Chapter 13 The Next Day
The next day
Abby inhaled deeply and stretched. She felt the warm, heavy press of a body next to hers and glanced over.
Will’s dark head peaked out from beneath the covers. She sighed. She loved that he still crawled into bed with her, but at the same time, it would be nice if he stayed in his own bed occasionally. Especially if, at some point in the future, there might be another person in bed with her.
Whoa. She pumped the breaks on that thought, even as she remembered their kiss last night. And his words. Sweet merciful Mary, he had a dirty mouth. But if he lived up to his promises… A delicious shiver traveled down her back.
She glanced at Will. The logistics of finding time for Tinker to do any of the things he said was hard to imagine.
It was hard enough figuring out her day-to-day life, never mind adding another adult with their own needs, schedule, and priorities.
She’d tried dating after Will had turned one, but it had been too hard to find the time to date anyone seriously.
The most she’d managed was four dates with a guy who managed one of the tour companies downtown.
She’d fallen asleep on their last date, which was supposed to have been the Netflix and chill date.
He’d called her the next day and told her he didn’t think it would work out.
She’d agreed and that had been the last time she’d seriously considered another romantic relationship.
She kissed the top of Will’s head and threw back the covers. Tea first. Then existential crisis.
Padding down the hall, she peeked into Olivia’s room but found it empty—the bed neatly made. In the kitchen, Olivia was putting the clean silverware away.
“Good morning,” Abby said.
Olivia glanced over her shoulder and closed the drawer. “Morning.”
“Thank you for emptying the dishwasher.” Abby flipped the button on the kettle and pulled her steeper from the cabinet. “You didn’t have to.”
Olivia shrugged. “It was one of my chores at home with my mom. She ran it at night, and I’d empty it in the morning.”
“What other chores did you have?”
“I had to put away my clothes when they were clean, set the table for dinner, and keep my room clean.”
“Did she pay you an allowance?”
“Five dollars a week.” Olivia sat at the counter and picked at her cuticles.
“That seems fair.” Abby measured tea into the steeper. “What do you usually eat for breakfast?”
“Cereal mostly, but Mom would make pancakes on Saturday.”
She didn’t mention what her aunt and uncle would do. She was probably left to her own devices, but Abby didn’t want to press. It was the first time Olivia had given her any answer other than “whatever” or “it doesn’t matter.”
“We do waffles on Saturday—is that okay? Will likes to put the syrup in all the little squares.”
Olivia smiled. “I like to do that too.”
Abby smiled back. “We can alternate between pancakes and waffles, but I’m warning you now: Will won’t eat pancakes unless they have a whipped cream face, and then he pretends he’s a dinosaur devouring his poor pancake people.”
And that got a small laugh.
“What kind of cereal do you like? I don’t keep sugary cereals but if there’s something that’s your absolute favorite, we can get it.”
“The most sugary cereal my mom would let me have was honey-nut O’s.”
“I think your mom and I had a lot in common.”
Olivia’s gaze fell back to her hands. It was probably too soon to be talking about how she and her mom were similar.
Abby cleared her throat. “You’re in luck. We have honey-nut.” She pulled the box from the pantry and set it on the counter, then got two bowls, spoons, and the milk jug.
“Thank you.” Olivia poured cereal into one of the bowls and added milk.
Abby took a pen and notepad from the junk drawer. “What kind of food do you like for dinner? It’ll be nice cooking for someone else who will eat more than five bites before they’re full.” She mock glared at Olivia. “Or are you one of those people?”
Olivia shook her head. “I like a lot of foods. Mom had a rule that I had to try a little bit of everything she made.”
“That’s good. Anything you’re allergic to?”
“No.”
Abby nodded and drafted out a menu for the rest of the week and the grocery list for it.
Olivia finished her cereal, rinsed her bowl and spoon, and put them in the dishwasher.
Abby bit her lip. Hopefully Olivia wasn’t doing all these things to be on her best behavior or because she thought Abby would kick her out if she did anything wrong.
“I’m going to take a quick shower before Will wakes up,” Abby said.
“Okay. Can I watch TV?”
“Of course.”
They were going to have to have a conversation about Olivia asking permission for everything.
Rules were important, but so were expectations.
Olivia was still so nervous and defensive.
It was going to take time for her to feel completely comfortable.
She was feeling Abby out as much as Abby was feeling her out, but having some ground rules would help.
She showered, forgoing washing her hair for one more day.
Will wasn’t in her bed when she left the bathroom.
She dressed quickly and grabbed her cell from the nightstand, knowing he’d probably sweet-talked his way into eating in the living room in front of the TV.
Sure enough, he was at the coffee table, eating and watching a kids’ show.
“Will. What is the rule?”
His eyes widened as he tried for a look of innocence. “Olivia said I could.”
“But you know better. The rules don’t change just because there’s someone else here. At the counter or the dining room table.” She tilted her head in that direction.
“But Mommy—”
“William. Now, please.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He picked up his bowl and carefully carried it into the kitchen.
“He’s—”
Olivia was paper white, curled up in a ball in the corner of the couch, tears streaming down her cheeks and a look of stark terror on her face.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “He said he was allowed. I thought it was okay.”
“Olivia.” Abby took a step toward the couch. Olivia curled in on herself even more.
Abby stopped. “Livie, honey, I’m not mad. I didn’t think to tell you he needed to eat in the kitchen. I should have told you.”
Olivia’s gaze darted from Abby to the hall. Shit in a handbasket—what had those people done to her? She wanted nothing more than to pull her in a tight hug and tell her it would all be okay. But she knew Olivia wouldn’t—couldn’t—take the comfort in her current state.
“I’m going to go into the kitchen with Will,” she said softly. “When you’re ready, why don’t you join us and we’ll talk about our plans for the day, okay?”
Abby didn’t wait for a response. Olivia needed space and time. Lots of time.
Will was slurping the last of his milk from the bowl and several drips slid down his chin onto his pj top.
He lowered the bowl and smacked his lips. “Ah.” And burped.
“What do you say?” she asked.
“Dee-licious.”
Her lips twitched. “Excuse you. I think you’ve been spending too much time at Timmy’s.” His best friend was the fourth of five boys. Saying their house was hectic was putting it mildly.
“Go wash your face and get dressed, Bubs. Pj’s in the laundry.”
“Okay.” He hopped down from the stool and looked at her. “Did I get Livie in trouble?”
Jeez, this kid. She squatted so they were eye level.
“No, Baby. She isn’t in trouble. But you know the rules.
It’s not nice to trick Livie, okay? She doesn’t know all the rules yet, and it scared her when she thought she was in trouble.
You have to help her until she knows what’s allowed and what’s not.
That’s a really big job—do you think you can do that? ”
He nodded enthusiastically. “I want Livie to stay with us.”
“I do too, Bubs. We’re going to work really hard to make that happen. Now, go change. Maw Maw will be here soon.”
He skipped out of the kitchen.
Abby sighed and stood. Her cell phone pinged. She glanced at the screen and smiled when she saw Tinker’s name.
Morning beautiful. How’s your day going so far?
Should she be honest or gloss over Olivia’s mini meltdown? What the hell? He already knew how crazy her life was, and it wasn’t like any of it had run him off yet. Plus, he might have some advice.
Great. Until it wasn’t.
Her phone rang almost immediately. She clicked the green dot.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey. What’s going on?”
She laid out the events of the short morning. “She just needs time.”
“And therapy. Have you been able to get her an appointment? We have a psychologist we use frequently. She may be able to help until you can get her in somewhere.”
“We have an appointment on Thursday. I hope we’ll be okay until then.”
“You’ve got this.”
She appreciated the vote of confidence. “Thanks for calling.”
“You’re welcome.” His deep voice rumbled through her head, soothing the rough edges of the morning. “Let me know if you need anything today.”
“I will,” she said. Olivia appeared in the kitchen and hovered as if afraid to come closer. “I need to go.”
“Later,” he said.
“Bye.” She ended the call and lowered the phone. “You okay?”
“I’m sorry,” Olivia said. “For how I reacted and for letting Will eat in the living room. I should have known better.”
Abby set her phone on the counter. “Olivia, I’m not angry—not even at Will.
I’m annoyed because he took advantage of you, but I’m not angry.
You’ve only been here a few days, and I don’t expect you to know all the rules.
We’ll sit down tonight and have a family meeting.
We can go over my expectations, your expectations, and the schedule for next week when school starts back and I’m at work. Okay?”
Olivia nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay. My mom should be here in a little bit. Do you have any questions before she gets here?”
“What should I call her?”
“Will calls her Maw Maw, but let’s start with Ms. Sue for now. That’s what all her kids called her.”
“Her kids?” Olivia asked.
“She was an elementary teacher. First through third.”
“Is that why you became a teacher?”