He’s looking at his phone, but as soon as he sees me, the frownvanishes, replaced with a not-quite-so-easy smile. Strain lightly creases the corners of his eyes.
“I just have to quickly get changed. I’ll only be a second.” I wasn’t expecting him for another five minutes; otherwise, I’d have been changed and ready to go.
I disappear down the hallway, my heart rate fluttering into overdrive.It’s gonna be okay. She’s a toddler. There’s nothing scary about that. You’ll be fine.
It’s not like I haven’t been around little kids before. But this is Garrett’s and Kenda’s daughter. What if she doesn’t like me? What if she reminds me too much of Kenda and I can’t stop crying? Crying because a beautiful soul has been stolen from this world.
I grab my jeans and top from my locker and take them into the washroom.
Humming to myself, I lock the door and check my face in the mirror. My eyes are a little puffy from last night. I couldn’t sleep and kept alternating between sobbing and trying to get comfortable on my mattress.
My eyes aren’t as red as they were this morning, so I consider that a win.
I change, the ibuprofen I took earlier still doing its job. I check my reflection one more time, making sure my makeup isn’t smudged or smeared. “You’ve got this.”
I join Garrett outside and find him pacing on the sidewalk. It’s a beautiful spring day. The sun is warm, and so is the gentle breeze blowing a wayward strand of hair in his face. Storm clouds are gathering along the horizon, but they aren’t expected in Maple Ridge until this evening.
“You trying to solve a plot problem?” I ask. Whenever he’s stuck on something that has to do with a book he’s working on, he paces or gardens.
“Hell if I know if I’ve got a plot problem.” He rakes his hand through his hair, pushing the longish strands out of his face. “I haven’t written much in the past two days. Since Peony showed up.”
Oh. Damn.No wonder he looks so stressed. His publisher bumped up his deadline, and then Peony fell into his lap. Add to that, the love of hislife died in a mall shooting. How would anyone get anything done under those circumstances?
“Hey, Garrett. This is me,” I say as we walk down the sidewalk to the hotel farther down Main Street. “What do you need?”
“A miracle,” he mutters.
“Unfortunately, I’m no voodoo priestess, so I can’t help you there.” Not even Mimi, who claimed to be a priestess, could have given him the miracle he’s looking for. Not at this level. “But I can help in more practical ways. And you have a nanny who’ll take good care of Peony while you work. Kenda trusted her, so you know you can trust…what was her name again?” Apollo? Aphrodite? I remember it had something to do with Greek mythology.
“Athena.”
“Right. Athena. Which Greek goddess was she?”
“The goddess of wisdom.”
“Ah. So she’s a wise nanny. That’s good.”
“Compared to what I know about kids Peony’s age, she’s freaking the Einstein of kids as far as I’m concerned.”
I stop walking and touch his arm. His biceps are warm and taut under my fingertips. “You’re gonna be a great father, Garrett. You just need to give Peony time to get to know you. She’s been through so much.” I wrap him in a tight hug. “And you’re already proving you’re a fantastic father.”
Garrett’s arms go around my waist. I close my eyes, breathing in the scent of pine and leather and the mountain sunshine, a scent that’s all Garrett.
“You haven’t done the paternity test yet, but you’re making sure your home is her home.” I step away from our hug, even though I would be happy to stay in it for another lifetime or so.
I wish I could reassure him about his book and the deadline, but it would just be empty platitudes. “If you need someone to brainstorm with or rant to about the book, I’m your woman.” That much I can do.
“Thanks.” He gifts me one of his smiles that never fail to make me warm and tingly on the inside.
Garrett quietly knockson the hotel room door.
“Who-who’s there?” The female voice on the other side is soft, almost timid, but there’s also a strength buried just beneath the surface.
“It’s Garrett.”
The door opens, revealing a woman in her mid-twenties. Forget the goddess of wisdom. This woman could double for the goddess of love, but instead of a toga, she’s wearing jeans, a shell-pink T-shirt, and has bare feet.
My heart drops like an elevator, its cables severed.Thisis Peony’s nanny?
