Chapter 23
23
Evie stood on the sofa with her nose pressed against the window. “Is he here yet? I can't see him. Do you think he's forgotten? Maybe he?—”
“Evie, sweetheart, take a breath!” Lenore chided. “He said he'd arrive by ten, and it's only five minutes until then. He's not late, and even if he is?—”
“I see him!” Evie yelled, bouncing off the sofa.
Lenore looked out the window to ensure it was Sisco and couldn't help but smile at the small handprints on the glass next to the nose print. Focusing on the driveway, she watched as he pulled in and parked close to the front walk.
Evie was at the door, trying to open it. “Honey, wait. It's locked and alarmed.”
“But, Mommy, he's here!”
“He's not going to disappear in a puff of smoke if he has to walk up to the door before we open it.”
“But he's here!” Evie screeched.
Lenore disengaged the alarm and locks and opened the door. As it swung open, Evie darted outside, barely giving Sisco a chance to bend to scoop her up as he approached the front steps.
“Hey, princess,” he greeted her, his smile warm on Evie before it shifted to Lenore, staying just as warm.
“She's been so excited about this,” Lenore said. “I'm glad you weren't late, or she might have pressed herself completely through the window to try to see you coming.”
“Are you ready?” he asked, his eyes wide and voice exaggerated.
“Yes! There's face painting, and games to win stuffies, and a ferry wheel, and food that you buy from trucks, and they make the food inside the truck, and the fire trucks will be there, and the firemen will let you climb up inside of one, and the liberry has books to sell?—”
“Library,” Lenore gently corrected, even knowing Evie was too wound up to listen.
“Wow, that is a lot to be excited about,” he enthused.
Evie threw her arms around his neck and nodded. “I know! We have to go!”
He laughed, his deep chuckle hitting Lenore straight in her heart every time she heard it. “Let me get my bag, and you need your jacket,” she said, heading to the kitchen, where her lightweight backpack was on the counter. As she finished shoving the water bottles, fruit snacks, her wallet, and keys into the bag, she heard the patter of little feet as Evie ran to the closet. She then heard the sound of a coat hanger hitting the floor as Evie jerked her jacket off. Grinning, she didn't need to turn around to know that the next sound was Evie kicking the offensive coat hanger inside the closet before shutting the door.
“I'm ready! Come on, Mommy!” she yelled.
As Lenore zipped the backpack, she was glad for the moment to bring her libido under control—something that was increasingly difficult every time she was in Sisco’s presence.
Turning, she was surprised to find him directly behind her. “Wow, you move softly for someone who wears big boots.” She laughed. He smiled, but his eyes held a seriousness that gave her pause. Her breath caught in her throat. Maybe he doesn't really want to go today. Perhaps this is moving too far too fast. Maybe–
“I got you and Evie something,” he said, his voice low. “I wanted to explain it to you when she's not around, but I'm not sure that will happen.”
“Come on!” Evie repeated.
Unsure what Sisco had to give them, she called out, “Bathroom first before we go. Once there, we'll have to use the porta-potties, and you hate those.” Giving a shudder, she muttered, “So do I.”
They heard Evie's footsteps race down the hall and the bathroom door close. “Okay, we have about thirty seconds.”
He grinned, his gleaming teeth surrounded by his kissable lips and dark beard. “We'll make that work. I want you and Evie to wear a necklace. It contains a special tracker that allows LSIMT to find you if we ever need it.”
Her mind fired questions in every direction, but she succinctly pulled her thoughts together enough to ask, “Are we still in danger?”
His lips pinched together, and that gesture gave her the answer.
“Honest to God, Sisco, I don't know what to do with this. I thought Evie going into remission and staying in remission would make our lives simpler. Less fearful. And now, with what happened at the hospital and afterward, I feel like my life is spinning out of control again.”
He stepped closer and bent so that his face was all she could see. “We're going to do everything we can to keep you secure, and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure nothing happens to you. I'll tell you more later, but for now, I'm giving you and Evie a necklace and telling you both to keep them on. And then we're going to go out and have a great day in town.”
Her heart had sunk into her already clenched stomach, but she nodded as she clung to his arms. “Okay,” she whispered just before hearing the bathroom door open. Calling out, she asked, “Did you wash your hands?”
As the sound of water in the sink began, he quickly added, “Just to let you know, we’re keeping the rotation of Keepers when you go to and from school until we can determine more of what's going on with the case.”
Evie barreled down the hall, her hands waving above her head. “I'm ready, I'm ready!”
Slapping a smile on her face, Lenore nodded with enthusiasm. “Then let's get this show on the road!”
“Hold on there, girls,” Sisco said. “I have a present for each of you.” He pulled out two small boxes and handed one to Evie and Lenore.
Evie excitedly opened hers, squealing at the pretty pendant on a silver chain. “Is it for me? Oh, and Mommy has one just like it!”
“Yes, it's for you. And yes, you both have the same beautiful necklace. Let's get this on your neck,” he said.
Lenore snapped hers around her neck and smiled as Evie stood still, allowing Sisco to work the clasp. The pendant dangled in front of her throat.
“These are special necklaces, which have magic. If you ever get lost, I can find you. So make sure you always keep it on,” Sisco said.
Evie was thrilled she had a magic necklace and continued to finger it as she raced to the front door, pulling Sisco with an exaggerated groan. Lenore slung the backpack over her shoulders, and they walked out, locking and resetting the alarm.
“If you want to move your vehicle, we can take mine since I have the booster seat,” Lenore said.
“That won't be necessary,” Sisco said, taking the backpack from her and opening his back door.
“You've got a booster seat! For me?” Evie asked, still twirling as she looked inside his SUV.
“Well, I can't fit in it, so it must be for you,” Sisco replied, lifting her into the back seat. She scrambled into the booster, grinning widely. As he carefully buckled her in, Lenore stood and felt her heart lift from where it had fallen into her gut, now feeling as though it was beating double time. She wasn't sure he could get any more perfect.
By the time they got home after a full day, Lenore had to admit that Sisco was even more perfect than she'd thought he could possibly be. Evie had wanted to try everything. She had missed the past years of the town's fall festival because of hospitalizations or being unable to be around so many people who might pass on germs to her immunocompromised body.
Evie had tried a food truck hot dog, a pretzel, cotton candy, and a shared funnel cake, which included a lot of laughter as Sisco ended up with powdered sugar on his beard. Lenore finally finagled her to eat an apple to get something in her besides junk food. And Sisco kept up with Evie, snack for snack, eating so much that Lenore wondered how he managed to stay in such good shape.
They had stopped by the library, where Evie chose several gently used books to purchase, and Lenore tucked them into her backpack. She'd explained to Sisco how the community donates books to the library for them to sell to raise library funds. Before she'd lifted the backpack onto her shoulders again, he'd gently removed it and slid it over his shoulders. She'd looked at it and lifted a brow. “It's purple.”
“Yeah, so what?”
She and Evie had laughed, and then she shrugged, a smile still playing about her lips. “You look good in purple.”
They had ridden the Ferris wheel with Evie tucked between her and Sisco. One of his arms rested on the back of the seat, his fingers wrapped around Lenore's shoulder while his other hand held tightly to Evie. She’d shown no fear, but Lenore noticed his grip hadn't let up during the entire ride. When they were back on the ground, he'd let out a long breath, then caught her eye.
He’d leaned closer and whispered, “Jesus, I was terrified she might slip out. How do you do this?”
“I'll tell you a secret… I never stop getting scared something will happen to her. I just have to weigh the risks between letting her have a normal life with some things and being strong enough to say no to other things she might want to do.” She had lifted on her toes and added, “Honestly? If you weren't with us, I wouldn't have let her go on the Ferris wheel. I knew you'd hold on to her and keep her safe.”
The smile he'd bestowed on her melted all her fears away. By the time they'd ridden the merry-go-round with Sisco standing between her and Evie as their horses went up and down, Evie was finally starting to show fatigue. They had walked back to the parking lot, knowing she was too tired to stay up for the fireworks.
Once home, Sisco carefully unbuckled the tired little girl from her booster and carried her inside. “Follow me,” Lenore whispered and led him down the hall. She stepped inside Evie's room and then hesitated. Holding his questioning gaze, she said, “I would say just to put her in bed, but after all the junk she ate, she really needs to brush her teeth. Plus, I have to wash the face paint off, or it'll irritate her skin.”
“I'll set her on the edge of the bed.”
She nodded, then hesitated again. She really wanted him to stay but wasn't sure if he was finished spending time with her since he'd been around all day. “Um… this will only take a few minutes?—”
“I'm not going anywhere unless you want me to leave.”
The air rushed in, filling her lungs as her grin widened. “Good. Because right here is where I'd like you to be.” Inclining her head toward the front of the house, she said, “Make yourself at home, and give me about ten minutes.”
He bent and placed a sleepy Evie on the bed, and as soon as Lenore stepped forward to keep her daughter upright, he quietly walked out of the room.
“Okay, let's get you ready for bed, Evie girl.” Lenore woke her daughter just enough to get her into her pajamas and then led her into the bathroom, where they brushed her teeth. Then Lenore managed to wash off the face paint. Once ensured Evie used the toilet, she carried her back to the bedroom, where she tucked her in. “Did you have a good time today?”
Evie's arms encircled her neck. “It was the best day ever,” she mumbled, her sweet face even more beautiful with a smile. Yawning widely, Evie closed her eyes as she hugged her newest stuffie. “I like Sisco, Mommy. He's nice.”
“You're right, sweetheart. He is nice.” Kissing Evie's cheek, Lenore turned off the light on the nightstand and left the night-light to offer a pale glow. Closing her door, she started down the hall, then stopped and hurried into her bathroom. Looking in the mirror, she blinked at how much she resembled an exhausted mom. “You are an exhausted mom,” she whispered to her reflection.
She'd applied makeup that morning but decided to wash it off. Freshly scrubbed, the glow was back in her cheeks. Applying moisturizer, she reapplied a touch of mascara to make her eyes appear larger and hopefully less tired. After a swipe of lip balm, she ran her brush through her hair. She didn't look any better but certainly appeared fresher.
Wanting to be comfortable, she darted into her bedroom and whipped her shirt and jeans off, pulling on black leggings and an oversized, slouchy shirt that was a favorite. Buying it at a discount, she knew she had to have it the minute she'd touched the soft material on the store rack. Satisfied she was as presentable and comfortable as possible, she hurried down the hall toward the living room and kitchen.