Page 8 of Protecting the Boundary
“Sorry,” she says, trying to compose herself. “This is just something that would totally happen to me.”
“Literally running into someone at the grocery store?”I ask, composing myself. I don’t know what the hell that just was, but it was weird.
Her eyes shine happily. “Yeah,” she says. “And that a hot guy would hand me my box of tampons.”
Her eyes go wide at her slip, and her cheeks flush a deeper pink.
I ignore her “hot guy” comment. “Tampons don’t scare me. You’re all good.”
I used to buy Syd her tampons all the time when she needed them. “Do you need a hand getting up?”
I don’t wait for her to answer before I extend my hand, and she takes it with a grateful smile. Once she’s back on her feet, she says, “Thanks. Sorry again for bumping into you.”
I shrug, uncomfortable with how I responded to her just now. I don’t react to women anymore, and I can’t figure out why this stranger had such an instant effect on me, but I’d rather brush it off and get on with my shopping so I can get home to Kay. “I think we’re both at fault. Have a good one.” I walk down the aisle and snag Kay’s favorite cookies before heading to check out.
The whole drive home, I can’t stop thinking about thewoman. I don’t know why. It wasn’t like we interacted that long, but for some reason I keep seeing flashes of her flushed cheeks and those deep brown eyes that seemed filled with such happiness, even when she was laughing at herself.
When was the last time my eyes had that kind of shine?
When I get home, I hurry inside and smile when I hear my daughter’s feet slapping against the hardwood floors. “Daddy!” she squeals, launching herself straight into my waiting arms.
I hug her tight. “Hey, baby girl. How was your day with Grammy?”
She pulls back with that smile on her face that always makes my day better. “Good.”
Larissa walks up, her own smile filling her face. “I think I found the perfect nanny.”
“Did you get a lot of people to interview?”
“We had five that were cleared through the agency. Three of them were terrible. They didn’t engage with Kay at all and didn’t answer any of my questions well.”
“So out of the two that did, you thought one would be a good fit for Kay?”
Larissa looks almost as excited as Kaylee. “I did. I’ll show you all her info and tell you about her. Kay, why don’t you go wash your hands so you can help your daddy make dinner?”
“Okay,” she says, her little body squirming with excitement to get down. She rushes off to the downstairs bathroom that has her step stool and the foaming soap she loves while Larissa and I go to the kitchen.
After putting away the eggs and cookies I bought, I move to the kitchen sink, washing my hands while Larissa pulls out the fixings for pita pizza. It’s been Kay’s favorite lately. Based on her history, she’ll probably love it for another week before she refuses to eat it for at least a month. Just when I think I knowher favorite food, she decides she doesn’t like it anymore and we have to find something else.
Toddlers are weird little creatures.
“Meredith Gable is the one I think you should hire. She was fantastic with Kaylee. She’s more than qualified and I don’t think she’ll fangirl over you.”
I huff. “That’s a relief.” But I’ll believe it when I see it.
She chews on her lip, staring off in space.
“What?” I ask.
When she looks at me, I brace myself for something awful. “She lost her mother as a baby.”
That’s not at all what I was expecting. I grab the towel, drying my hands as I stare toward where Kaylee ran off to. “Do you think she’d be able to help Kay come out of her shell?”
It’s been my biggest worry—among the many that come when you’re solely responsible for the well-being of a tiny child. Kay’s never been very outgoing, but sometimes, she seems to fold in on herself and I worry it’s because she doesn’t have her mom. Larissa does her best, but she can’t be here all the time. And as hard as I try, I’m man enough to admit that I struggle to play both mom and dad.
“Kay gave her the biggest smile I’ve ever seen her give a stranger.”
I sag back against the countertop. Kay rarely smiles for strangers, so that’s a very big deal. “Alright. We’ll go with your pick.”
