Page 19 of Whiskey Wednesdays
“Because I’m not available.”
“Uh-huh.” He didn’t believe me. “I’ll pay you triple whatever you’re getting paid right now.”
My irritation returned. “I’m not getting paid for what I do, and I already plan to help with Elodie. Soon my schedule will change significantly. Until then, I’ll be spending a lot of time with her and my dad. And you don’t have to pay me.”
Elodie ran over to us. “Belly, can you swing me now?”
“Yeah, sweetheart. Let’s go.”
She ran ahead of me and I looked back at Connor. “Youwouldhave to pay me to spend time with you, though.”
He leaned back and put his sunglasses back on. “We’ll just have to change your mind then, won’t we?”
Chapter 6
Over the next week, I hung out quite a bit with Dad and Elodie. She seemed a little happier and more settled, and she talked a lot about Connor and her Mémé. It was easy to tell she loved them both. She never mentioned her mother though.
“Mémé got broken, so I had to come live here,” Elodie told me one day when we were feeding Shawnda.
“Oh? What got broken?”
She pushed her scraggly hair out of her eyes. “Her leg I think. My mom said she’s old as dirt.”
“Huh. I hope she gets better.” Her mom didn’t sound very nice.
“Me too. Mom can’t take care of me without Mémé.”
I stilled at her comment. Dad and I had both wondered about Elodie’s mother.
She looked up at me. “My mom is broken too.”
“I’m sorry, Ellie. What’s wrong with her?”
“She’s sad and mad all the time.”
Kneeling down, I touched her shoulder. “I understand how you feel. My mom was broken too while I was growing up.”
“Was she sad too?”
I pointed to my ribcage. “She was sick here, in her lungs. It was hard not being able to fix it.”
She nodded, then gave me a big hug. “I’m sorry, Belly.”
I hugged her back, holding her tight for a minute. “I’m sorry too, Ellie.”
“Where’s your mom now?” she asked innocently.
I tried to smile. “I like to think she’s in heaven. She died a long time ago. I miss her, but I’m grateful I still have my dad and brother.”
She patted my cheek. “And now you have me. And Daddy.”
I didn’t think having Connor was all that great, but I grinned at her enthusiasm. “That’s right. I do have you.”
This little girl was burrowing her way into my heart, and I had no defense against it.
The next afternoon, Dad and Elodie were making cookies together when I walked in. While we waited for them to bake, Dad reviewed the alphabet with her. He glanced at me while Elodie struggled to recognize the letters in her name.
“This is boring, Javy,” she whined.
