'm just so scared that it'll never change."

-----------------------

But as fate would have it, the universe proved me wrong. As much as I had worried initially about never getting rid of my feelings for Dom, the thought of him became less frequent until I didn't think about him at all. He didn't pop up in my mind when I started working in the garage again, it didn't bother me when people said how handsome Tony's dad must be if she's this gorgeous and I started laughing when people told stories about Dom. 

And as if someone had flipped a switch, the thought of Dom faded completely from my mind and instead was replaced by someone else. 

"How old are you?" Deckard asked Tony as he tied her shoelaces before driving her to kindergarden. No matter how busy Deckard was he always made the time to spend it with Tony and me. 

"I'm three!" She giggled. I don't know what it was about that question that made her laugh so much. 

"High five!" Deckard high fived her and carried her to the car. 

"Mommy, are you driving me today?" She asked excitedly. 

"Yeah, I am."

When Deckard finished strapping her into the seat he pecked me on the lips and said goodbye to our daughter. 

And in the same moment that I noticed how I thought of Tony as OUR daughter, she said: "Bye, daddy." 

"Honey, I'm not-," he was attempting to explain again. 

"You are," I interrupted.  "You might not be her biological father but to her, you're her father. And to me, you're her father too."

He smiled, immediately pulling me into a celebratory hug. 

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And that's how I went to a single, hopless, scared mother to a woman blessed with a loving family. But as karma would have it, happy days never last too long.