Chapter 16
NOLAN
16
Iwake up and hop right out of bed, on a mission.
Today’s the day I’m going to look at cars. I’ve put it off long enough. It’s beyond embarrassing to have a piece of shit rust bucket that’s quite literally falling apart with Inez in the house.
She’s been taking taxis all over town and I’m sure that the cost is starting to add up. It’s ridiculous that she can’t just drive my car on the days when I’m not using it.
To be clear, my vehicle is perfectly safe and I make sure that it passes all the essential tests and regular inspections. I drive my princess around in that thing, after all. But the knobs and handles and buttons are falling off. At this point, an upgrade isn’t optional anymore.
While I’m making the bed, my phone dings with a new message. I grab the device off my nightstand, expecting it to be a text from Darius.
When I’d mentioned to my brother that I planned to go car shopping today, he’d invited himself along, claiming he knows a few dealerships outside of town where I could get a good price.
But when I tap on my home screen, I see that it’s not my brother who’s trying to reach me so early in the morning.
I frown as I scan the new email from Stella’s school. What the…?
The school is closed?! Well, that’s what this message says. I click on a link in the email and am taken to a video message from some director at the school board.
The white-haired man wears a grave expression as he speaks. “Following heavy rain over the course of the evening, a part of the school’s roof collapsed. Upon further inspection, we’ve become quite concerned about the air quality and about the high likelihood of toxic mold in the building. We’ve reached the conclusion that the school’s crumbling infrastructure has created a dangerous environment for the students, teachers and staff. Immediate action is being taken to remedy the situation. We hate to interrupt classes, especially so close to the end of the academic year, and we know that this closure will be a major inconvenience for families around town. But these repairs are serious and they just can’t wait. Until the necessary repairs are carried out, school is closed. Indefinitely.”
Damn.
Don’t get me wrong—this is good news. My baby girl and her classmates deserve a safe and sanitary learning environment. These repairs will ensure that they get that.
Still I’ve got to admit that I was not expecting this school closure news today. It automatically changes my plans.
Trying to juggle things around in my head, I get myself dressed and walk over to Gen’s trailer. She’s just as surprised as I am to hear the news of the school closure.
Between the two of us, it’s going to be a new challenge handling childcare during the usual school hours. Not to mention trying to make sure Stella stays up-to-date with her reading and math progress.
“Any chance you could watch Stella for a few hours today? There’s a few errands I was hoping to run.” I hate to ask, but I do.
A guilty look comes over her face and she glances down at her outfit. That’s when I notice that the older woman is all dressed up. Fancy shoes and everything.
I immediately start to backtrack. “Shucks. You have plans, don’t you?”
“It’s jigsaw puzzle day at Sylvia’s knitting shop,” she says sheepishly.
“Sorry. Never mind, then.”
She waves her arms around, cutting me off. “It’s fine. I’ll cancel my plans to watch Stella.”
“No, ma’am, you’re not. Thanks for offering, but you already sacrifice so damn much for my daughter and me. You deserve to have fun. I won’t ask you to cancel your plans today.”
Gen tries to argue. But I make sure I have the final word. Stella and I hustle off before the old lady can convince me to accept her help.
My former mother-in-law is a freaking lifesaver, but she’s stubborn to a fault and I won’t ruin her fun.
My daughter and I get back to the house. We sit down to eat some breakfast while I try to come up with something stimulating for us to do. Stella would be miserable car shopping—price comparing and discussing gas mileage for hours and hours, so that’s off the table. But I also don’t want to just plop her in front of the TV all day either.So I’m going to have to be creative.
She and I are washing dishes together when the doorbell rings. Then someone starts pounding on my front door. I instantly know who it is. Darius’s impatient ass.
I dry my hands, stroll down the hallway and swing open the door.
“Uncle D!” Stella exclaims when my brother elbows me out of the way and strolls into my house.
Darius wiggles his nose from side to side like he’s fighting back a sneeze. “Hiya, Princess!” He gives her head a good ruffle as he saunters past her and she breaks out giggling. Half a second later, Ronan, Felix and Archer barrel inside.
Is this another family intervention? Oh, great.
I look at them all and grunt. “How are you knuckleheads all here on a weekday?” I ask the guys. “Don’t you have jobs?”
I’m met with various shrugs.
“Hockey season’s over. I’ve got nothing better to do,” Ronan flings out casually as he sweeps my daughter off her feet and tosses her over his shoulder.
“I’m playing hooky,” Archer mumbles.
“Scheduled vacation day,” Felix says with a happy-go-lucky grin. “The medical clinic is Mason’s problem today.”
“I’m my own boss. I can work whenever the hell I want.” Darius roughly clears his throat, rubbing his upper chest. “Fuck. I think I’m coming down with something.”
My daughter’s eyes bulge. “Daddy, Uncle D said a swear wor—”
Felix slaps the back of Darius’s head. “What are you doing at home today, princess?” he asks Stella from where she’s hanging upside down off of Ronan’s shoulder.
“School’s closed!” Stella squeals jubilantly as Ronan lowers her to her feet. “More funding! Less excuses! More funding! Less excuses!” she chants, fists pumping in the air as she marches across the kitchen, imitating her teachers.
“School’s closed, huh?” Darius turns his eyeballs to me as Stella heads back to the sink to finish drying our breakfast bowls with a hand towel. “Does that mean the plan for today has changed?” He takes a drink from the water bottle in his hand.
Ah, shit! I got so caught up scheduling out Stella’s day in my mind that I completely forgot about the car shopping thing.
“I’ve got to reschedule our trip to the car dealership,” I tell the guys.
“Oh, come on.”
“Really?”
“Bummer.”
The lot of them complain and whine like the big babies they are.
All I do is shrug. “School was canceled. Genevieve has plans. And I don’t have a sitter for Stella. So, I can’t make it today.”
“Go ahead,” a tentative feminine voice calls out. I turn around to see Inez walking into the kitchen, a shy smile on her face. “Go hang out with the guys, and I’ll babysit Stella.”
My little girl’s eyes light up. “Really? For real? I get to stay with Inez today?!”
I hesitate. I know Inez is great with Stella, but it doesn’t seem right to just pawn my kid off either.
“If your dad says ‘yes’.” Inez smiles at my daughter with a warmth that makes my chest burn.
“You don’t have to do this,” I say to her.
She steps closer, and I have to hold my breath to avoid inhaling the addictive scent of her flowery perfume. She’s wearing shorts with the same T-shirt of mine that she’s slept in all week. I’m tempted to ask for it back, just so that I have something that smells of her.
“Seriously, go,” she commands me. “You work crazy hard, and you never take time for yourself. Consider it self-care.”
Holding back a chuckle, I cock an eyebrow. “Really? Self-care?”
But my annoying brothers all seem to agree with Inez.
“Yeah, dude.”
“She’s right, you know.”
“You definitely need some self-care for that pale-looking complexion. Those late shifts have you looking like a vampire.”
“I’m a single dad who runs a small town bar. I don’t have time for self-care,” I grouse.
Inez rolls her blue eyes at me. The perfect shade of blue. “Stop being a smart ass. It causes you wrinkles.”
Stella pins her lips together, deliberately letting Inez off the hook for that swear word.
“I don’t have wrinkles,” I shoot back defensively, absently rubbing at the lines around the corners of my eyes. “And I can’t ask you to babysit while I go goof off with the guys.”
“You’re not asking. I’m volunteering,” she argues. “I’m already planning to hang out here today, so it’s no trouble. Stella and I will hang out around the house and then go outside to play.”
Well damn. When she puts it like that, it sounds awfully tempting.
Still I hesitate.
“You get out of here, so we can enjoy some girl time,” she coaxes me.
Stella looks at me with big, baby doll eyes. “Please, Daddy. Please. Can I spend the day with Inez?”
Man. They’re all ganging up on me. “Fine,” I say once they’ve broken me down.
My brothers move fast, like they’re scared I’ll change my mind if they don’t get me out of here immediately. Before I know what’s happening, they’re pushing me toward the door.
I wrestle my way away from them and turn to Inez. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”
Everyone always sees this outgoing, energetic, magnetic woman. Inez is all those things, but she’s also far more thoughtful and down to earth than people realize.
She just grins at me. “Get out of here! Go! It’s girls’ day.”
I barely manage to give my daughter a kiss before someone shoves me into the back of Darius’s car. Then we’re on the road, headed out of town to the dealership.