Page 131 of Always Us

“He doesn’t have anything. The pants are all the same size as the ones I gave you. Same with the shirts. That’s probably why Sara’s got him in the clothes he’s wearing. They’re the only things that fit him.”

Garret picks Caleb up off the bed. “Guess we’re going shopping for baby clothes. How can she not have any clothes that fit him?”

“She doesn’t have money for clothes. Her car breaks down every week. She’s always paying to get that thing fixed. And then rent and food and day care.”

The fighting next door is getting even louder and making Caleb cry.

“It’s okay, buddy.” Garret holds Caleb against his chest, trying to soothe him. “I swear I’m going to kill those people.”

“I think they’re going to kill each other in a few minutes.”

A half hour later, Garret’s still trying to calm Caleb down. The neighbors are still loud, except now they’re having sex, so it’s a whole different kind of loud.

“Check your phone,” Garret says. “See if Sara left you any messages.”

I check, and see that she sent me a text. “She says she’ll be back in about 10 minutes. What are we going to do?”

“We’re telling her she’s staying at our place tonight.”

I agree with Garret, but I know Sara won’t go for it. She always thinks she’s in the way or bothering people. I used to think that way, too, and sometimes I still do. So I understand where she’s coming from, but she needs to accept our help because this involves her safety and Caleb’s safety. She can’t live here. It’s too dangerous. She’s just lucky nothing bad has happened yet. Or maybe it has and she didn’t tell me.

I smile as I watch Garret with Caleb. The way he’s holding him, talking to him, rubbing his back, trying to calm him down? It melts my heart. It’s not even his kid and yet he’s so sweet and caring with him.

Now I’m starting to think one kid isn’t enough. I might just have to have two with this man. And they’re going to be the luckiest kids in the world.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

31

GARRET

I don’t usually get into other people’s business, but I feel I have to intervene when it comes to Sara’s living conditions. It’s not safe for her and Caleb to live this way. I know she likes to be independent and able to support herself, and I respect that, but there’s a point where you have to admit you need help. You can’t let your pride get in the way of your safety.

I hear someone trying to open the door so I go over and say, “Who is it?” because there isn’t even a peephole to check.

“It’s Sara. I’m having trouble with my key.”

I open the door, still holding Caleb. I finally calmed him down. The poor kid was scared to death when the neighbors got home and went fucking nuts. I don’t even want to know what was going on over there. They’ve quieted down now.

“How’d it go?” Sara sets her purse down on the kitchen counter. “I see Caleb woke up. Sorry about that. I was hoping he’d stay asleep. He wasn’t too much trouble, was he?”

I wish she wouldn’t say stuff like that. A baby isn’t trouble. Yeah, the crying sucked, but shit, if I were him, I’d cry to. He’s trying to sleep and all hell break’s loose next door. And then he wakes up and finds two strangers here instead of his mom. Plus, he’s freezing because he doesn’t have warm clothes that fit. Of course he’s going to cry.

“He wasn’t any trouble.” I hand him to Sara. “He’s a great kid.”

“How was the job interview?” Jade asks.

“It went really well. I think he’s going to offer me the job. Like I said, it’s just two days a week but it pays way more than I get now.” Sara bounces Caleb on her hip. “The guy said he’ll call me tomorrow and let me know if I got it. If so, I can start next week. And I can still work at the coffee shop. I’ll just have to change my schedule. Anyway, thanks again for watching Caleb. You guys can go. I’m sure you have to study.”

Jade looks at me. I guess she wants me to be the one to talk to Sara about this. How do I say it without hurting her feelings?

“Sara, we were thinking you should stay at our place tonight.”

She looks at Jade, then back at me. She knows what we think of her place and I can tell she’s embarrassed and ashamed. She doesn’t say anything but her eyes are watery like she’s about to cry. Shit. So much for not hurting her feelings.

I try to explain. “It’s just that we saw a cockroach and where there’s one there’s hundreds and Jade said you hate bugs.”

A little white lie never hurt anyone, right? And in this case, I’d say it’s justified.

---