Chapter 21
NOLAN
21
Iwalk in the door, getting home after working out with Ronan. His hockey season may be over but he likes to squeeze in some extra cardio any chance he gets.
My twin says I’m on my way to developing a dad bod. That’s how he bullied me into joining him at the gym tonight.But my body couldn’t handle the workout. I feel lethargic as hell with whatever virus is currently creeping up on me.
Damn you, Darius. That cold he’s spreading is some potent stuff.
All of my brothers caught that nasty bug to varying degrees. But the guys seem to be fighting it off pretty well so far. Me, on the other hand? It doesn’t look like I’m going to be so lucky.
When I get inside the house, I find Inez and Stella in the kitchen.They’re so focused on their task that they don’t immediately notice me in the shadows of the hallway. So I take a moment to observe them.
They appear to be chopping veggies for whatever’s bubbling on the stove. Some kind of soup, if I had to guess. Inez is busy teaching Stella how to slowly and carefully cut celery with a butter knife.
From the looks of it, progress is slow going. But Inez is as patient as can be. I chuckle silently, listening as she gives Stella detailed instructions and then answers all her many questions.
“Like this?” Stella asks when she eventually saws through her vegetable stick.
“Yes! Good job. Let’s make this next one a little smaller, so it’ll fit on your spoon when you take a bite. That one looks more like a daddy-sized bite.”
Stella giggles. “I’ll make a daddy pile and an us pile!”
Inez laughs and encourages her onward, not bothering to tell her that that’s not how soup veggies work.
They continue to chop, and I stand there feeling unbelievably grateful that Inez is here, taking time out of her day to teach Stella valuable life skills. I certainly do my best, but I feel like Stella’s really missing out, not having a mom around. I wonder if it bothers her. If it doesn’t now, I know it will soon.
It makes me question what else I should be teaching her. What else haven’t I thought of? She already knows how to do the dishes. She knows how to load the laundry and start the washer. But teaching her how to do fancy things with her hair or stay up to date on clothing trends? Yeah, no. I’m definitely not qualified to be teaching her those things. She needs a woman’s presence in her life.
Hell, and so do I.
Lately, it’s been getting harder and harder to keep a safe distance from Inez. But she’s drawn her line in the sand with me, as she has every right to. Especially after I so epically screwed things up after our kiss. I have to respect her choice, and her choice is for us to be friends.
I feel a sudden tingle in my sinuses and I duck my head into the crook of my elbow. Before I can suppress it, a violent sneeze makes my body convulse so hard, I get whiplash. What a way to announce my presence in the room.
The girl’s both gasp, heads swinging in my direction.
“Daddy’s home!” Stella drops her knife on the counter and rushes over to give me a hug.
I bend down to kiss my daughter’s head. She doesn’t care that I’m a walking Petri dish. But still, I keep her at arm’s length.
“We’re making you vegetable soup, Dad,” she announces, hurrying back to where Inez is still working at the counter.
“Well, that’s really nice of you.” I take a step closer and when Inez meets my eyes, I offer her a hesitant smile.
She returns it with just as much hesitancy. I hate that we’re back to awkward again. With her walls up all around her, I miss her even though she’s standing right in front of me.
“How do you feel?” she asks quietly, genuine concern in her crystal blue eyes.
“I’ve been better,” I say with a casual jerk of my shoulder.
I don’t want to let on how crappy I feel. I know they say that men are big babies when we get sick and I’m trying not to live up to the stereotype. But the truth is, I just want to curl up with my head in Inez’s lap and let her stroke my hair. That would be the dream.
Instead, she turns and grabs at glass bottle from the counter. “This should help,” she says as she holds the deep yellow liquid up for my inspection.
I flinch, instantly recognizing the poison. “Rainbow’s immunity tonic?” No. Please, no.
She nods. “Rainbow’s immunity tonic.”
Fu-u-u-u-u-uck.
Inez chuckles slightly. “Don’t make that face.”
I grimace harder. “That shit is the worst. It literally fries the tastebuds right off your tongue.”
“But she promised that the cold doesn’t stand a chance against it,” Inez argues, giving the scary liquid a good, hard shake.
And I know she’s right. Gen has forced me to take this natural remedy a time or two in the past. It always gets the job done, but it’s not a pleasant process.
“Come on, Daddy. It’s good for you. Don’t be a baby,” Stella says in exasperation.
Inez sighs heavily, pulling out a kitchen chair. “Okay. Sit down.”
“What?”
“Sit down. I’ll help you.” She grabs a spoon from the utensil drawer.
Does this woman think I’m about to let her spoon-feed me? Yeah, right.
But when Stella starts badgering me for being a scaredy-cat, I drop into the chair with a huff.
Inez grins victoriously. I keep my eyes on her as she pours and the liquid hits the spoon in dense, yellow clumps.
Stella grabs my hand for support. “Say ‘ahhh’!’” she orders me encouragingly and I comply.
As Inez enters my personal bubble with the spoon, I get distracted by the scent of her perfume, by her soft-looking skin, by the way her breasts weigh against the neckline of her shirt.
I get so distracted that I forget all about the tonic until it makes contact with my tongue. Startled, I swallow and then the poison is burning a spicy, bitter, acidic path down my throat.
“Oh my—what—Jesus—what’s in that stuff?” I’m gasping for air.
My daughter giggles in my face.
Inez is nice enough to suppress her own laugh. “Rainbow has a secret ingredient. She wouldn’t tell what it is. But apparently, it works like magic.” She pours a glass of orange juice and sets it into my hand together with a big chocolate chip cookie. “Now, go recover on the couch. We’ll let you know when dinner’s ready.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I say, trying to wash the nasty taste out of my mouth with a gulp of the juice.
“How do you feel now?” Stella asks me. “Are you starting to feel better like Miss Rainbow promised?”
I ruffle her head. “Not quite yet. But I’ll be one hundred percent back to normal in the morning. I guarantee it.”
“How do you know?” Stella questions.
I just grin to myself.
How do I know I’ll be better? Because Inez smiled at me. And it was like the glittery sun peeking through the heavy rainclouds.
Maybe she’s not so mad at me anymore. Maybe things might get better between us.
On second thought, looking at Inez now from across my kitchen, I think I feel better already.