Page 76 of Protecting Her Secrets

“Hello?” I can barely hear the greeting through the sound of boisterous children.

“Hi,” I greet awkwardly. “You don’t know me, but I think you know my husband, Walker?”

“Hold on one second. Let me find somewhere these kids can’t find me.” The noise slowly fades until it’s barely noticeable. “There. I holed myself up in the cleaning supply closet. Lord knows they never come in here.”

I chuckle. “Smart thinking.”

“You’re Skylar, right?”

“Yes,” I confirm, not surprised at all that she already knows who I am. I’m starting to catch onto this whole small-town thing.

“Oh my god, my friends are never going to believe this. I can’t wait to tell them I spoke to the town celebrity,” she says without an ounce of sarcasm.

“I. . . don’t know how to respond to that.”

“Skylar, you’re the woman who bagged one of the town’s most eligible bachelors. It’s a feat every single woman in a hundred-mile radius has attempted, so of course, you’re going to be the talk of the town. Have you seen the paper this morning?”

I stutter, feeling a little panic coming on. “N-no.”

“You’re front and center. It’s a beautiful picture of you, but the headline was a little troublesome.”

“Headline?” I ask hesitantly.

“It was something like, “Walker Carter Falls for Pregnant Alien—Is Culver Springs prepared to welcome a new species into our citizenship?”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Oh, don’t you worry about it. Everyone knows Micah exaggerates his headlines.”

“That seems like more than an exaggeration.”

“You should be proud. Micah’s paper hasn’t sold more than ten copies a week since the Geezers discovered Facebook, but your paper has already sold twenty, and it’s not even noon.”

My mouth hangs open, and my mind blanks—is this even real life? This town is crazier than I thought. I shake my head and try to get back to the reason I called. I’ll let Walker deal with this later.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why I called.”

“A little, yes.”

“I heard you run a daycare, and I was wondering if you’ve thought about hiring help? Back in Bakersfield, I was technically a teacher’s aide at a preschool, but I basically ran the program. Now that I’ve moved here, I was hoping to work with kids again.”

“Your timing is impeccable. Just this month alone, I’ve had to deny care to three families because I’m at capacity with it being only me. But if I had help, I could expand.”

Excitement bubbles inside me. “Really?”

“Don’t get too worked up. I couldn’t afford to pay you much, and we’d have to start with part-time.”

“Totally fine with me.” I’m not so much worried about the pay as I’m just happy to be doing something with myself. “Do you want to set up an interview?”

“Nah. Walker’s one of the most trustworthy people I know, so if you’re with him, that must mean you’re trustworthy too.”

“I promise I am. When can I start?”

“Are you free tomorrow? Maybe from noon to two? That’s the calmest part of the day, so I’ll have time to show you around my slice of heaven and introduce you to the children.”

“Sounds great.”

“Perfect. See you then!” She stops me before I can hang up. “Wait. I just have to ask. You’ve never been probed, right?”

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