Chapter 12 Noah
Chapter Twelve
NOAH
Chatting with Skylar was easier than I expected.
The kid was smart and argumentative, but she was loyal as hell to her mother.
She didn’t complain about sharing a room with Everly while I looked for a new place.
She even agreed with me that they should move with me until the man who was after her mom was caught.
Since Everly’s car was still being repaired, it made sense for me to drop Skylar at school.
I was still using Nick’s Escalade, but I would rectify that before the end of the day.
Apparently, it was one of the other parent’s weeks to fetch the kids, so I wouldn’t need to worry about that yet.
But Everly would be contacting the school and placing me on the pick-up list.
Skylar turned in her seat, similar to how her mother did a few days earlier. “Do you have a crush on my mom?”
“What?” I kept my eyes on the road and not wanting her to know how much her question had thrown me. “Why are you asking?”
She never missed a beat as she answered. “The way you look at her. It's almost the same way Holden looks at Sydney.”
“Who are Holden and Sydney?”
“Sydney is Grace’s foster sister. But not for much longer.
They found her family on her mother’s side who are willing to take her.
And Holden Waite is… well he’s Holden. They have a crush on each other and haven’t done anything really and now they won’t because she is moving to San Francisco.
” She paused to breathe. “Not that it should matter. It's not like they’re in some sort of a relationship. It’s just a crush, right. Like you have with my mom.”
Those were a lot of words. Far more than I was used to. “I had a crush on your mother many years ago. Now we’re grown-ups and my priority is getting to know you and keeping both of you safe.”
Skylar rolled her eyes, flashes of the teenager Everly had warned me about, rearing its head. “I think what you had with mom all those years ago was something different to a crush. Crushes don’t have sex on a first date. Did you two even go on a date? Was it a one-night stand?”
“I don’t think any of that is appropriate for a twelve-year-old to know about.”
She turned to look out of her window and folded her arms. “Do the math, old man. I’ll be thirteen in less than two months. I know about sex. At least enough to know that it's something that seems really gross. And I don’t see what all the hype is about.”
“What hype?” Was someone having inappropriate conversations in front of my daughter? “Who said there was hype?”
Skylar shook her head and faced me. “No. We’re not having that conversation. Mom already had that talk with me. I wish I didn’t need to talk to her about things, so you can imagine how little I want to talk to you about this. I just want to know if you have a crush on my mom.”
Did I have a crush on Everly? That seemed over simplistic.
I liked her. She was beautiful and funny.
Adorable and Sexy at the same time. Not that I would tell my daughter that.
I liked spending time with Everly, and I enjoyed her interactions with Skylar.
Watching that warmed something inside me.
Maybe it was a crush with a little lust thrown in.
It certainly wasn’t much more than that.
“I suppose I do have a little crush on your mom. There’s a lot to like about her.”
“And you haven’t even seen her perform yet. You’ll positively fall in love with her. She’s amazing on stage.” Skylar was obviously in awe of her mother. It was something to behold, since I could tell Everly had so much respect for her, too.
It gave me an opportunity to change the subject. “Your mom says you’re a brilliant dancer. I cannot wait to see you on stage.” I chanced a quick glance at her and caught her eyes widen. “When’s the next time I’ll be able to watch you?”
“Really?” The disbelief in her voice nearly broke my heart. “I mean Aunt Brie and Aunt Cassie have come to watch me with their husbands. But my mom’s brothers are not interested. And my grandfather said dancing is frivolous. Grandma Hope and Grandpa Dan said they’ll come and support me at Champs.”
Hope and Daniel were the Salinger siblings’ parents. They’d already welcomed Everly and Skylar into their family. I was grateful for that, but I would show my daughter my full support as well. “Champs?”
“The Southern Californian Dance Championships. I’m competing in three disciplines, three dances in each.” She smiled but lowered her head. “It won’t all happen on the same day, and I don’t expect you to attend all of them. But I will let you know which are the best days.”
I stopped in front of the school but needed to set the record straight before she got out of the car.
I turned and gave my daughter my full attention.
“Sweetheart, I’m your dad. Unless I’m on a mission that I cannot get out of, I will be at each and every one of your competitions and recitals. Am I understood?”
Her swallow was visible, and she blinked a few times as she nodded. She leaned over and hugged me. “Don’t fuck it up with mom. She has a crush on you too.”
I was too stunned to speak. But the parent in me reared its head. “Language, young lady.”
“Sorry.” Her voice was muffled as she closed the door and made her way to the school building.
Twenty minutes later I was pulling into the parking lot of Salinger Security. Nick had just arrived too; his wife went ahead rushing into the building. Bex was at the main building too, holding the door for us. In her long flowy shirt and long sleeve top, she looked nothing like the badass she was.
I wasted no time with pleasantries. “I need to find a car dealership and realtor this morning. Anyone come to mind?”
Nick nodded. “There’s only one dealership in town, but they can source pretty much anything if you’re willing to wait. Ask Julie about the realtor. She found a place within a week of moving to town.”
Julie was the receptionist at the B&B and the sister of someone. I wasn’t sure how she fitted in. But once the Salingers invited you in, they didn’t let go. Almost like a cult, but in a good way.
“I will check it out today. The sooner I can have Skylar and Everly away from that cottage, the better.”
“How are you all getting along? Anything I can do to smooth things along?” Nick was being helpful, yes. But he was also being nosy.
I shook my head and stopped my smile. “I think you’ve done enough.”
At least Nick had the decency to look apologetic. “It wasn’t my intention to blindside Everly. I didn’t know if you were the correct Noah. And I didn’t want anyone getting their hopes up in the event I was wrong.”
I guess I could understand that. Didn’t mean I believed it.
“Did you for one moment think you could be wrong?”
It was a fair question, even if I already knew the answer.
“I saw your eyes in that picture we had on file, and it was plain as day. Add that to the small amount of detail I had? I had no doubt I was right.”
“It’s true.” Bex smiled next to her brother. “You and Skylar have the same eyes. All brown and soulful with those specks of gold. She looks like you, Noah.”
“Maybe.” I wasn’t used to people outside of my team being so close and… intrusive. “But her mannerisms are all her mother's.”
Everyone seemed to agree with that.
Bex scrunched her face. “Uhm… who’s car is that. She pointed over my shoulder, and we all turned at once.
Alertness turned to annoyance as I recognized the car from a few days back.
Nick was the one to answer, though. “Trey Gosling. He’s here for an interview.”
Bex turned to Nick. “That’s why the car looked familiar, but I didn’t know we were hiring. I thought with Noah and Jack Moss, we’re full up for now?”
Nick shook his head and frowned. “Nope. I wanted the rest of Noah’s team as well, but they’ve headed up home to Texas. Apparently, life in Verity Springs called to them. And Jack is heading up the bodyguard department.”
I turned to Nick and frowned. “You wanted me in the interview, right?”
“Yes.” He shook his head and smirked at me. “You’re going to give him a chance though. Just because he had a conversation with your woman and gave you some glares does not mean he is not good at his job.”
Nick was right. I knew he was. That didn’t mean I needed to like the guy. But if he was going to be working with us, we needed to get along. He’d be part of our team. One I would be leading regularly. It wouldn’t do if we couldn’t trust one another.
There was, however, one thing he was wrong about. “Everly is not my woman. She is free to date whomever she pleases.”
Nick smiled at his sister. She, in turn, burst out laughing. Bex just shook her head and patted my shoulder.
“This would be a lot easier if you could just admit that you’re interested.” Bex nudged me as we all walked into the Salinger Security lobby.
I was the last to walk into the rustic lobby. “Interested is not quite the word I would use. Am I attracted? Yes. Do I want a clear idea of who plays a significant role in my daughter's life? Also, yes. But as long as whomever she dates is not a douche to her or Skylar, it is not my business.”
Bex snorted as she turned to face me. “You really believe that, don’t you? Well at least it will be fun to watch.”
“Really?” I figured I could get a dig in while I was at it. “If we’re talking about this, we may as well discuss how, when I offered to distract you at that Holiday Party, your new sister-in-law chose to warn me against a certain doctor.”
I had never seen two confident women blush so fast before. Anna stood at the reception desk and turned when we walked in. She had obviously spoken out of turn when she warned me against Logan, and it seemed I had hit a nerve with Bex.
She recovered quickly, though. “We’re not talking about me. Besides, I’ll deal with those issues when I’m ready.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to say I would do the same, but then that would imply that I had issues with Everly.
And I didn’t. Instead, I turned to focus my attention on the woman sitting at the reception desk.
I recognized her from the Holiday Party.
She was the administrator for Salinger Security.
“Morning… Sue, is it? I got your email you sent me on Saturday. You said you have some paperwork I need to fill out?”
Her light blue sweater that seemed to wrap around her body stood out on her dark skin. “I do.” Sue’s dark curly hair was tied up with what looked like a pencil. “But first, you, Nick, and Lilly have an interview. I think Oliver will be joining you too. There’s the candidate now.”
Nick and I turned in the direction she had pointed to. I took a deep breath and followed as Nick led the potential employee to the conference room.
My shoulders stiffened and I cracked my knuckles.
Next to me Nick spoke under his breath. “Behave yourself.”