Chapter Twenty-Nine
Brooklyn
I have a crushing headache, but I agreed to help Zadie, so I’m here.
“You okay?” She places her hand on my back. She looks worried.
“Just a long day at work.”
She sits down beside me. “I have to get off my feet. Oh god, now I have to pee again.”
“Ready for him to come out?” I laugh.
“More than ready. Only a few more weeks to go.”
Zadie runs a huge network of free afterschool programs, and she’s asked me to help her with some of the curriculum they use.
“The timing isn’t working out great. We’re expanding to three more states next month.”
Ethan walks over and hands her a cup of water.
“Thanks, honey.”
He kisses her on the cheek. “Don’t want you to overdo it. Need anything else?”
“A massage. A foot rub. A long bath. And a pint of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream,” she laughs.
He smiles back. “As soon as we get home...”
I love watching them together.
“Oh, he spoils me so much,” Zadie says, her eyes are sparkling.
“You’re really lucky,” I say.
“I am. I never thought it was something I’d have, or I even wanted, but I love that man so much, and I can’t imagine life without him.”
I reach out and take her hand, squeezing it gently.
She’s studying my face. “You look tired. Are you alright?”
“I haven’t been sleeping great.”
“Nightmares?”
I nod. Seeing Daryl brought up so many memories that I had long forgotten.
It seems like every time I close my eyes another one flashes across my mind.
It doesn’t help that I saw him murdered either.
I’m not upset he’s dead, but the image of a bullet ripping through his neck and blood spraying everywhere turns my stomach.
“It’s going to take time.” Zadie’s arranging folders into several different piles while she talks. “Has James found anything about your mom and sister?”
I shake my head. He’s basically forbidden me from visiting the state of Alaska or Canada for that matter. He threatened to put me on the no-fly list and revoke my passport if I try to seek them out on my own again.
“He’s such a pain in the ass,” I mutter.
“James?” She pauses her organizing.
“Yes. James. I love him, but he needs to respect my boundaries.”
“You’re telling me - he basically imprisoned me last year.” Zadie’s eye float over to Ethan.
“Well, it all worked out just fine, didn’t it?” I give her a little shove. Ethan was Zadie’s bodyguard. She hated him at first and resented that James was making her have a bodyguard at all.
She shaking her head. “I think James planned it, actually.”
“What? What do you mean?”
She rolls her eyes. “He didn’t plan for the abduction plot, of course, but he picked Ethan to be my bodyguard because he thought we’d be a good match.”
“He set you up?” My jaw drops.
“More or less.”
I’m still staring at her gape-jawed.
“I’m not giving him any credit for it though.”
I laugh. “It’s funny because you tried to set him up and...”
“I know. I know,” she interrupts. “He likes to remind me of this all the time.”
Zadie is a terrible matchmaker, but she loves setting people up.
Her eyes get a new twinkle.
“Oh no,” I say. “No, no, no.”
“I know a guy, Brooklyn. You’d be perfect together.”
I cover my mouth with my hand “Zadie, it never goes well. James, Will...you even tried to set up Eli.”
“He’s really great, Brooklyn. Just one date - you’ll see.”
I sigh. It might be good for me. All I think about is Kip. My chest hurts just thinking about him. I want to hear the sound of his voice. I want to feel his skin against mine. I want to know what he’s doing every damn second of the day.
“You okay?” Zadie’s studying my face. I just shake away the thoughts of Kip.
“You know what - sure. Set me up.”
“Really?” Her whole face lights up.
“Yeah.”
She pulls out her phone. “I’m going to text him right now.”
After a few minutes, I have a date scheduled for Saturday. Ethan walks in with some takeout. As soon as Zadie opens her container, I nearly gag.
“What’s wrong?” She gives me a sideways look.
“Oh, my stomach has been weird all week.” I’m scooting away from her. “Working with kids. I love them, but they are little germ factories.”
She takes a big bite of her food. My stomach churns just watching her.
“Not going to eat anything?” Ethan asks.
“I just don’t have an appetite.”
“I hope you aren’t getting sick. I’d hate for you to have to reschedule with Craig for this weekend.”
“It’s probably just a little bug. I’ll be fine by Saturday.”
When she finishes eating, she pushes her food back. “That was good. I was starving.”
I just smile. She’s so adorable pregnant. I’m going to be sad when she’s not pregnant anymore.
She gives me a smile and then says, “Okay, I brought you here to talk about something important.”
“Oh, I just thought I was helping with the curriculum.”
“Well, that’s part of it.” She taps her fingers on the table for a moment and then says, “I’d like to hire you.”
I just furrow my brow. “What? I have a job.”
“I know, and you’re wonderful at it and love it, so I know you might not be interested, but I need someone to develop this curriculum, and I need someone to train our teachers.
You’d be perfect. It could be flexible and part time, or if you were ever wanting to leave the classroom, you could pick up hours. I just wanted to throw it out there.”
I rub my chin for a moment. “I wasn’t expecting this at all.”
“I know. I’d love it if you’d take the job, but I’m not going to be offended if you’re not interested.”
“Can I think on it?”
“Of course, I know it’s barely November, so you wouldn’t want to make a major change until the summer anyway. Just think on it.”
“I will. It’s kind of you to think of me.”
“Well, it’s not kind. It’s selfish. You’ll be amazing and make my life easier.”
I laugh. “Well, thanks anyway.”
“What are you going to wear on your date with Craig?” She changes the subject. “I have a super sexy red dress you can borrow. I’m not going to be wearing it anytime soon.”
“I think I know the one. It’s a bit too sexy for me.”
“Too sexy for you? What does that even mean? You have to come over and try it on later.”
“Fine.” I throw up my hands.
A huge smile spreads across her face. “You’re not going to regret this.”
I already do.