CHAPTER FOUR
Melanie and Addy had reestablished their morning routine and it had run well all week.
Except Friday morning. Addy insisted only her purple and pink striped socks would work with her outfit, and while Mel was pretty sure two purple and pink socks had gone into the washer, only one had made it out of the dryer.
In the laundry room, she pawed through the basket of clean clothes.
“You need to be flexible, Addy.” She held up matching socks. “I don’t know where the other striped sock is, but you have two purple ones right here that match, and if we don’t hurry, you’ll miss the bus.”
“I want my striped socks and if I miss the bus, you can take me.”
“I’m wearing flannel pants and a sweatshirt with a bleach stain. I haven’t had caffeine. And the bus driver takes you to school so I don’t have to.”
Addy glared at her mutinously. “Nobody cares what moms wear and you’re grumpy.”
“Nobody cares if your socks are pink and purple either, and I’m not grumpy.” Was she? Waking that morning with the realization that this evening she was meeting Chase could lead to a case of the grumps.
Did he think it was a date? She’d text him and suggest a time before the “date zone” she pegged at from six to nine. Maybe she could get away with only having a glass of wine.
But her immediate challenge was getting Addy out the door and on the bus.
Melanie pushed aside the laundry basket and studied her daughter. Addy was not a difficult child and could usually be reasoned with, but she’d been out of sorts since she’d gotten home the previous afternoon.
“What’s going on, Addy? Did something happen at school that upset you?”
Addy hung her head and shrugged her thin shoulders.
“Adelyn?”
Another shrug, then she mumbled, “This kid called me gummy because my top teeth came out.”
Mel sat next to Addy on the floor where they leaned with their backs against the washer.
“Who called you gummy?”
“A boy on the playground. He’s in the other first grade class. His name is Liam. Liam’s a dumb name and he’s mean.”
“You know everyone loses their teeth and the new ones grow back. Yours will come in soon. But Liam calling you gummy is unkind. People say hurtful things for all sorts of reasons, but it doesn’t make it right.”
“He pushed me when we were in line.”
“He pushed you?” Oh hell no. “Tell me what happened.” She wrapped an arm around Addy’s shoulders and brought her into her side.
“We were lining up to go to the library and he pushed me and took cuts.” Addy’s tone was indignant. “But Olivia told him he’s a pathetic little worm and I told him not to push me again.”
Mel wanted to do more than call Liam a pathetic little worm, but being an adult meant she couldn’t hunt the kid down. “I’m glad you’re sticking up for yourself and that Olivia backed you up. Though calling him a name back probably doesn’t help.
But Addy? I want you to tell your teacher if he keeps it up. He’s being a bully, and is not allowed to touch you.” The kid needed to have that drilled into his head.
“Okay.” Addy’s sigh was heavy for a six-year-old. “I guess I’ll wear the purple socks.”
Melanie kissed her daughter on the top of her head and held her close for another moment.
They made the bus, but only by hoofing it down Bluebell Lane. Olivia grabbed Addy’s hand and they clambered up the steps together. Melanie watched the bus pull away, taking her baby with it.
Maybe she should’ve waited until summer to move so Addy would start with the new school year, but that would’ve been months from now and they might not have found a house that suited at that time. She burrowed her hands into the pockets of the denim jacket she’d thrown on over her sweatshirt.
Did all parents worry this much about their child fitting in at school?
She retraced her steps along the dirt road.
Maybe she should contact Mrs. Delgado herself and let her know this boy was bothering Addy.
She was trying to raise a resilient, independent child, and part of that was giving Addy support while encouraging her to solve problems on her own.
But if that kid put his hands on her daughter again, for damn sure she’d be talking to the teacher and the principal.
She walked back along Bluebell Lane, a light breeze stirring the pine-scented air. Melanie wasn’t sure what made her look. Maybe it was the prick of unease. The feeling of being watched.
She and Addy had passed a truck parked on the other side of the road on their way to the bus stop. Now she realized a man was sitting in the driver’s seat. He held a phone in front of him and the way it was angled made her think he was taking pictures or video. Of her.
She marched across the road. The guy saw her coming and fumbled his phone. She rapped sharply on the passenger side window.
“Hey.” She raised her voice to be heard through the glass. “Are you taking pictures of me?” Were there laws against taking pictures of people without their permission? She didn’t think so.
The guy turned his face away and the engine roared to life. She barely had time to jump back before the truck sped away.
She stared after the truck as it turned onto the road that led to town and disappeared.
Well, that was past strange. She filed away details: dark-haired white guy driving an older metallic gray Tundra with temporary paper plates. There was a dent in the tailgate like the driver had backed into something.
Her mind sifted through possible explanations for the guy’s behavior. She could probably chalk it up to weirdos being weird, but she’d keep an eye out. Experience had taught her to be wary.
A happy bark had her looking toward Gage’s house.
Pancake stood at the top of the driveway, her gaze riveted on the tall man beside her holding a ball.
Gage hurled the ball in a long arc worthy of a center fielder, sending it sailing into the open space behind his garage and out of Melanie’s view.
Pancake streaked after it in a golden blur.
Gage spotted Melanie. He shoved his hands in his pockets, clearly hesitating before strolling down the slope of his driveway.
He did the guy chin-lift thing, which she guessed was kind of a greeting.
He looked vital and fit in his athletic pants and slim-fit shirt with a beanie covering his longish hair. Worn running shoes and the ruddy color in cheeks bristly with dark stubble made her think he’d just returned from a run.
She didn’t want to speculate on how she looked in her not-for-public-view clothing. She hadn’t had time to do anything with her bedhead, which meant her hair was likely sticking up in all directions.
With an internal oh well, she decided to ignore the hotness imbalance. “Hi.”
“Get your toilet fixed?”
“Yeah. You gave good advice. I only needed the flapper, no tools were necessary, and my toilet is no longer running.”
He gave what might have been a miniscule nod of acknowledgment.
His lack of communication wasn’t exactly encouraging, but joining her on the road had to mean something, right? It was enough for her to press on.
“Speaking of tools, can I borrow what’s needed to put Addy’s desk together? She’s excited about it and we’d like to work on it this weekend.”
“Yeah. I’ll bring them over.” His dark eyes glinted.
“Thanks.” She turned to gaze up at the mountains.
The feeling that he could see more than she wanted made her uncomfortable.
Not that he said a lot. Pancake trotted back with the ball and dropped it at his feet.
Gage scooped it up and rocketed it back up the driveway between his house and garage with Pancake again in hot pursuit.
“That’s quite an arm you’ve got.”
“Get a lot of practice.” He cocked his head, that all-seeing gaze back on her. “You good?”
“Of course.”
His attention didn’t waver.
“Addy good?”
He’d managed to pick up on her worry and was questioning her much like she’d done with Addy that morning, though she used a lot more words to communicate.
Melanie shrugged. “Mostly. It’s tough being the new kid in school.”
“She rides the bus with Jordy and Olivia. They’re good kids.” Growly Gage Landry knew the neighbor kids. Why did that surprise her?
“They are. Kids make friends amazingly fast. Addy and Olivia have already declared that they’re besties. When a boy pushed Addy, Olivia called him a pathetic little worm. That’s good backup.”
His gaze locked on hers. Receiving the full force of his attention felt almost like a physical touch. “What the fuck? A kid pushed Addy?”
“Yeah. And took cuts in line.” Melanie laughed when Gage scowled. “You and me, we could take him.”
“Don’t tempt me.” He didn’t exactly crack a smile, but his tension eased, and the corner of his mouth lifted infinitesimally. She really liked that hint of humor, the feeling like he got her on some unspoken level.
Remembering what she’d seen earlier, she asked, “Did you see the guy in a gray Tundra parked on our road?”
“No. Why?”
Wow, that was quick. Razor-sharp intensity replaced any trace of humor. “There was a truck parked down the road near that tree.” She pointed. “I noticed it when I walked Addy to the bus stop. When I came back, I saw there was a guy inside.” She shrugged. “I thought it was odd.”
He waited a beat, then said, “There’s more.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. How did he do that? How did he know she hadn’t told him everything? She huffed out a breath. “Okay, I know it sounds weird, but I thought he was watching me. He had his phone up and it looked like he was taking my picture or maybe recording me.”
“You do anything?”
“Hell yeah, I did. I knocked on his window and asked what he was up to. He got all flustered and sped off up the road. I had to jump out of his way.”
He unzipped a side pocket on his pants and pulled out his phone. “Give me the vehicle information and the man’s physical description.” No-nonsense, direct, clipped delivery. Maybe he was a cop.
She rattled off what she remembered. He stared at her hard, then asked, “License plate?”