The Summer Bride (TSBS-1) COMPLETED

Chapter Five

Any fool can be a father but it takes a real man to be a daddy.
- Philip Whitmore Sr.

Tyler Sanders

The house was very quiet but the slight murmurs of the people under my roof were hearable.

I twirled the pen in my hand and gripped the paper tightly. Once again, my eyes travelled through the information written there, memorising every line. They were going to be intercepted in my brain for years to come.

But when a certain person came into my mind, I sighed. Letting go of the paper, I stood up and rubbed the frustration out of my face. The stubble in my jaw scratched the inner skin of my palm reminding me to shave it off soon.

The afternoon outside the house was very warm. Light slipped through the window pane brightening my study room. I walked on barefoot feeling the carpeted floor beneath me, to stand before the window and gaze over the backyard. The gardeners were still tending to the flowers and bushes surrounding the backyard.

Every person was delayed for their chore of the day because of the little daughter of mine. At the first light of the day, she started wailing and throwing things around in anger saying she needed her mommy. I knew who she meant at that time but I had no words of comfort for her.

Since after her throwing things session she directed her anger over to me, I got delayed too. Thus, I stayed home to sort the problem out but eventually failed to solve it. It was not needed though. After Lydia became tired of throwing things around, her little feet walked her to her bedroom and I hadn't seen her since then.

Mommy.

She really needed a mother to groom her into a proper lady because I had no experience in that department. My knowledge only took me as far as to the inside of the boardroom. At home, parenting Lydia was hopeless. My mother could not tend to her needs daily. She had her own life to live with my father. It was not like she did not offer. She did but looking at the way Lydia behaved with her, I took the liberty to decline her offer.

The way I could see now. Lydia turned into a spoiled brat, throwing random tantrums, taking over the whole house. She had destroyed half her toys in her anger. Mom said she inherited her temper from me but I believe I wasn't that spoiled back in my childhood. It wasn't like I wouldn't buy her new things. I would but the way she behaved now-a-days had me worried.

My head started hammering with all these worries. And the waiting I did in these last three days didn't help me at all. Though right now, an aspirin would greatly help me. Taking a deep breath, I walked back to the mahogany desk and picked up the deserted paper that included the further details of the woman whom I hadn't seen or heard from, since three days now.

Claire Bishop

When would you call me, Ms. Bishop? When she said she needed time to think, I thought maybe it was only for a day or two but soon it would be the end of the third day and still, she didn't contact me.

As usual the worry crept on me at the thought of her backing away from my offer. I wouldn't blame her if she refused. I, myself had second thoughts about it but when my mind showed me the smile playing on Lydia's face on the day she pointed out her mommy, I relaxed myself and became more determined to make her happy forever.

In order to do that, if I had to give up my bachelor life then I would. Nothing would make me content than to have my family fulfilled but it wasn't up to me. It was up to Claire now. Her decision would make Lydia either a very happy little girl or make her a very wailing little girl and I couldn't handle her that way. I needed Claire to be the mother of my daughter. We both needed her in our house.