Page 21 of Unbreakable Love

I pressed my lips together as she strolled to a nearby bench and plopped down on it. Her legs were so short her feet didn’t touch the ground and she stared at her boots while she swung them back and forth.

She wasn’t wrong. Sometimes life was such a bummer.

Slowly, the rest of the kids were picked up and Mrs. Reece came over to me. “You can head home. I can wait for Josie’s dad. I hope he knows he’s supposed to get her.”

“He wasn’t the one who called?”

“No, his mom, Jenny did. But she said she was going to get a hold of him, so I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”

“I’ll wait,” I told her. “Josie’s my student, so I feel a bit responsible for her.”

“Of course you do,” she said with a kind smile. “I’ll be in my office. Text me if you need my help with anything.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

She headed toward the school doors, and I went and sat next to Josie. Thankfully, the sun was shining, and it wasn’t too cold, but as the minutes passed, I grew concerned. It was now a half hour after school let out, and Gavin still wasn’t here. Teachers were still inside, but I didn’t have any parent’s phone number on my phone so it wasn’t like I could call him.

“What if he’s hurt?” Josie asked, staring down at the ground. “Or got in a car accident.”

“I’m sure something came up with work. We’ll give him a few more minutes, okay?”

I checked my phone and decided five minutes. It wasn’t his normal routine. Maybe his mom didn’t get a hold of him as soon as she wanted. Heck, if he was like most men I knew, maybe he didn’t check his voicemails during the day.

“Do you know why I couldn’t go to my grandma’s?”

“No, sweetie. I don’t.”

“Do you think Goldie will remember me if I don’t see her today?”

This girl. She was too darn sweet for her own good. “I’m sure she’ll remember you when you see her next. What else do you like to do when you’re with your grandma?”

Her pale green eyes lit up then. “Oh, I get to ride Pickles. Sometimes I get to ride with Uncle Dalton out to see all the cows. And Grandpa’s teaching me how to rope the baby cows. We call them calves…”

Off she went, telling me all the wild and fun things she got to do on the ranch, and it was enough of a distraction that she didn’t realize five more minutes passed. She was still talking when I figured we’d waited long enough. If Gavin wasn’t coming to get her, I could see if it was okay with him if I took her to my home. As that thought entered my mind, it promptly fled with the loud sound of tires squealing around the curve, and a large, oversized black pickup truck I’d seen parked on my street came tearing into the parking lot.

“It’s my daddy! I knew he wouldn’t forget me! See?”

She jumped up and grabbed the straps of her backpack.

“There’s no way your dad could forget you.”

The truck pulled up, and I wasn’t sure how Gavin had time to put the truck in park before he was jumping out the front door and rushing around the side of the truck.

“Hey, kiddo.” He crouched down and opened his arms. Josie barreled into him with a happy squeal, almost knocking him onto his butt, but he stabilized himself at the last second. “I’m so sorry I’m late. There was a last-minute problem on one of the houses I’m working on and the guy I had to talk with to fix it wouldn’t stop talking. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay, Daddy. Miss Pesco waited with me, and I got to tell her all about the things I do at Grandpa and Grandma’s.”

He stood and released his daughter while somehow managing to slide her backpack off her shoulders with one hand.

“Thanks for staying with her. I’m sorry about being late.” He shoved a hand through his hair and slung the bag over one of his shoulders.

The man shouldn’t have looked so good with a lavender bag draped on him.

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not. She should never have to wait like this, but Mom wasn’t feeling well.”

“Grandma’s sick?” Josie asked.

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