Page 20 of Crazy in Love

“I have a hair appointment this afternoon. How ’bout after dinner?”

Hope noticed Nick, who was struggling to extricate himself from the chair. The cat had jumped onto his lap, and he pushed it off with a grunt.

“How about you, Gimpy? Wanna go for a ride?”

Nick glanced over both shoulders. “You talkin’ to me?”

“Yeah,” Hope said. “All you have to do is sit in the passenger’s seat. I’m a really good driver. Tell him, Faith.”

“Nick’s not feeling well. I was just about to take him home.”

“Perfect,” Hope said. “I’ll drive him. After a quick trip to Meredith.” She winked at Nick.

“Okay,” he said. “Let’s go.”

Faith’s brows jumped to her hairline. He was going to do it?

“Sweet,” Hope said.

“You don’t have to,” Faith said.

“Hush,” Hope hissed. “He said he’d do it. He’ll do it. Come on, big guy.” Hope offered a hand which Nick grabbed. Hope pulled, he pushed, and together they got him standing. The cat reclaimed the empty spot.

“Now that the drugs have kicked in, I’ll be fine,” he said. “Thanks for letting me crash here. And for your discretion.”

“You know I have to tell Tess.”

“Give me a five-minute head start?”

Faith rolled her eyes but agreed. “Hope, watch him. He fainted not twenty minutes ago. And don’t keep him out long. Call me when you’ve dropped him off.”

“All right, all right,” Hope said.

Nick relied heavily on the cane but wasn’t sweating or grunting. And he’d returned to his normal color. She handed Hope her keys. “Be careful.”

“I have other plans,” Hope said, which was her canned response to Faith’s admonitions of caution.

“Five minutes,” Nick reminded her before following Hope out the door. “Five minutes before you tattle. And thanks.”

Faith flashed a thumbs-up. Whether he knew it or not, he was doing her a big favor. Hope getting her license would be a real time-saver for Faith. Their family home was less than a mile from town, and Hope walked to work most days. But anytime there was bad weather, or she had to go any farther, Faith had to drive her. She needed her dad back in the game. ASAP.

“Hey, Ruby,” Faith said, coming out to the store floor. “You and my mom were good friends. Any advice on what to do about my dad?”

“He still struggling?”

Faith nodded. “Never goes anywhere, barely eats, pays no attention to Hope. He was so reliant on Mom, I’m not even sure he knows how to cook or clean. I may have babied him too much while she was sick.”

“Everyone has their own timeline for getting over someone, but you could start giving some gentle nudges. Don’t make dinner and see what he does. Leave dishes in the sink, and maybe he’ll step up.”

She’d tried the thing with the dishes, and it hadn’t gone over so well. And when she didn’t cook, he ate granola bars. Perhapsa harder push was needed. “Seems mean, but it’s worth a try. Thanks.”

She returned to her desk and texted her father.I won’t be home for dinner. There’s chicken you can bake or fixings for spaghetti.

He didn’t respond, but she knew he’d seen it. He waited by the phone like he waited by the door—as if his wife would call or come home at any moment.

Next, she typed out a text to Tess. Her thumb hovered over the send button, but before she could press it, Tess burst into the office. “You don’t think to call me when my brother face-plants in your store?”

Faith held up her phone. “I wasliterallyjust texting you. He made me promise to give him a head start before I ratted him out.”

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