Chapter Seventeen
Jessica
For the next two hours, Alan and I talked nonstop as he helped me roll and shape the dough, then get it in the oven. We’d even managed to get a batch frosted before Ruthie woke up hungry.
“Right on schedule,” I said as I moved to the sink to wash my hands before going to feed her.
“I’ll give you some privacy,” he said as he took his apron off and hung it up on one of the hooks. Then he adjusted the baseball cap Lainey had given him and walked toward the swinging doors while I headed toward the office. I heard him call my name and turned around to find him looking at me.
“Do you need anything? A snack? Water? Juice? I’ll have Lainey bring it to you.”
I wanted to hug him for offering.
Okay, maybe more than hug him.
I was already going to hell, so why not?
“Some water would be great, thank you.”
“You got it.” He gave me a wink that made my knees feel weak, and I retreated into the office to nurse Ruthie.
After she was situated at my breast, I decided to forego the earbuds and audio book and play some classical music through my phone.
Ever since reading about studies that showed listening to music while breastfeeding could help reduce stress, increase breast milk expression, and calm the baby, I tried to do it at least once a day.
Besides, I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to comprehend my audiobook. I was trying to make sense of why Alan was being so nice to me.
The last two hours we’d spent laughing, flirting, and talking. He’d made me feel like I was interesting and worth getting to know as a person. He’d wanted to know my opinions on various topics.
And it felt weird.
No one had ever asked what I thought about anything.
He’d chuckled softly when I told him that Ruth wasn’t really named for the woman in the bible—although that’s what I’d told everyone.
No, I’d chosen her name based on the badass character from the Netflix series, Ozark.
No one had known I’d even watched it since obviously that would be frowned upon, but I’d binged it on campus between classes.
I’d never told anyone that, but I’d felt safe sharing it with him.
He didn’t disappoint when he’d exclaimed, “That’s awesome! I freaking love Ruth!”
Although we both agreed that we hoped for a better ending for my Ruth.
I could feel myself getting sleepy; working all day yesterday here, then my chores at home, and taking care of Ruthie had wiped me out. Her 2 a.m. feeding had been rough, and 6 a.m. had come awfully fast.
I must have dozed off, but my eyes flew open when I heard Lainey’s voice calling my name.
“Hey, mama,” she said with a smile when I got my bearings and looked over at her. “Alan said to bring you a snack and some water. And he wanted to know if you were done so he could burp Ruthie.”
“He was serious about that?”
“Apparently so. He reminds me of how Adam was when he first met Conor. He wanted to be involved in everything. I called him the baby whisperer.”
His kindness caught me off-guard. My own family didn’t even help me with her. Although, I think my mother would do more, but my father discouraged it.
I’d made my bed, now I got to lie in it.
I didn’t mind. I loved being a mom. But doing everything alone sometimes took its toll.
I glanced down at Ruthie suckling my breast, then replied, “Maybe fifteen more minutes.”
“I’ll let him know.”
She disappeared out the door, and I took a drink of water and thought about what she’d said about Adam wanting to be involved with her son.
That made sense, since the two of them were now together. Of course he’d want to step up.
But I couldn’t understand what Alan’s motivation was.
****
Alan
“She should be ready for you in about fifteen minutes,” Lainey said when she came back out into the storefront with a tray of croissants and cupcakes.
The place was quiet, Lainey called it the lull before the lunch rush. Her employee, Paulina, was busy wiping down the tables and chairs while Lainey refilled the display cases.
I almost felt guilty while I sat enjoying my croissant and jam, but Lainey had insisted I take a break.
“And not that I’m complaining about free labor,” she said, “but are you planning on hanging out here all day?”
“All week, actually. If you don’t mind.”
She looked up at me. “You’re going to work here all week? For free?”
“Yep.”
Lainey shook her head and murmured, “You Callahan boys are tenacious, I’ll give you that.”
Working in the kitchen with Jess hadn’t felt like work, it’d felt like foreplay.
It was a chance to get to know her. And I wanted to know every single thing about her.
One thing I had gleaned from our conversation—she was a helluva lot stronger than people gave her credit for.
“Are you going with Adam to pick up your parents at the airport?”
Lainey’s question brought me back to the present.
“I don’t think so. I have to take Jess and Ruth home at four-thirty.”
“I’ve got Marie coming in to close so I can leave early today and get ready for your parents. I can drop them off.”
No, no you can’t.
“I see my parents all the time. In fact, I had breakfast with them three days ago, right before I left to drive here. I don’t need to go to the airport to pick them up. It’ll give Adam a chance to catch up with them.”
Considering it’d been almost four months since my brother last saw them when he was recovering in the hospital, I didn’t think that was a bad thing.
He’d never made it back to Lancastle after he was discharged from the hospital—and the Marines.
His one-day pitstop in Haven Springs on his way home turned into something permanent once he’d met Lainey.
“But you are coming to dinner tonight, right?”
I couldn’t help but grin. “Looking for allies?”
“You know it.”
“Of course I’m coming to dinner, but I’m going to tell you right now, my parents are going to love you and Conor. They’re going to adore being grandparents.”
“You better not let the O’Briens hear you say that. Teresa and Hugh are very defensive about their grandparent title.”
“Even with your parents?”
“My parents live in Savannah, and we see them about five times a year, so Teresa begrudgingly allows that. I think if Katelyn ever gets married and has a baby, they’ll ease up. But right now, Conor is their only grandchild.”
“He’s going to be my parents only grandchild, too.”
She threw her hands up. “I’ll let them duke it out, then. I guess it could be worse, and he didn’t have any grandparents.”
It occurred to me that my parents would love Jess and Ruthie, too. I needed to bring them into the bakery tomorrow so I could introduce them.
Standing up, I said, “I’m gonna go see if Ruthie’s done nursing.”