Free Be My Baby by Andrea Smith

after my bath.
    I went into the adjoining nursery and
watched as she was sitting up in her crib babbling to her stuffed
animals in a language only she understood. Her voice was soft and
melodic like Trey's I thought to myself. She spotted me as I got
close to the crib.
    She scrambled up to stand at the rail. She
was wearing just a diaper and tee shirt. Her chubby little legs
were so cute as she bounced up and down holding her arms up for me
to lift her.
    "Hey baby girl," I cooed to her, lifting her
out of her crib.
    She gurgled and smiled at me, her thumb
finding her mouth as she sucked on it.
    I got a clean diaper and the baby wipe
dispenser taking her into my room to change her. Once she had her
clean diaper on she rolled onto her stomach and crawled to the edge
of the bed. She wanted down. I lifted her off the bed and she went
scurrying back to the nursery to get some of her toys.
    I went back to the bathroom and blew my hair
dry. I applied some eye make-up. I was wearing a new pair of skinny
jeans with a new pair of boots I had bought last week. I wore a
black v-neck sweater. I looked at my reflection. The dark brown
hair had to go. I was going to have it re-colored I decided. I
certainly didn't want to pay tribute to that conniving bitch. What
had I been thinking?
    I dressed Preston in corduroy bibs and a
long sleeved cotton tee shirt. Purple was definitely my girl's
color. I brushed her baby hair out of the braid and it fell into
soft waves. I put a couple of little baby barrettes in her
hair.
    "There sweetie. You look so pretty
today."
    Dinner was cordial. Most everyone's
attention was focused on the baby. I felt grateful for that. I had
a feeling of guilt about going out this evening to have some fun. I
had to remind myself that Trey was here to spend time with Preston
and not with me. We were separated for right now. My change in
appearance from earlier had not gone unnoticed by Trey. I saw him
studying me over the rim of his wine glass.
    "Do you have plans this evening Tylar?" he
asked point blank, cocking an eyebrow.
    My father looked over at me from where he
had been cutting up some cooked carrots for Preston.
    "Nothing major planned," I replied, "Just
going out for a bit with a friend."
    (That was not a lie!)
    Trey continued to gaze at me at me
quizzically. I so knew that he wanted to know more. He had too much
pride to dig any deeper. My father apparently did not.
    "What friend?" Dad asked not taking his eyes
off of Preston.
    She was smashing the soft cooked carrots
into her mouth faster than my father could continue slicing
them.
    "Dad," I moaned giving him the evil eye,
"It's a friend okay?"
    Now they were both watching me making me
totally uncomfortable. It was if I was a teenager being grilled by
both of them - one silently; the other one not so much.
    "I certainly didn't mean to pry Tylar,
though your behavior is rather surreptitious this evening." my
father said. "It is Preston's first day here. I thought you would
want to spend it with her."
    I saw Trey give a silent smirk as he waited
for me to reply.
    "Dad I fully intend to bathe her and get her
ready for bed. She'll be asleep when I leave. Besides that, this is
really Trey's weekend with her. I will be with her all week long
now, caring for her as a good and fit mother should."
    "I didn't mean to imply that you weren't a
good or fit mother Tylar," he responded with an edge of sternness
creeping into his voice. "I was merely expressing my opinion I
suppose."
    "Your opinion is always welcome Dad. I will
ensure that Preston is tucked in before I leave. Perhaps you and
Trey can watch Sport Center or something since you both seem to be
fans of the same channel."
    I got up from the table, tossing my cloth
napkin onto my half full plate. I was a bit ticked off that my
father had taken me to task in his own subtle way about my going
out for the evening. He had practically accused me of acting
sneaky. The fact that he had done it in front of Trey had