Page 126 of The Single Dads Club
I cringed as the doctor passing by me perked up at the V word being shouted in our direction.
Yikes, MacKenzie was a hot mess. But then, maybe so was I.
* * *
Maybe this was a stupid idea. After sleeping late, I’d showered and dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a simple black tank top, and then after making a stop at a sporting-goods store, I was currently parked in front of Cade’s house once again.
I’d shown up the same time as before, thinking he’d be here to meet his sister off the bus again, but his pickup truck wasn’t in the driveway.
I grabbed the exercise ball and pump from the backseat and made my way up to house.
Moments later, an attractive girl answered the door. She looked to be around my age, maybe a year or two younger, and she was pretty with long blonde hair that hung down her back and wide-set gray eyes. My stomach dropped. Was this Cade’s girlfriend?
Shit.Did porn starshavegirlfriends? That would require a lot of trust. I mean, geez, he slept with other women for a living.
“Can I help you?”
I stood there for a second, still thrown off by this girl’s appearance and the question of her relationship with Cade, until I realized I hadn’t answered her yet. “Is Cade home?”
She shook her head. “He’s working. Who are you?”
I swallowed down a lump in my throat. “I’m Alexa, a…friend of his. And I brought this,” I held up the exercise ball, “for Lily. I’m a nurse.” Almost.Friend? Nurse? Geez, the lies were just spewing from my mouth.
“Oh. Okay.” She opened the door wider and stepped to the side. “Lily will be home in a few minutes. You can come in and wait if you like. I’m Stacey, by the way.”
I don’t know why I didn’t just hand over the ball and leave. Instead, I followed her in the house, wondering what in the world I was doing and who the heck Stacey was.
I’d officially and well and truly lost my mind.
Chapter 7
Cade
I parked my truck and wondered where the hell Stacey’s car had gone. Had she taken Lily somewhere? I didn’t like the idea of Stacey driving Lily around in that deathtrap of hers. I grabbed my toolbox from the bed of the truck and stashed it in the garage before heading inside.
I was greeted by sounds of giggling coming from Lily’s room. Ok, Lily was here, but what about Stacey? I stopped at the kitchen sink to wash the grime from my hands and then headed down the hall to find out what was going on.
The sight that greeted me wasn’t at all what I was expecting. Lily was lying on a big exercise ball and Alexa was kneeling beside her, helping her to roll across the ball. I watched in stunned fascination for a second trying to understand what she was doing here and where the hell Stacey had gone to.
“Caden!” Lily shrieked, spotting me in the doorway. She lifted herself from the ball on shaky legs, crossing the few steps without her walker and throwing herself into my arms.
“Hi baby doll.” I pulled her little body to mine in a brief hug. “What are you guys doing?” I wanted to ask Alexa what the fuck she was doing in my house, but the grin on Lily’s face instantly calmed me.
“Lexa is teaching me some new exercises for my legs!” She returned to the ball, and bounced excitedly while Alexa grinned at her and held it steady. Lily’s cheeks were flushed pink and I had to admit I hadn’t ever seen her this excited to do her stretches. I just hoped she wasn’t overdoing it.
“That’s…nice. Alexa, can I have a word with you in the other room?” I turned for the living room without waiting for her response.
“Stay here while I go talk to Cade, okay?” I heard her say to Lily. She followed me into the living room, worry etched on her face.
“What are you doing here? Where’s Stacey?” My tone was biting, but I couldn’t help that right now.
“I came over to see Lily and then Stacey left.”
“She left? The person I’m paying to babysit her just left her, with… you. Someone Lily doesn’t even know. What are you even doing here?”
“It really isn’t a big deal.”
“It’s a big fucking deal to me.” I turned and faced the window, not wanting to lose my temper. Damn, I trusted Stacey. How could she just leave Lily alone with a stranger?
