Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Eighth encounter
Can you bring some milk when you come over? I don’t have any for my coffee tomorrow.
No.
Why not?
That wasn’t our deal. No favors.
Ah, of course.
No secrets, no talking, no favors.
And no milk.
Anna had known two things since childhood: Her strongest weapons were her mind and her powers of compassion.
Both were double-edged swords.
Her brain told her she didn’t owe Lucas anything.
It was his problem if he couldn’t find a babysitter!
Her compassion, however, whispered that Melody couldn’t help it that her uncle was an idiot, and…
Lucas had never asked her for anything before.
Well, except to get whipped cream from the fridge. But that somehow didn’t count.
He’d used the word desperate – admittedly, he had looked desperate – then the word please. And her stupid compassion had won out, which was why she was parked in front of Lucas’ home half an hour later. She was about to babysit for him, and that jerk hadn’t even brought her a carton of milk!
But the no favors rule apparently became irrelevant once you stopped sleeping together.
God, that man irritated her. They’d talked more in the last week than they had in the last year.
And she didn’t like it. She much preferred the quiet Moreau who only used his mouth to drive her crazy because the talking Moreau was an asshole.
It had been rather sweet when he franticly explained to her what Melody didn’t eat and what her favorite stuffed animal was. She may not have been his biological daughter, but Moreau was definitely her father.
She really didn’t know him at all, did she?
Sighing, she rang the doorbell, which burst open a second later.
“Just in time,” a breathless voice called out. A smiling woman appeared in the doorway.
Oh God, she was beautiful.
The woman Lucas had referred to only as an agent, but whom he obviously trusted enough to leave his daughter with, looked like the product of a passionate affair between Tyra Banks and Beyoncé.
She was a friend. Well, was she also a friend he’d slept with?
Because holy crap, Anna wouldn’t be able to say no if Hazel made advances toward her, regardless of whether she was into women or not.
She had huge, dark eyes, a long afro, and the type of lips that singers had surely written songs about.
She wore a black business suit and a light blue blouse, and she was so terribly wrinkle-free and flawless that Anna felt like she’d walked straight out of a hamper, compared to her.
“Hey,” she said lamely, raising her hand. “I was in a hurry. Lucas said you had a flight to catch?”
“Lucas,” Hazel drawled, her eyebrows shooting up. “I see.” She narrowed her eyes. “Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude, but…who exactly are you?”
Her cheeks heated. “Anna.”
“Yeah, I got that. So, Anna who? I’ve never heard your name. Moreau never mentioned it.”
Her mind lit another fire. “I’m not surprised. He’s not known for mentioning things, is he?”
Hazel laughed. “No, you’re right… All right. Melody, will you come over for a moment?” she called over her shoulder. “I’d like you to meet Anna, she’s…”
“I know Anna, Aunt Hazel,” Melody’s voice boomed from the hallway. A second later, she poked her head out the door and rolled her eyes as if that had been obvious.
The dark-haired woman’s eyebrows shot up. “Is that so?”
“Yeah! She was here because she needed to discuss something with Lu.”
“I see. And what exactly was that?” Her gaze slid back to Anna.
She cleared her throat quickly. “It was about his knee. He forgot his pills at the stadium, so I brought them to him,” she said matter-of-factly. She had the squelch any rumors before they got off the ground! Of course, she and Lucas had been worthy of rumor, but Hazel didn’t need to know that.
“You work for the Hawks?” That seemed to surprise her even more. “And you know about…?” She looked at Melody, confused. “Why don’t I know you? I’ve been friends with Moreau for years, and I’m always hanging out with the Hawks. What exactly is your relationship?”
They’d been friends for years? So Lucas had female friends? She was the only problem?
Anna bit the inside of her cheek while Hazel scrutinized her. “We’re…friends?”
“You don’t seem sure.”
“Well, I’m not,” she said honestly, laughing.
“Hmm.” Hazel narrowed her eyes. “But you’re not her, are you?”
“Her?”
“Oh, never mind.” Sighing, Hazel waved her hand dismissively.
“Moreau would never ask one of his…” She trailed off and instead met Melody’s expectant gaze.
“It doesn’t matter. I have to go. Have fun with Anna, Mel, okay?
” She ruffled the girl’s hair before turning to Anna and pressing something into her hand.
“Here’s the key. Moreau’s fridge is full, so cook a meal. ”
She laughed. Just cook a meal. Sure! And then she’d solve the energy crisis.
“Bye, Aunt Hazel,” Melody said, briefly hugging Hazel around the waist. Hazel raised her hand in farewell and walked to her car.
Twenty seconds later, they were alone.
Anna put the keys in her skirt pocket and smiled at Melody. “Hey,” she said. “It’s good to see you again. Lucas is really sorry he can’t be here yet, but he’s hurrying.”
“Hmm,” the girl said, looking up at her skeptically. “You’ve never babysat me before.”
“That’s true.”
“Are you Lucas’ girlfriend?”
Surprised by the sudden change of subject, she opened her mouth. “No.”
“So, who are you?”
Oh dear, Melody was worse than Hazel! Anyway, who was she? “I work with him.”
She frowned critically with her small eyebrows. “You don’t look like you play hockey at all.”
She laughed, stepped through the door, and closed it. “I’m a doctor.”
“Really?” Her eyes widened. “Cool! I want to be a doctor when I grow up because I’m really good at applying bandages. Want to see?”
“Absolutely,” she said, taking off her shoes. “I can give you some tips if you like. Doctor to doctor, that is.”
She nodded seriously. “You never stop learning.”
A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “Yeah? Where did you hear that?”
“From Lu,” she said, and ran ahead of her up the stairs, where her hospital equipment obviously was.
Melody was right. She was good at applying a bandage, or in this case, toilet paper. She practically mummified her doll before Anna pretended to break her ankle so Mel could fix it, which she did with such enthusiasm and excitement that Anna laughed harder than she had in ages.
Melody giggled a lot, always showing off her missing teeth — which weren’t due to bad brushing habits, but would soon grow back, as Anna reassured her repeatedly.
Afterward, she listened attentively as Anna showed her how to secure the bandage so that it wouldn’t slide down her leg.
She was also incredibly interested in how many nasty injuries Anna had seen.
Many was the answer, even though she only told Melody about the things a child’s stomach could handle.
“You’re doing great,” she praised Mel as she wrapped the bandage around her ankle for the third time, this time tightening it so it wouldn’t come undone. “I bet you’ll be a fantastic doctor.”
“Yes.” She nodded firmly. “And if I’m really, really good, then I can make cancer go away and no more moms will ever have to die.”
Anna’s heart clenched in her chest as she nodded and sank to the carpeted floor.
“Maybe. If you try hard. But unfortunately, it’s really difficult to cure cancer.
Many people have tried.” Hesitantly, she tucked a strand of hair that had escaped Melody’s braid behind her ears. “You know, my mother died too.”
“Really?” Her lower lip trembled and her eyes widened. “You also don’t have a mommy anymore?”
“Yep. But it’s been a while.”
“Oh.” She swallowed several times before putting her arms around Anna’s neck and pulling her close. “Maybe Lu can take care of you too?”
Anna smiled and stroked Melody’s back. “That’s sweet. But I’m an adult. I have my own apartment. You have Lu, and I’ve always had my brothers. Who are the reasons I became a doctor.”
“Why?”
“Because I spent half my childhood patching them up. They’re hockey players too, you know? They came home injured all the time. And I enjoyed making them feel better.”
She felt Melody nod before she pulled away. “I’d like to have brothers too,” she said seriously. “But Lu won’t give me one.”
Anna’s mouth twitched. “That’s not very nice of him.”
Melody sighed dramatically. “I know! He always says I’m enough of a pain.” She giggled. “But he’s joking. I’m not a pain at all.” She jumped up, scattering copious amounts of toilet paper scraps around the room. “My braid came undone, Anna.” She held out a hair tie. “Can you fix it?”
“Sure.”
“Can you braid?”
“Not very well, no.”
“Oh.” Her shoulders sagged, but then she nodded. “I guess that’s okay. Lu always braids my hair. He does the best braids. Better than Mom did. Everyone at my kindergarten is always jealous.” She nodded proudly.
Anna smiled broadly, knelt, and gathered Melody’s hair. This Lu was becoming more and more of a surprise.
“How do you feel about pasta, Melody? I’m getting hungry.”
“Me too. I loooove pasta. Lu always lets me break the spaghetti.”
“Well, let’s see what kind of sauce we can find downstairs, shall we? And maybe ice cream for dessert?”
Melody’s eyes lit up. “Yes! But we don’t have any ice cream. Lu says it’s bad for the body.”
Yes, but Anna knew it was good for the soul. “We’ll go buy ice cream,” she decided because two girls who had lost their mothers deserved a little ice cream! “That’ll be our secret.”
Melody grinned. “Okay. I’m good at keeping secrets. I didn’t tell Lu that it was Uncle Austin who crushed the plant by the front door, not the mailman.”
Anna laughed. “Very good! And afterward, if it’s not too late, we can watch a movie. What’s your favorite movie?”
“Moana!” she said as if shot from a gun.
Anna took a dramatic breath. “I love Moana!”
“Really? Aunt Hazel says watching Disney movies makes her sick, and Lu always falls asleep.”
“Well, I won’t. So, let’s clean up, see what kind of pasta sauce Lu has, and then go buy ice cream. Then, we’ll eat and watch Moana. Sound like a plan?”
“The best!”