Page 103 of All This Time

Fletcher sneaks outside to grab the bike from his truck while Ellis puts on her slip-on sneakers.

“I’m ready!” Ellis shouts, running to the front door and flinging it open to find Fletcher standing proudly by a bike with a giant pink bow on it. Her smile falls instantly and then she turns to walk back inside, shoulders slumping. “I don’t want it.”

Fletcher catches her by the shoulders and hoists her up in his arms before she gets too far. Walking back outside, he holds her as he explains the bike to her. “This isn’t a normal bike, Ellis. It’s special. It doesn’t have pedals.”

The quirk in her brow tells me she’s still not convinced.

“I think you should at least try it, Ellis. Uncle Fletcher has friends who have them and the kids didn’t even need training wheels on their bikes.”

She eyes me skeptically. “I like my training wheels.”

“What if I showed you how it works first?” He suggests, setting her down on the ground next to him.

“Uh, I don’t think you’ll fit on that,” I say.

He gives me a look, then pulls out his phone. “You think?” He plays a video of kids riding the bike so Ellis understands how it works. By the end of the video, she walks over to the bike and tosses her leg over the seat to straddle it. “Okay, I wanna try.”

“Let me go get your helmet.” I race inside to get the spare helmet I keep here. When I return and clip it under her chin, Fletcher takes her to the driveway and helps her get started.

Effortlessly, she pushes herself forward with her feet, wobbling a bit but catching her balance instantly as she glides down the driveway and back up, her smile building as she rolls along the cement. “I’m doing it!”

“You are, sweetie!” I take my phone from my pocket and start recording her so I can send a video to Rhonan later. Ellis is laughing as she rolls along. “You’re doing such a good job!”

“I like this bike!” she calls out to us. “Thank you, Uncle Fletcher!”

“My pleasure, Ellis.” Crossing his arms over his chest, he stands there, watching her with a smile on his face.

I run after her, helping her stop when she gets going too fast. Once she gets that part under control, she’s off. “Can I ride in the street?”

“Yeah. Let’s do it!”

Fletcher runs after her, monitoring her distance along the residential street. Luckily, there’s not much traffic on my road.

I’m so in awe watching her, eager to show my brother how much this bike is helping her, that I nearly miss Fletcher walking up behind me, pressing his chest against my back. “She’s killing it.”

“She is. This is amazing, Fletcher.” Twisting my head so I can see him, I say, “Thank you.”

He tips my chin up with his finger. “I’d do anything for you girls.”

Once the sun has almost completely set and daylight is about to run out, we finally convince Ellis to come inside to finish the movie.Fletcher takes Ellis back into the living room, setting her on the couch. She grabs the bowl of popcorn and offers it to him as he sits next to her, and they proceed to share the snack and watch the movie together.

Meanwhile, I’m still standing in the kitchen, watching this scene unfold in front of me with awe.

I know Fletcher isn’t a complete stranger to my niece, but I haven’t witnessed their relationship firsthand because I always avoided my brother’s house when Fletcher visited. However, as I stand here, listening to them talk to one another, watching the way Ellis smiles at him or how hard she laughs when he makes a joke—it’s showing me this entirely different side to the man that has been frozen in my memories for twelve years.

Fletcher Adams isn’t the same boy I cared about all those years ago—he’s grown up, and so have I. I’ve spent so long assuming I knew who he is that I’ve neglected to understand who he is now. And that version of him is even more dangerous to my heart.

“Auntie?” Ellis’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.

“Yes, sweetie?”

She pats the space on the couch next to her. “Come watch the movie with us.”

Nodding, I walk over and join them. Ellis offers me popcorn, but I decline. I’m staring blankly at the TV, trying to recall what part of the movie we’re at, when I feel a hand at my neck. Slowly, I turn to the side to find Fletcher staring at the television, his eyes not pointed in my direction—but his arm is outstretched on the back of the couch, just long enough to reach my neck and tease the sensitive skin there.

His fingers trail along my collarbone, up the column of my neck to right under my ear before they make their way back down. He repeats the motion over and over again, making my skin pebble, heating me up from the inside out.

“I’m done,” Ellis says, handing me the popcorn bowl before leaning in closer to Fletcher. I glance at the clock and notice it’s almost her bedtime.