Page 106 of The Foul Out

“In fact,” Cam said, grinning, “I helped Kyle build it.”

“Don’t worry,” Kyle assured me. “There were only a handful of extra pieces.”

I groaned. “You’re not funny.” I slipped out of his arms. “But I’m going to get the kids’ plates ready.”

“Hey, Kyle, can I have quarters to make the machine goes?” Sam asked.

“No candy until after dinner,” Kyle responded as I wandered to the kitchen. I’d only been here twice, and I’d yet to learn where he kept things, so it took some searching, but eventually, I found plates and cutlery, then got to work cutting up the grilled chicken for the kids. We’d never tried this Italian restaurant, but they offered plain gluten-free pasta and grilled chicken, so we were giving it a try. Hopefully Piper wouldn’t melt down over it. But if she did. Kyle had prepared for it.

Sam ran by, holding a quarter aloft, and a moment later, he darted back down the hall toward his room. Probably to climb or jump on something. But Kyle was watching.

Knowing he was always paying attention and thinking ahead took a ton of weight off my shoulders. And though his comment about moving in had been a joke, who knew what the future held. I stopped cutting for a moment and surveyed the space. I wasn’t sure I could picture making this my home. But it was easy to see a future that included Kyle.

Cam stepped up to the counter. “I’m going to grab my food and head to my room.”

“You don’t have to,” I assured him, a sliver of guilt working its way through me.

The smile he gave me was genuine and patient. “Honestly, I’m a lot like your daughter in that I need time to adjust to change. Kyle jumps in and expects everyone to ride the wave with him. And you’d think that after working for him for so many years, I’d be used to his chaos, but?—”

He was interrupted by a loud crash, followed by a shout. But no crying ensued, so I decided to let Kyle handle it.

Cam cleared his throat. “But I promise that in time, I’ll be used to it.”

I cringed. “Sorry. We are a lot.”

“But you’re the exacta lotthat he needs.” With that, Cam pulled a takeout container from the bag and wandered away.

When another shout rang out, followed by the slamming of a door, I put the knife down, ready to investigate.

Before I made it to the hallway, Piper came flying out, with Kyle on her heels.

Her fists were by her face, and she was shaking. “You can’t. You can’t. You can’t,” she chanted.

“Hey, hey. Deep breath,” I reminded her.

“Sam got gum in her hair,” Kyle said sheepishly, his cheeks pink and his eyes wide. “I guess I wasn’t clear that gum is candy. They were in the ball pit. And somehow it got out of his mouth and into her hair.”

Stepping closer to Piper, yet careful not to touch her, I searched her red hair. It only took a moment to locate the sticky blue wad. I winced.

“This is on me,” Kyle said. “Why don’t you check on Sam? He feels awful. While you do that, I’ll try to handle the gum.”

My instinct was to tell him no. He was giving me the easier of the two tasks. But before I could get the word out, he grasped me by the upper arms and turned me so I was facing the hallway.

Resigned, I exhaled and headed off to find Sam. When I did, he was hiding in the corner of Piper’s room, his face wet with tears.

“Hey, bud.” I sat on the floor next to him. “So gum, huh?”

“It’s not allowed,” he whispered.

I shook my head. “Do you understand why now?”

He nodded, wrapping his arms around his knees and squeezing. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to try it. I got a blue one, and it was so big. And I got to chew and chew it.”

“Then it got stuck in Piper’s hair. And it probably hurts.”

He frowned, and another tear tracked down his cheek. “I’m sorry.”

“I know you are. You should probably apologize to Piper, though.”

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