14. Losing Sleep
CHAPTER 14
Losing Sleep
H eath couldn’t stop smiling as he and Addy waited for the bus to drop off Nina and the other kids who lived in Phail. They’d ended up staying an extra night in Boston so they could clean out his condo as much as possible and then list it for sale.
Addy had tried to slow him down, worried he would have regrets, but it all felt so right. Being in Phail, being with Addy. Waiting for their daughter to get off the bus.
There were only five kids who got off in Phail, and none of them were Addy’s age, but the kids all interacted like friends. Another advantage of a small town, although it could be a disadvantage, too. Friends of all ages, but not many friends her own age.
Nina’s eyes lit up as she spotted them. She jogged along the sidewalk and threw herself at Addy. “Missed you.”
Then she threw herself at him. “Missed you too, Dad.”
His heart damn near exploded. He would never take that for granted. He hugged her tightly and swallowed hard. “Missed you too, Nina. I’m glad we’re home.”
“I can’t believe you’re selling that huge condo to move to the farmhouse. I’m so glad you’re going to be close.” Her preteen gaze moved between them, assessing. Addy had warned him Nina was incredibly perceptive. But she didn’t ask any questions. Not yet. She’d probably ambush Addy later.
“Are you okay after talking to your parents? They weren’t very nice to you.”
He hugged her again, wanting to be honest without hurting either of them more than they’d already been hurt. “They’re proving to be not very nice people. Your mom says to keep an open mind and give them a chance to digest what we said to each other. Maybe they’ll get in contact with me. Maybe not. But I’ve got you two as my family and some really great friends here in Phail, so I’m okay.”
Her small arms squeezed him back. “I’m glad you’re here. And Mom always says found families are often the best families.”
Heath reached over and pulled Addy into the hug. “Your mom’s pretty smart.”
“She is. Do you two have work to catch up on? I can make supper if you want.”
Addy smiled. “My favorite?”
Nina grinned. “Do you think Dad will like it?”
Hell, he’d eat bugs and cockroaches if she made it. “I’m sure I’ll love it.”
Nina rolled her eyes. “You don’t even know what it is yet?”
He shrugged. “I’ll love it, anyway.”
Nina laughed. “Can we stop at Phail Phoods for the things I need?”
Addy nodded, and they strolled along the sidewalk, looking and feeling like a real family. This is what he wanted. What felt right. He lifted Addy’s hand in his for a quick kiss. Her returning smile was everything he wanted.
Inside Phail Phoods, they found Troy chatting with a woman. When he spotted them, he waved them over and introduced Heath to his cousin Fiona who owned the store.
When Nina and Addy went off to pick up the ingredients for their secret meal, Troy motioned him to the side. “How’d it go with the folks?”
Heath was glad he’d mostly worked through his emotions with Addy. “They confirmed that they’re awful people. I told them I’m done with them, and I’m selling the condo.”
Troy’s eyes widened. “That sucks, man. But I’m glad you’re moving here.”
“I didn’t say that.”
Troy laughed and nodded his head toward Addy and Nina. “I’ve seen how you look at that pair. You’re definitely moving here with your real family. And that includes us.”
He slapped Troy on the back. “You’d be right on all counts.”
Troy lowered his voice. “So all that alone time was good for you and Addison?”
Heath rolled his eyes but couldn’t stop the grin, making Troy laugh. “Good. You fit together. Both you and Addison as a couple, and the three of you as a family.”
That filled Heath with pride. He wanted these two females in his life permanently. Time to get serious about the brewery. He’d started some research. The possibilities and the challenges excited him. He liked the thought of figuring out those challenges as a team.
He also needed to look for a home, one big enough for his family, with plenty of space to grow. He wondered if Addy still loved cozy farmhouses. Or maybe she was attached to the home they lived in now. He hadn’t really studied it with expansion in mind, but that was a possibility as well. Although she’d always wanted a house with a wrap-around porch and a swing to watch either the sunrises or sunsets.
They’d have to make time to talk about things. Like a couple, like a family.
Once they were back at Addy’s house, Nina shooed them into the living room. “Mom gets cranky if she hasn’t written for a few days.”
“Hey.”
Nina grinned. “You do. So dive in. You’ve got an hour.”
Addy rolled her eyes but went directly to her desk in the corner and powered up her computer, a smile on her lips.
Heath turned to Nina. “You want some help?”
She rolled her lips together. “Not this time. You can catch up on some of your work, too. But another time, okay?”
She looked so vulnerable he couldn’t resist hugging her. “That sounds perfect.”
Nina’s desk was too small for him, so he sat in a corner of the couch and pulled out his laptop. He preferred working at a table, but working at the one in the kitchen would ruin the surprise Nina was making, so he’d make do.
He sank into the family vibe he’d been imagining and dove into his email. When Nina called them for food, he had to pull himself out of the work. He’d expected to struggle to focus, but it had been the opposite. Having his girls close by had helped him get right to it. He’d got a ton done.
He saved what he was working on and set the laptop on the table. Then he stood and stretched. Addy continued to type away, oblivious to the two of them. He shared a grin with Nina. “Is she always this focused?”
Nina laughed. “All the time. She loves it so much she gets completely lost in the words. I’ll set the table. You get her moving. Good luck.”
Heath crossed the room in two strides. “Hey, Addy, Nina has supper ready.”
Nothing.
He moved to the side and squatted down in her line of sight. Still nothing.
When he touched her hand, she yelped and flinched back. Unable to help himself, he laughed. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you.”
Her cheeks had flushed, and she blinked quickly. “It’s okay. Happens all the time. When I’m in the zone, it’s hard to break me out of it.”
She looked so flustered and cute that he leaned over to kiss her lightly. “I happen to like that focus. Nina’s got dinner ready for us all.”
She kissed him back. “I’ll just finish this paragraph.”
“Don’t let her!” Nina’s voice shouted from the kitchen. “Make her save it now or she’ll never eat this delicious mac and cheese I slaved over.”
Addy’s face flushed again as she laughed. “She’s right. Okay.”
Then she shoved the chair back and stood before saving her work.
Surprising him, she took his hand. “Let’s go eat.”
A ddy didn’t think she’d ever been so happy. Nina and Heath were bonding. There were a few awkward moments and differences of opinion, but those almost made it better. It wasn’t perfect, but it was normal. A normal family doing normal family things.
Except they lived in different homes, and she didn’t want that forever. They’d let Nina see her and Heath touching more often. Heath had kissed her cheek or her temple a few times and they held hands frequently. Nina seemed comfortable with it all.
Graham had texted Addy the night before that he was back from his training session and would look at her car today. With Heath in their life, she’d barely missed it, but she’d be happy to get Wabi back.
Heath had shown up in the morning to take Nina to school and make plans for what they were cooking together tonight. As Addison tended to default to grilled cheese and soup, she let the two of them make the choices.
Happy she hadn’t had to go out into the snowy, blowy day, she filled her tea mug and headed to her laptop. Excitement filled her as it always did when she dove into her stories. She wished she could somehow go back in time and assure that scared young girl that she’d be okay. That life would be good.
While her computer powered up, she opened the drawer for her current notebook and pens. She had only taken the laptop with her to Boston and she must have been in a hurry when she’d packed because her current notebook was in the wrong drawer.
It only took seconds to set up, take a sip of tea, and switch her brain to author mode. Then she dove into her other world.
Zigi was deep in the forest, learning the hard way that what birds ate didn’t always agree with humans when a crash had Addy bounding out of her chair.
Nothing was out of place in the main room or kitchen. A frigid breeze led her to her bedroom, where a tree had crashed through her window.
For a moment, she simply froze in place, staring at the mess. Glass spread over the dresser, the bed, and the floor. The pretty limbs of their Christmas spruce stuck right through the window, reaching the bed. Wind whipped into the room and snow was already building up on the dresser.
Addy pulled herself together and moved to change into her boots from her slippers. Then she moved back into the room and tried to shove the tree. “Come on, back where you belong.”
It didn’t work, but she needed to get that window cleared and closed up before the gap leached all the heat from the house.
Addy closed the door to her bedroom behind her and grabbed her phone from the desk. She texted Heath. A tree crashed through my window. Could you see if anyone at the farmhouse has a board I could use to cover it up?
It only took a moment for him to text back. Are you okay?
That made her smile. I’m fine. It was in my bedroom. I was working.
Good. I’ll find something and be there ASAP. Stay warm.
He was such a good man. Addy put on her jacket, hat, scarf, and mitts and tucked her phone and inhaler into her pocket. She stuffed a blanket under the door to her room, hoping to keep the cold contained to the bedroom.
Outside, the wind tried to snatch her breath, but the scarf kept out the worst of it. When she turned the corner, the wind hit her full in the face, and she turned to walk sideways and keep her breathing clear.
At the side of the house, she found the tree had snapped through, and her heart hurt. This was their Christmas tree, the one she and Nina always decorated for the season. There wasn’t room in their tiny home for a real tree, so they’d used this beauty instead.
The wind had been blowing all night, and their poor little spruce hadn’t been strong enough to withstand it. She had to blink away tears, and she knew Nina would be devastated about it as well.
At least the siding didn’t have more than scratches. With a sigh, Addy moved through the accumulated snow and tried to yank the tree out of the window. She heard a truck pull in and looked over to see Jonas hurrying her way. “Addison? Are you all right?”
“Hi, Jonas. I’m fine. This poor tree isn’t, though. It just snapped in the wind.”
“Was your daughter in the room?”
“No, she’s at school. It was just me at home, and I was working in another room.”
“That’s good. Let’s see if we can get the tree out. I’m sure I can find a board up at the house to cover it up afterward.”
“Thank you. I’m hoping Heath is on the way with something, but the faster we get this out, the better it will be.”
Together, they yanked at the tree but it was wedged in tightly. Addy worked to keep her back to the wind and her breathing in control, but it was a challenge.
The sound of more engines had her turning again. Heath and Sean jumped out of their own vehicles. A large board sat in the back of Sean’s truck. Heath moved toward her immediately. “Addy, you shouldn’t be out here. And you shouldn’t be exerting yourself in this wind. How’s your breathing?”
“I’m fine. It’s my house, and I’m not playing damsel in distress.”
Heath’s eyebrows shot up, and then he grinned. “You couldn’t pull off damsel in distress if you tried. Will you take a break when it bothers you?”
She nodded, happy he wasn’t trying to take over and was trusting her own judgment about her health.
With Heath and Sean’s help, it didn’t take long for the four of them to get the tree out of the window and the board nailed up. She hadn’t needed that break before anyone else. “Thank you. All of you. Come on in, and I’ll put on something hot. I’m sure we could all use it.”
She slipped off her boots and put her slippers back on to help warm her feet. Without taking off her jacket, she moved to the stove and then filled up the kettle. “I don’t have coffee, but I’ve got a variety of teas and hot chocolate.”
She pulled down mugs, tea, and hot chocolate and turned to ask for preferences. No one was in the room behind her.
Face flaming, she realized they’d gone into her bedroom. The tiny space was her haven and while she would enjoy having Heath in there, she didn’t want the others in her space.
She walked in to find them all picking up branches. “It’s fine. Leave that stuff, and I’ll get to it later.”
Jonas smiled. “It’s fine. It’ll just take a minute.”
It would, but she didn’t like it.
Heath picked up on her feelings. “Addy’s right. It’s her space, and we’re invading.”
She felt silly watching them troop back out with most of the branches, but she couldn’t deny that she felt better once they were out.
They moved outside to put the collected branches in the bin, and she turned off the kettle and slipped off her jacket. The house and her embarrassment were warm enough.
Heath returned first, and while the others were taking off their jackets, he approached her and took her hands. “You okay?”
She nodded, wishing they were alone and she could step into his arms. “I’m good. The crash surprised me, but it’s all good now.”
She pulled out some banana bread she’d bought from Ginny and sliced it up. Sitting down, she forced down her embarrassment. “Thank you again. I appreciate you wanting to help in my bedroom, but it just felt weird. Sorry.”
They all smiled at her and waved off her worries. Sean grinned. “Does Nina get the larger bedroom because that girl has so many interests, it’s hard to contain them?”
Addy smiled back, relieved that her actions hadn’t offended anyone. “You got it. When we moved in here, it was the only way to contain the chaos.”
Once everyone was warmed up, she thanked them again. Sean grabbed his jacket. “Get the dimensions on that window, and I’ll get one ordered for you. It’s a quiet time of year, so we should be able to get one fairly quickly.”
Jonas grabbed his outerwear and handed Heath his jacket. He took it and thanked the man, but didn’t put it on.
When the other two had left, Heath hung his jacket back up and moved to wrap himself around her. “Now. How are you really doing?”
She smiled into his chest, finally relaxing. “Better. Much better now. It scared me right out of my story.”
He laughed. “Well, if the buzzers don’t work, we can always find a sound of breaking glass to get you to finish a session.”
Her phone rang with a call, and she grabbed it from her coat pocket. “It’s Graham. I bet he’s done with my car. Hi Graham. You’re on speaker. Heath is here with me.” It would be easier than repeating whatever Graham said about when it would be ready.
“Hi. I’ve got news about your car.”
“That’s great.”
Graham made a noncommittal noise that had her heart thumping. “Looks like someone sabotaged Wabi , but didn’t know what they were doing. A few wires were removed and switched in the engine. Nothing that makes sense, so it wasn’t an experienced saboteur or car thief. I called Marcus, and he’s out here checking for fingerprints.”
She looked up at Heath, who was gritting his teeth together, body stiff and ready for battle. Her knees were wobbly, and she thumped onto a chair. Someone had tried to sabotage her car? “Okay. We’ll be there in a few minutes.”
Heath frowned as she disconnected the call. He squatted down beside her and took her hands in his. “I think someone might be stalking you.”