Page 42 of Rowdy Hearts

Raffi’s smile was directed at both Krista and me. “I can think of nothing I would like more than spending time with Krista.”

She sounded so sincere that I almost caved immediately. But what kind of mom would that make me if I did?

The kind of momyourmom is?

“I really don’t think you want to deal—uh, spend time with her when she’s like this.”

Krista looked at me with slitted eyes and pursed little lips and still looked adorable even if she was about to have a full-blown tantrum.

“Like what?” she asked, though it took a second for me to understand what she was saying. My girl was too smart by half and maybe not as far gone as I’d thought.

I chose my next words carefully. “When you’re tired, sweetheart.”

“But Miss Raffi wants to watch movies and that’s what we do when we’re tired.”

Now Krista sounded like cotton candy wouldn’t melt in her mouth. My lips started to twitch, trying to curve into a smile.

“Hey, Mom, you heading home? Sure you don’t want to come out with us tonight?”

My stomach caved in on itself, and heat made the top of my head tingle. As well as some other places on my body. I turned and looked over my shoulder.

Rowdy stood in the door to the hallway, arms crossed over his broad chest, messy hair still wet and curly (curly!), and wearing a white t-shirt that stretched over that broad chest like a lover after she’d been satisfied twice and was asking for more.

And that smile on his face for his mom made my heart melt. Like seriously, it was just a squishy little ball of goo in my chest.

“You know I haven’t gone to the first-night party for years. Too much noise for me.”

So Raffi really had been going home? Does that mean I’m off the hook?

“I wanna go with Miss Raffi.”

Still, I hesitated. Krista was my daughter. I should be taking care of her. What if?—

Oh, hell, it’s just one night. Let’s go have some fun.

I didn’t honestly know what do here. But obviously, my mouth was working faster than my brain. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

“Not one bit.” Raffi sounded like it was the absolute truth. “Come on, Krista. Let’s go watch some movies.”

Raffi stretched out her arms, and Krista jumped ship faster than sailors on a sinking boat.

Then my little girl gave me the biggest smile, as if she hadn’t just been about to melt down spectacularly.

“Night, Mommy. Love you.”

Raffi gave me the look every mom knew and understood. It was the “I’ve got this. No worries,” look. And I felt tears begin to well. It’d been so long since it’d been anyone but me and Krista. Sure, I’d hired babysitters when I needed them, and our neighbor at home, Mrs. Santiago, was always there to lend a hand. But most of my friends in New York were single and childless. And kinda miserable most of the time if you asked me. They worked all the time. And if they weren’t working, they were attending parties or gallery openings where they hoped to make business connections. Or they went to off-Broadway shows to support friends who’d managed to get cast.

And with my mom and sister living a continent away, I didn’t have a lot of women I could talk to about being a parent. I’d become one at such a young age, with no one to help. Not even my mom, who’d been too busy managing Tiff’s career. The same way she’d managed mine once upon a time.

I nodded at Raffi, swallowing down the lump in my throat before I could speak.

“Thank you. I…” I didn’t know what else to say.

“No worries, hon. Have fun tonight.” Raffi spoke like it was no big deal, like she was used to caring for stranger’s kids. Then she turned her gaze on her son. “But not too much, Rowdy. I don’t want to have to drag this baby out of bed in the middle of the night to pick you up at the police station.”

Rowdy winced. “Damn, Mom. You make it sound like I was arrested. Hell, I was just there because Dougie thought it’d be hilarious to make you pick us up there.”

“At least you were smart enough not to drive when you’d been drinking. Make sure you make good choices tonight.”

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