Page 29 of Wild Hit
I stiffen when I notice I’m practically drowning one plant, and move on to the next one. Conscious that Rose has been patiently waiting for me to say something, I break the silence with “just work. There’s a new sponsor that is a pain in the ass and I wish he’d go away.”
“I heard through the grapevine that he’s some rich guy.” I roll my eyes but she doesn’t see that, and she adds, “Could he be brother-in-law material?”
I manage the feat of spraying my own feet, but even that isn’t anywhere as annoying as the sudden urge to barf all over the backyard deck. “Ew! Don’t curse me like that. I sincerely wish I could take back every year of my life I’ve known him for.” Especially that moment during Adam’s funeral.
When there’s no response to that diatribe, I shut off the water hose just to confirm that she’s not speaking and I just can’t hear her. I find her looking at me in confusion, though.
“So you knew the rich guy from before?”
Oh. Crap. I did not intend to reveal that little bit. I was just so offended at the concept of getting together with that turd that I babbled.
I snap my mouth shut, schooling my expression while on the inside, I flip through any reasonable explanation I can give that won’t wake up the curiosity of this friendly reporter.
Fortunately for me, some noise attracts our attention. It’s not Hope coming to the rescue—she’s with the team tonight. Rose’s man is still recovering, so she’s making a quick pit stop after work to change before going out for dinner with him.
The one approaching us is none other than our neighbor—little Machado, that is.
She slides her home’s back door shut and comes with full purpose. Rose and I exchange a glance that seems to say,are we in trouble or…?This ten year old girl all but struts toward us,carrying some school tomes under one arm, and a Kuromi pencil case in her other hand.
“Hi,” she says standing before us, watching my hose drip pitifully as Rose scratches her head.
She’s the one who recovers to say, “Hi, sweetie. How are you doing?”
The kid responds in full honesty. “I’m about to pull my hair out, and you?”
Shocked, Rose pats her own hair protectively. “I’m good the way I am, thank you for asking.”
I mask a snort with a cough. “What’s got you so frustrated, Marty?”
“This.” Her expression twists even more as she lifts up her books. The wordmathis written in bold, red letters that are unmistakable.
“Ah.”
“I see.”
Marty tries to fold her arms but fails, since they’re busy. “Nanny Consuelo is good at many things. She makes a mean mondongo”—I blink at the unfamiliar word that she slides in with ease—“And is very nice, but she also can’t do math.”
“I’m sorry, sweetie, I’m a journalism major.” Rosalina raises her hands in defense. “Let me know when you need to write an essay or something that’s more about words, okay?”
They all look at me.
“I’m no rocket scientist.” I shrug.
“Can you do fractions?” Marty rounds her eyes in a big, hopeful expression that has nothing to envy of the Shrek cat.
“I—er…” There’s no way I can tell this cute kid no when she’s looking at me like I’m her last resort. “I may need a moment to brush up on it before I try to help.”
“Yes!” She pumps her pencil case-holding fist in the air.
Rose sends me an amused smile. “Surely this will keep your mind off your mysterious worries, huh?”
*
It works like a charm. Not only is my mind off my weird conundrum, and not only did I manage to evade capture from Rose’s curiosity, but my stomach is also singing with joy after eating the most incredible soup I’ve ever had in my life—the famous mondongo—and I’m fully focused on defeating Marty’s homework.
“I remember now,” I declare after reading her textbook chapter like three times. We’re sitting together at her kitchen table, while nanny Consuelo loads the dishwasher. “We used to do two big Cs like this to know what the operation was like.”
I grab a loose piece of paper and jot down two random fractions that are going to be divided, drawing a big C from the top number to the very bottom one—the fourth—and then a smaller c between the middle numbers.
