Page 73 of Valentine's Daddy To Go
Nellie looks at me with her big brown eyes. She breathes in deeply, before tilting her head slightly.
“I do. I trust you, Nash.”
That’s all it takes. My heart swells with those words, and a sense of happiness fills me. She watches as I get Madison and Mackenzie out of the backseat. They both snuggle into my shoulder once I’m standing upright. I look over at Nellie and smile to reassure her. She has a curious look on her face, which I’ve never seen before. I can’t tell what it means, but she doesn’t seem angry or upset, so I take that as a good sign.
“You ready to head in?”
“Mm-hm,” she nods. We walk over to the house. When we reach the sidewalk, the front door opens, and a frail blonde comes running out.
“Oh my goodness! Thank you so much!” This must be Vivica. She rushes over to me but stops short when she notices that her daughters are asleep. “Oh my.”
She strokes their hair, looking into their peaceful slumbering faces.
“Thank you for bringing them back to me. Thank you,” she whispers. I’m assuming she’s saying this to Nellie, but all of her focus is on her kids. It’s as if she’s worried they are going to disappear again, not that I blame her.
“Of course, Vivica.” Nellie is standing behind her, looking at her nieces as well.
“Did you find Brian?”
“Yeah, I don’t think he should be around the girls for a while,” Nellie says in a low voice.
“I know,” Vivica replies in a broken voice. “I know.” A couple of tears roll down her face, but, for the most part, she keeps her composure. “Um, maybe we should bring them inside,” the blonde woman adds.
I look over at Nellie because I, personally, don’t think that’s a good idea. I don’t think the girls should evenbeat the house anymore. Nellie looks at me, confused, but doesn’t ask me anything.
“Yeah, we need to get them out of these damp clothes. I found them playing in the river,” she trails off.
“Jesus Christ,” Vivica mumbles. “I knew Brian had gone off the deep end, but it’s really bad this time.” She wipes away her tears, looking downward for a few seconds.
“We can talk about him later,” Nellie says reassuringly. “Right now, Madison and Mackenzie need to get into bed. Nash, can you bring them in for us?”
The two of them turn to head inside, but I don’t walk with them.
“Wait,” comes my low voice. They both turn back around, their eyes full of surprise. Nellie looks astonished, and Vivica looks alarmed.
“What is it, Nash?”
“I agree that the girls should get into some dry clothes, but I don’t think you guys should stay here anymore.”
“What?” gasps Vivica.
“Why?” asks Nellie in a confused voice.
“Because Brian can come back at any time. He has a legal right to be in his home, and unless you want to go through a long and lengthy legal process, I suggest not living here anymore.”
“But where would we go?” Vivica asks, looking between me and Nellie. “We can barely afford this house as is, and I don’t work. Without Brian, there’s no way I can afford to move. I don’t even have the money for next month’s rent.”
Nellie nods.
“I’d suggest my place, but Brian has the key for my apartment, too,” she says slowly. Clearly, this man has really walked through their lives and destroyed a whole lot of things in his path.
“I can get you guys into a hotel,” I tell her. “We can worry about where you’ll be living long-term another day. I promise we will figure it out, but let’s take it one day at a time for now.”
“Oh, I don’t know. We can’t take charity,” Vivica looks uncomfortable, but I will not take no for an answer.
“I’m getting you a hotel. If you don’t do it for yourself, do it for your kids. They deserve a safe space, and it’s really not a big deal. Trust me, I can afford it.” Vivica takes a couple of seconds to think but then nods.
“Okay, we’ll go. You’re right that Maddie and Mac need a safe place. I haven’t given that to them recently, so thank you,” she says in a small voice. “Thank you both.”
