Page 104 of Hale Yes
I don’t hover while he gets to work, instead busying myself around the lab. I went to check on Reece a couple times, and last time I did, she was curled up in Helix’s big leather chair fast asleep. I removed my jacket and balled it up beneath her head as a makeshift pillow.
Now I’m beside Helix as his hands work beneath the ventilation hood, my head level with his shoulder. I catch the scent of chlorine and ask, “Do you swim?”
He glances down at me. “Every day. Why?”
“I can smell chlorine on you sometimes.”
“I have a saltwater pool, but of course it has a chlorine generator.”
“Right, the chlorine is separated from the salt through electrolysis.” I eye him up and down. “You have a perfect swimmer’s body. Did you ever swim competitively?”
His hands freeze for a long moment before he answers, and I wonder if I said something wrong. “I did when I was younger, but now I just do it for exercise.”
We’re interrupted by a squawking sound and then a little voice. “Dr. Uncle Helix, come in, please.”
He grins and motions toward his hip. “Will you grab the walkie-talkie out of my pocket?” I pull out a Hello Kitty device and depress the button, holding it close to his mouth. “Go for Dr. Uncle Helix.”
“This is Doodlebug. I believe you said something about popsicles earlier? Over.”
He chuckles, and I push the button again so he can talk. “Of course. What kind would you like? Over.”
“I’m not picky. As long as it’s red or pink. Over.”
“Give me just a second, Doodle. I need to get my gloves off and wash up. Over.”
“I can get her a popsicle,” I offer. “You’re right in the middle of this. If it sits too long, you’ll have to start over.”
“Are you sure?” he asks, brows lowering over his bright blue eyes.
I pat his ass. “Positive. The sooner you can get done, the sooner you can take Miss Priss home.”
He scratches his nose on his shoulder. “Okay, thanks. I hated to bring her with me, but when I called the nanny, she has strep too. It’s apparently going around, and she said she feels like crap.”
“Aw, poor lady. Strep can knock an adult on their ass, while kids bounce back a little easier. Reecie should feel better tomorrow after the shot, but if you want to stay home with her, I’ll keep things afloat here.”
“Thanks,” he says gratefully. “Though I’m pretty sure Phoenix is going to show up back in Houston tonight. He almost had a conniption fit when I told him she wasn’t feeling good. I assured him I could handle it, but I understand where he’s coming from. She’s his world.”
“He seems like such a good dad,” I say, heading to the door and calling over my shoulder. “Be back in a few.”
I enter Helix’s office holding a cherry popsicle, one of those long ones in a plastic tube. I’ve already snipped off the top and squished it with my fingers so it would be soft for Reece. I find her at the desk, drawing away on a small sketch pad, her tongue poking out one corner of her mouth.
She looks up and motions to me with a pencil. “Come on in and have a seat,” she offers, sounding like a pint-sized CEO. She is truly freaking adorable.
“Your red popsicle, Madam Doodlebug,” I tell her in a formal voice as I hand over the treat wrapped in a paper napkin.
She takes a long slurp, and her eyes widen. “Mmm, cherry.” She licks her lips and asks, “Is Uncle Helix your boyfriend?”
Well. Uhhhh.
“We’re dating each other,” I say evasively.
“Okay,” she says easily, taking another suck of her popsicle. “I’ll call you Auntie Nicolette then.”
My heart melts like an ice cube on a Houston sidewalk. “Whatever you want to call me is fine,” I tell her.
“I don’t have a mom,” she informs me, very matter-of-factly. “Do you have a mom?”
“I do.”
