Page 17 of Valentine's Daddy To Go
“I have more.” She takes my cup away from me and starts to walk away from me, back to the bathroom where she prepared my delicious cup. It’s then that I hear little footsteps rushing behind me.
“Nellie, Nellie, Auntie Nellie!” Mackenzie comes barreling down the stairs and right into my body. We both go tumbling to the ground in a fit of giggles.
“Hey, Mac!”
Maddie sees Mackenzie and I having so much fun on the ground that she abandons her quest to get me more tea and joins our pile.
“Oof!” I exclaim when her little body climbs on top of me.
I look up at the two cutest girls in the world, their blonde curls waving and wild. They have innocent and trusting blue eyes and smiles larger than life.
It tells me that whatever deal I made with Nash was worth it.
“Do you guys want to go to the trampoline? I want to see who can jump the highest.”
“Yeah!” they both scream together. I get both of them off of me and take the two of them outside. I help them get on the trampoline and watch as their blonde curls bounce in the sunlight as they squeal with joy.
Having a whole new thing to do, Madison and Mackenzie enter their own little world where nothing matters but the fun they are having. Meanwhile, Brian and Vivica come outside carrying pitchers of lemonade. I leave the girls to it, going to get myself a nice cool drink.
“Hey, Nellie,” Vivica waves as I get closer. She offers me a glass which I take, downing about half of it. “Brian told me that you gave him some money. Thanks, it’ll really help us out.”
I nod, feigning a smile.
“Yeah, of course. I don’t want to see Mackenzie and Madison lose their home.”
“Yes, they don’t deserve that,” my sister-in-law says softly, with her head down. I take a deep breath and look at my brother and his wife. For the first time, I’m genuinely annoyed with him. Withbothof them. Time and time again, they come to me with their problems, and it’s like I’m expected to fix them. I’ll always help because I’m the big sister and that’s what I do, but I can feel myself reaching the end of my rope, both emotionally and financially.
But that’s not something they need to hear right now.
“There’s something I want to tell you guys.”
“What is it?” Brian asks. Vivica looks just as curious.
“I went to Jaybird to talk to your boss, Nash.” They both look shocked. I’m not sure why since I’m constantly going out on a limb for their family. They should just assume I’ll do whatever it takes.
“Really? Why?” asks Brian.
“I couldn’t stand to see my nieces go hungry,” I manage to voice. I’m almost shaking from the sheer anger I’m feeling right now. I’ve kept these feelings bottled up for too long. I’m worried they’ll burst out. I’ll need to rant to Amy later. That should help me find my center of calm again.
“What did you say to him?” asks my brother hesitantly.
“I asked for your job back.” They both gasp. I’m sure they’re genuinely surprised about all this, but this whole routine feels like a farce right now.
“So what did he say? What happened?” asks Vivica.
I take a deep breath.
“Nash said yes, you can have your job back. Just show up on Monday, bright and early, keep your head down, and work hard.”
“You’re kidding me!” my brother gasps.
“Nope, not at all. But I suggest you start looking for another job pronto. This guy already doesn’t like you, he fired you once. Once you get that new job, quit Jaybird and start again. Okay?”
“Okay, I’ll do all of that. I promise. I promise Nells,” Brian responds, all smiles. He stands up and gives me a huge hug. “You have no idea how much this means to me. You’ve literally saved our family.”
There are sobs in his voice, and I can see that Vivica is crying. While I’m annoyed, I can’t stay mad a Brian forever. Whenever he gets all emotional like this, I remember that he’s my little brother, and that I love him.
“Really guys, it’s not that big of a deal.” That’s a lie, but I want this emotions fest to end. I love him, but I’m also a little uncomfortable.
