Chapter 5
Natalia – an adorable preteen who’s currently in the middle of a breakdown
Chloe
I slam the door shut behind me and kick off my shoes. My feet are killing me, my back is sore, and I smell of beer. I work in a brewery. It’s not unusual to smell faintly of beer. But I smell like a beer factory since a customer threw his beer at me when I cut him off.
I enjoy a nice drink or two at lunch as much as the next person but there’s no reason to be smashed at two in the afternoon. Unless it’s the Moonshine and Merriment Festival and you’ve been hitting the Mermaid Moonshine all morning while watching pirates fight each other.
But the festival isn’t for a few more weeks. So, Mr. Drunk At Two had no excuse. And there’s never an excuse to waste beer by throwing it.
After I shower and wash my hair, I put on a pair of comfy shorts and a t-shirt. There’s no sense in getting dressed up since I’m not going out again.
I make myself a sandwich and plop down on my sofa to eat it. I switch on the television and flip through the channels but nothing interests me.
“How was your day, Switch? What about you, Bait?”
My guppies don’t answer. They never do. Probably because they’re fish.
I’d love to get a dog to keep me company, but I’m not home enough to care for a dog. I’m usually at the brewery handling the restaurant from eleven in the morning until eleven at night. I can’t leave a dog home for twelve hours by himself. I’m lonely. Not cruel.
“Chloe!” Natalia screams before ringing the doorbell.
I rush to the door and fling it open. “What’s wrong?”
Lucas’s daughter rushes inside. “Shut the door. Shut the door.”
“You’re freaking me out,” I say as I shut the door.
“It’s horrible. I’m so embarrassed. I don’t know what to do.” She flaps her arms up and down.
I grasp her hands. “Tell me what happened. We’ll figure this out.”
“I got my period!” She bursts into tears and I pull her into my arms.
“Hey. It’s okay.” I rock her from side to side.
“You don’t understand. It’s my first period and there was blood on my shorts. Everyone saw.”
“Did anyone make fun of you?”
“I’m probably the talk of the summer camp.”
I wipe the tears from her eyes. “We’ll deal with those kids later. First, I need to know if you’re prepared.”
“Prepared?” She squeaks.
“Did your dad talk to you about your period? Do you have supplies?”
Her cheeks darken and she glances away. “No.”
“What about your mom?”
She scowls. “Mom left us. She sends me presents for my birthday, but otherwise…”
Bitch. How can anyone abandon their daughter? Daughters need love and affection, not presents.
“Let’s call your dad.”
I grab my phone but she slaps it out of my hand.
“I can’t talk about this stuff with my dad.”
“Why not?”
I didn’t have a dad. I mean I must have had a dad. Otherwise, I wouldn’t exist. But I never met him. And my mother never had boyfriends who tried to be a dad to me. Creepy boyfriends, on the other hand? Those she had tons of.
“It’s embarrassing. He’s a boy.”
I kneel in front of her. “Here’s the deal, kiddo. I’m your neighbor, not your guardian. I can’t take you shopping for what you need without your dad’s permission.”
Her nose wrinkles. “Oh.”
“I’m going to ring my friend Weston now. He’s a police officer who works with your dad.” Thank goodness for the lack of privacy in this town. I don’t have Lucas’s phone number but I know he’s working with Weston who happens to be my best friend’s brother.
“I won’t tell him why I need to speak to your dad, though. That’s private.”
She nods. “Okay.”
“Hey, Weston,” I greet when he picks up.
“What’s up, wild child?”
I’m thirty and no longer a child but explaining myself to my best friend’s brother who witnessed my teenage rebellion years is a waste of time.
“Can I speak to your partner, Lucas?”
“I heard you struck out with him.”
“What?” Did Lucas tell Weston what happened with the raincoat incident? What a jerk!
Weston bursts into laughter. “I was guessing but you just confirmed it.”
“Whatever. I need to speak to Lucas about his daughter.”
“Shit. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong per se. But we need to do some essential shopping Lucas hasn’t prepared her for.”
“Girl shit?”
“Can you get Lucas for me?”
“He’s tied up at the moment.”
I groan. “Are you still hazing him?”
Weston chuckles. “It’s not my fault he thought he could handle the escaped sheep by himself.”
“Can you let him know I took Natalia shopping?”
“I will. Uh oh. Gotta go. Lucas is not the sheep whisperer he thought he was.”
I shove my phone in my pocket. “Good news. We’re going shopping.”
“Um.” Natalia bites her bottom lip. “Can we maybe go to another town? I don’t want anyone to see me.”
I pat her shoulder. “Don’t you worry. We’re not merely going to another town. We’re going on the mainland and getting manicures. The day a woman gets her first period should be celebrated.”
“I’ve never had a manicure before.”
“It’s your lucky day.”
I want to make it a happy day for her. I want her to forget all about the other kids witnessing her panic when she realized she had blood on her shorts.
We arrive back on the island three hours later. When I pull into my driveway, the front door next door opens and Lucas steps out. I guess the sheep crisis is over.
“He looks mad,” Natalia mutters.
I don’t disagree. He’s got his arms crossed over his chest again. If he’s trying to be intimidating, he’s failing since all I can think about is how I want him to use those arms to lift me up and shove me against the nearest surface.
Stop it, Chloe. No drooling over a man when you’re with his daughter. Boring rule but there you have it.
“Come on. I’ll walk you over.”
I grab the bags from the trunk while Natalia stands next to me biting her bottom lip. “Let’s go.” I steer her across the lawn to her house.
“When Weston said you were going shopping, I thought you were going to the drugstore. Not buying a new wardrobe.”
I follow Natalia and Lucas inside before I respond. “We did go to the drugstore. But we also got our nails done.”
He frowns. “Why do you need three big bags from the drugstore?”
“Shall we sit down and I’ll explain?”
“Dad,” Natalia whines. “Do we have to discuss this?”
I hand her the bags. “Why don’t you unpack and I’ll talk with your dad?”
“Dad?” He nods and she rushes off.
I wait until the door closes behind her before speaking. “I’m sorry. I did try to reach you. I thought you’d call me back and I could explain why we were gone so long.”
“I don’t have your number.”
“You could have asked Weston for it.”
“He claimed he didn’t have it either.”
I chuckle. “He did? I called him earlier, remember?”
He scratches his beard. “I’m ready for this hazing to end already.”
“I don’t think he’s hazing you. I think he’s being Weston.”
He growls. “You know Weston well?”
“Yep. We grew up together and he’s my best friend’s older brother.”
He narrows his eyes on me. “And you were involved?”
I rear back. “Involved? Me? With Weston? He’s a complete man whore.”
“Says the woman who showed up at my house wearing nothing but a raincoat.”
My cheeks warm but I ignore them. “I had shoes on, too.”
Silence falls and I rush to fill it. I’m not good with silence. It brings back too many memories.
“Anyway, as you must have figured out, Natalia got her period for the first time today. She didn’t seem prepared at all.”
He scowls. “Holly, my ex, wasn’t much of a mother.”
I figured as much. “Natalia was pretty embarrassed the other kids knew what happened, but I think she’s okay now. A pretty manicure can cure a lot of problems.”
“Speaking of which.” He reaches for his wallet.
I wave him away. “Don’t worry about it. I had a two-for-one coupon.”
“And the other stuff? Her supplies?”
He shoves a fifty-dollar bill in my hand and I accept it. “I’ll make you a list of the things she needs. And if she has any questions, I’m next door. I gave her my phone number if she wants to talk.”
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me. I know how it feels not to have—” I cut myself off before I confess to all of my mommy issues.
Lucas steps closer to crowd me. “Not to have what?”
“Never mind. We’re discussing Natalia. Not me.”
I inch backward toward the door. He shackles my wrist to stop me. Heat shoots from his hand to my skin. It feels comfortable and exciting at the same time. I bite my tongue before I gasp. Lucas doesn’t want me. There’s no reason for me to embarrass myself by letting him know how much I want him.
“Thank you. I mean it.” He squeezes my wrist before releasing me and stepping back.
I immediately miss the feel of him touching me. I want his arms surrounding me, keeping me safe and warm.
I shake my head. This is not me. I don’t need a man to keep me safe and warm. I’m Chloe. I can do it all on my own.
“Y-y-ou’re welcome,” I stutter before fleeing his house.