Chapter 15
Chapter
Fifteen
“Mommy, you look pretty,” Addy whispered as Kate poured her a glass of juice on Friday evening. “Are you going on another date tonight?”
“No, I told you, I’m staying home with you tonight.”
“But Marley is coming over, isn’t he?”
Kate let out a breath. “Yes, he is.”
“To babysit us like last time?” Addy took the glass and sipped at the juice. Her face was bright red from running around outside with Ethan. He was still out there, currently climbing on the swing set rather than swinging on it.
“No, he’s coming over for dinner,” Kate said. “I told you. He’s bringing pizza.” She got a feeling he was trying to curry favor with her kids. And she liked that – way too much.
“Does he know I don’t like pepperoni?” Addy asked.
“Yes. He’s bringing a plain cheese for you.”
“And then we can watch a movie with him?”
“Of course.”
Addy tipped her head to the side. Her brows were scrunched up like she was confused. “But what will you do?” she asked. “While we’re being babysat by Marley?”
Kate opened her mouth to explain – again – that he was coming over as a friend, not a babysitter. But maybe she was taking the wrong direction.
“Marley’s babysitting me, too,” she told Addy.
“Oh, okay.” Addy didn’t look at all perturbed. “So you get to eat pizza, too?”
Kate tried not to smile. “Yep. All of us will.”
“Even James?”
“What about me?” James walked into the kitchen. He had one earbud in. “What am I supposed to be doing?”
“Marley’s coming over to babysit us,” Addy told him. “He’s bringing pizza.” She had an orange moustache from her juice. Kate grabbed a tissue and dabbed at her face.
“I didn’t know you were going out again,” James said, looking at his mom. “I thought you were staying home.”
“I am.” Kate shook her head. Why was nothing ever easy? She was already on edge at the thought of Marley coming over. Seeing them all in their natural, messy habitat.
“Then why is Marley coming over?”
“Because I invited him for dinner.” Okay, so technically he’d invited himself. But James didn’t need to know that. “To say thanks for last week.”
“He’s bringing a special cheese pizza for me,” Addy whispered.
“Why is he bringing pizza? He’s never come over for dinner.” James caught her eye. “Does he want to talk about me? About the party? Am I in more trouble?”
Oh, so that’s why he was edgy. “No, honey. Nothing like that. He says you’re doing really well. I just thought after having Shana over the other week, we’d have Marley over this week. Like dinner with friends on a Friday.”
“Who can we have next week?” Addy asked, her eyes wide. “Oh, can we have Mr. Burrows from next door?”
“Mr. Burrows moved into a home.” James rolled his eyes. “Before we left the old house, remember?”
He’d been their neighbor when they lived closer to the town center. He’d doted on all the kids, buying them Christmas and Easter chocolates, and telling them long stories about the things he got up to when he was a kid.
“Whose home?” Addy asked, looking confused. “Why does that stop him from coming over?”
Kate caught James’s eye. He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. He’s just old and he likes eating at his own home.”
There was a rap at the door. Three short knocks that sent her heart into a tailspin. Before Kate could even try to get it under control, Addy was running to the door. By the time Kate made it into the hallway Marley was half inside, Addy jumping up and down in front of him until he picked her up.
As he held her daughter in his arms, his gaze met hers.
She opened her mouth to tell him to come the rest of the way in when the back door opened and Ethan started shouting for her.
“Mom! I cut my hand. There’s blood everywhere.”
He sounded a little too excited for an injured child. Kate shot Marley an apologetic glance and ran back into the kitchen.
Ethan was holding his hand out. Sure enough, there was a jagged cut on the meaty part of his palm beneath his thumb. It wasn’t exactly pouring with blood, thank the lord. Her stomach turned, because despite being a mom of three, she’d always hated dealing with blood.
Still, she was nothing if not prepared. She swallowed a mouthful of air and grabbed the first aid kit from the cupboard, washed her hands, then guided Ethan to a seat.
“Want me to help?” Marley asked her through the ringing in her ears.
She took Ethan’s hand in hers, trying to keep them both steady. “It’s okay, I’ve got it.”
“Mom hates blood,” Ethan said, sounding happy about that.
“I don’t hate it, I just…” She grabbed an antiseptic wipe from the packet and started to clean the wound. Her stomach only twisted a little. She blew out a breath. “I just don’t particularly like it.”
“I love it,” Ethan said. “It’s so cool. Did you know the president’s car has spare blood for him in the trunk in case he needs it?”
Okay, now she was feeling woozy. “No, I didn’t, sweetheart.” Thank god it was a shallow cut. Her hand was starting to shake as she reached for the Band-Aids.
And then a warmer, stronger hand took hers. “Let me do this,” Marley said. “I’m qualified, I promise.”
“Qualified in what?” Ethan asked. “Are you a medic?”
“No he isn’t, dufus. He’s not an EMT.” James shook his head. “But all the volunteers are first aid trained.”
“How about you?” Ethan asked him.
“Not yet.” James sounded a little annoyed at that. “But I will be.”
Marley grabbed a chair and put it on the other side of Ethan, turning him around in his own chair like her son weighed nothing. Ethan grinned at the sudden spin, and didn’t protest a bit as Marley took his hand and finished cleaning him up.
“James, get your mom a glass of water,” Marley told him. He looked over at her, frowning when he saw how pale she was. “Take some deep breaths. Let me finish up here, and I’ll help you.”
“I’m not going to faint,” she told him. She was just a little lightheaded.
And then she felt it. The swirl. Her head felt like she was spinning, even though she was sitting down. Nausea rumbled through her stomach as she tried to fight it but then…
“Kate? You okay?”
She opened her mouth to reply but there was nothing. Nothing at all, as her eyes closed and everything in the world disappeared.
“What’s happened to my mommy?” Addy wailed as Kate slumped forward on her chair, her head hitting the table with a thump. “Why did she just close her eyes? Is she dead?”
“She’s not dead. She just fainted.” James glanced at Marley. “What do we do?”
“You take over here.” Marley passed Ethan’s hand to James and rushed over to Kate. “He just needs a Band-Aid and he’s good.”
Addy was softly sobbing next to Kate, where she was slumped face down on the table.
“Your mom’s fine,” he reassured her. “Fainting happens to a lot of people. Let’s just give her some space, okay?”
“When will she wake up? What if she doesn’t?” Addy’s words were peppered with sobs. Her chest was hitching as she spoke.
“She will.”
He leaned in close. She was breathing. At least he wasn’t lying to her kids. Her lips were parted. Soft.
Focus, man.
There was a pulse undulating in her neck. He debated asking James to help him move her to the floor, but he figured he’d try waking her first.
“Kate?” He kept his voice low because he didn’t want to alarm her kids. But there was no response.
This time he shook her arm. “Kate.” His voice was louder, commanding.
And by some stroke of luck from the Gods, her eyelids started to flutter.
“There, you’re done,” James told Ethan. “Now stop being an idiot and making Mom faint.”
“I didn’t make her faint.” Ethan looked mutinous.
“Yes, you did. You told her about the president and then she just went boom.”
Kate’s eyes fully opened. She still looked as pale as a marble statue. Marley helped her sit up, then ran his fingers over her face to check for any injuries from hitting her face on the table. There were none.
“You fainted. You were out for a minute, tops,” he told her quietly. “Everything’s okay.”
“Mommy. Are you sick?” Addy asked.
Kate ran the tip of her tongue over her lips, still looking woozy. “No sweetie, I’m fine.”
“When did you last eat?” Marley asked.
Her brows pinched. She still looked dazed. “I’m not sure. Breakfast, maybe?”
Marley restrained himself from rolling his eyes. No wonder she was so dizzy. “James, do you have any juice?”
“She can have mine!” Addy said excitedly. She ran to get a glass. It was covered in greasy fingerprints, but yes, there was juice there.
He took it from her and gently put it to Kate’s lips. She was still quiet. Still confused. “Drink,” he said softly. “We need to get some sugar into you.”
“How could you forget to eat?” James asked, looking appalled. “I get hangry if I don’t eat every two hours.”
“I was busy at work.” Kate took a breath. Her eyes were focused now. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“I thought you were dead,” Addy told her, her bottom lip wobbling. “And that we’d have to go live with Grandma.” She climbed onto Kate’s lap, putting her arms around her mom’s neck. “And she always makes me finish my dinner. Even when it’s carrots.”
James coughed out a laugh.
“It’s fine. I’m fine.” Kate cupped her face. “I just fainted, that’s all. It happens to some people.”
“Why?” Addy asked.
Kate’s eyes met his. And fuck if he didn’t want to kiss her. Surrounded by her kids in this kitchen.
He wanted to be the man who could kiss this woman anywhere. Not just in her office, hidden away.
“Your mom didn’t eat enough today,” Marley told her. “She probably has low blood sugar. Couple that with the blood and excitement, it made her blood pressure drop.”
“What’s blood pressure?” Addy asked. The hint of a smile pulled at Kate’s lips. As though she was curious to see if Marley could answer a six-year-old’s incessant questions without blinking.
“It’s the speed your blood pumps around your body,” he told Addy. “Your mom’s just got a little slow there. The juice will help.”
“ My juice,” Addy said proudly. “It’s like medicine.”
He gave her a grin. “Yeah it is.” God, he loved that kid.
“Hey!” Ethan said. “Why’s nobody looking at me or asking how I’m doing? I’m the one with an injury here.”
This time, Kate was smiling at him. Welcome to the madhouse, her eyes were telling his.
Yeah, well, he was pretty psyched to be here.