It was just Landry and I in the living room now. We were sitting on the couch with about two feet of space between us. She had the remote in her hand and her head leaned back against the cushions. I’d asked her if she wanted to watch a movie, thinking I’d finally be able to catch that new Pixar flick. But instead she’d chosen a documentary on the Animal Planet about chimpanzees. The girl liked monkeys? I’d buy her a monkey. At this point I’d buy her anything she wanted to get her to talk to me. The only member of this family that warranted a happy response from her was Dagger. Which reminded me I needed to buy her a puppy.
I didn’t want Landry to catch me staring at her so I kept my head straight like I was watching TV, but every once in a while I’d cut my eyes to the side, taking her in. She really was very pretty with her dark hair and her light eyes. She was striking, like Bryan and Dylan. This little girl was going to grow up and be gorgeous. Her poor fath…oh wait, that was probably me. Shit. The longer I looked at her, the more I saw. Her beautiful hair had edges that were jagged and uneven. Almost like she had tried to cut it herself. And she was thin, thinner than I thought a kid should be. Her jeans were three inches too short and her shoes looked like they’d seen better days. I wondered if all the clothes in her suitcase were too small. I should take her shopping. No. I should wait for Bryan to get here, then I’d take her shopping. I glanced down at my watch; that was five hours from now. What was I supposed to do with Landry until then? She was going to need to eat again, right? And how many documentaries could one kid watch in one day before it was considered too many? Okay, I’d take her shopping and feed her and then we could swing by the airport and pick up B. And then everything would be okay. Once Bryan got here, things would be fine because she’s a girl and she’s my friend and she’ll know what to do. At least until my mom gets home. I should have never bought my parents those stupid cruise tickets.
“Hey, um, Landry?” She turned to look at me, her expression never changing. Talk about stoic. Except for those eyes, they were expressive. They held caution and doubt and fear. She was just as terrified as I was. She was just stronger than I was. Her life had made her that way…. The horrible person I’d knocked up had made her that way. “Um, well, I was…I had planned on going shopping today for some new clothes. Would you like to come and do some shopping, too? I mean, with me?”
Her voice was steady. “I don’t have any money.”
What was I supposed to say to that? Well, kiddo, as a matter of fact you do have money. Whether by design or accident, you hit the genetic jackpot! “I have money and I would very much like to give you some…to go shopping with.”
“Really?” Now those baby blues held hope. Just a tiny spark of hope.
My chest swelled with emotion, and suddenly I wanted to give this kid the whole damn world. “Yes, will you go with me?”
“Okay.”
“Okay? Okay, good. We’ll go after the monkey show is over.”
Landry turned back toward the TV. “Chimpanzees aren’t monkeys; they are apes.” She used the remote to point at the screen. “You need to pay closer attention.”
***
I had no clue where to take a young girl shopping. I knew where I liked to shop, and I knew where Lexi and Dylan liked to shop…so we went to Nordstrom’s. We walked in and headed straight to the personal shopper section. I did not need to incite a chick mob in front of Landry. She needed normalcy, not grown women asking me to sign their breasts. Our personal shopper’s name was Garrett; he was as gay as the day was long. And I loved him. He made Landry laugh, so in my book? He was a superhero.
“What about these?”
I looked up from the game I was playing on my PS3 to see Landry standing in a very pretty sundress. She was smiling. “It’s perfect. We’ll take it in every color.”
Garrett put his hands on his hips. “Whatever you say, Daddy Warbucks.”
Landry looked up at him. “Who’s Daddy Warbucks?”
Garrett put his hand on her shoulder, steering her back toward her plush dressing room. “You’ve never seen Annie?”
And that’s how the next hour went. If Landry was smiling I told her she looked amazing and I loved whatever she was wearing. If she looked uncomfortable, I shook my head. This all seemed to make her happy. But she still wasn’t really talking to me. I could hear her laughing with Garrett in the dressing room and she held his hand as they flitted around the store. Still, she never said much to me. I was trying not to take it personally. I was freaked out too. Total uncharted territory.
We were standing at the private cash register while they totaled up our purchases and boxed up all Landry’s new clothes and shoes. I looked down when she tugged on my shirt. “What’s up, Buttercup?”
She held her hand out. “You said I could use your money.”
“Yes, ma’am, I sure did.” I smiled and pulled out my wallet. “Here you go.” I handed her my black AmEx card.
She stood on her tiptoes and placed the card on the counter. Garrett took it from her. “Thank you, my lady.”
I looked down when I heard her giggle at his words. She was wearing a pair of black leggings with a bright pink tutu and t-shirt. She had on a pair of bright pink Chucks. She looked like she’d just stepped out of a GAP Kids catalogue. Much better. There was just one more thing… I cleared my throat. “Uh, Garrett? Is there a good place to get a haircut around here?”
He looked up, an understanding smile on his face. He grabbed the phone next to him and hit one button. “I need a favor…”