Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Josie
Three months postpartum
The last month has flown by, my clients were all thrilled when I announced my books were opening up again. I am solidly booked up until Shiloh is out of school for the summer. The familiar go, go, go of getting back to work was a slight adjustment.
Thankfully, I adjusted my summer hours before opening my books so I can enjoy the summer with everyone.
There were some mistakes as I got back into the swing of things. It was mostly small miniscule things, like I didn’t restock my waxing strips before my next appointment. So when I went to grab one to prepare my next strip of wax. I had to run across the room to get some more.
See, small. Fixable.
I’m sitting in my shop with the front door closed so I can pump. I have just enough time to get this done and stuff some food in my stomach before my next client.
Thank you hands free pump bras.
The quiet pulsing sound of the breast pump continues as background noise as I go over the rest of my day. Taking a bite out of the baby carrot, enjoying the crunch and the minute of reprieve.
I know reopening the shop couldn’t have been made possible without Evie’s help. Without her I probably would be looking at opening much later, in a much less organized state. There’s a knock on the door, my brows furrow in confusion.
I’m not expecting my next appointment for fifteen minutes. I just finished pumping and was placing the milk into their designated storage bags.
“One minute!” I yell as I quickly gather the bags and place them into the mini fridge I have behind my front desk. I place the parts of the pump in the sink. With the intention to rinse them quickly.
I look through the peep hole and see the messy blonde bun that belongs to Evie, as she is looking down talking to Hayes in her arm. He’s calm and content, with a smile on his face. Which triggers mine to grow as well.
My smile gets wider when I open the door to see Hayes giggling. “Well hey there, it’s some of my favorite people”
Evie looks at me, eyes round. She opens and closes her mouth a few times before she begins to say something. “He just woke up from his nap, and I know that you had a bit of time before your next appointment. So, I thought we would come over and say hi.”
“Well, I can’t say no to that.” I reach out and take my boy in my arms. I pepper him with kisses and enjoy the company that surrounds me before my next appointment arrives.
Doing my final sweep of the shop, I make sure everything is ready to go for tomorrow. When I’m satisfied with everything, I grab the bag of garbage on my way out the door and put it in the trash cart on my way to the house.
I stayed open a bit later tonight, so the boys are already in bed. With Evie here, we agreed that I’d work two late nights a week as long as my books keep filling. I somehow managed to get a bigger clientele than I had before having Hayes.
I don’t know how it happened but I’m not complaining. I love being able to help people make themselves feel good. Self care is important, and I love being able to make someone’s day with a simple face mask or lash extension.
Monty and Evie are at the dining table with drinks in front of them. Evie spots me enter the room first and I notice how she lights up. I can’t help the butterflies that begin to fly in my stomach or the smile that spreads on my face.
“You’re done!” She says, “We were making bets when you’d be coming in for the night.”
Monty turns to face me, but then gets up and closes the distance. “I lost.” He grumbled, “your dinner’s in the microwave, let me warm it up for you.”
He heads to the kitchen and I sit down and join them at the table.
Evie has Flip Seven sitting on the table, she begins to shuffle the deck and places it in the middle.
She found this game while watching her favorite YouTube channel.
She immediately looked it up and ordered it for the house.
It’s the game we reach for the most in the evenings when the kids are in bed.
“How was your day?” She asks me as Monty places my plate of roasted chicken and potatoes with grilled asparagus in front of me with a glass of water. I don’t hesitate when I shove a forkful in my mouth and reply between bites.
“It was busy.” I mumble, grabbing a sip of water before continuing. “I’m booked up on my late nights solid for the next two months.”
“That’s amazing Jojo.” Monty praises me as he takes his spot back beside me. I preen at his comment and continue to eat while we play two rounds of the card game.
These evenings are becoming more common, the three of us sitting at the dining table playing some sort of game and just talking.
I look forward to this part of the evening as much as I look forward to seeing my boys in the morning.
This part of our lives that feels beyond what we anticipated when we first asked for help those few months ago.
I don’t know what it is about Evie, but her being here in our life is effortless.
The way she cares for the boys, I find myself almost becoming wishful that she never has to leave.
My stomach does another summersault at the thought of her staying, the conversation that Monty and I had all those years ago about finding someone to invite into our relationship.
We always agreed that we needed to be sure, because there was Shiloh involved at that point and we didn’t want anyone to be involved in our lives if they were just going to potentially leave down the road.
I watch as Evie throws her head back and laughs at something Monty said, and I begin to picture what our lives would look like if she wasn’t just Evie our nanny.