“Okay,” was his simple reply, even as he kept going.
I sighed. “Really. You don’t have to. I don’t want you feeling weird being in here. I swear, I’m not trying to do anything.”
Those big, callused hands paused in their motion. The breath he let out was so deep I could hear it. “I know you’re not.”
I was so distracted by Josh’s mom, I couldn’t even think of a comeback or focus on the strained silence between us. Shame filled me from my belly button to my chin, but I knew I had to say something to him about what had just happened. “Thank you for that out there.” Yeah, it sounded just as awkward as I was afraid it would.
He finally glanced up at me through long, spiky eyelashes I’d never noticed before. “She’d been parked outside your house for a while,” he explained casually. “I thought something wasn’t right.”
His comment only made me feel slightly guilty for eavesdropping on the conversation he’d had with the woman in the red car, his maybe-separated, maybe-almost-divorced wife. I had no business knowing about her, much less thinking about her when I had something genuinely more important to focus on. Fucking Anita.
She couldn’t take Josh. She couldn’t. There was no way, I reminded the lump that had formed in my stomach.
Maybe I should call his school tomorrow or talk to his teacher about the situation so they could be more vigilant with who he went home with.
“Is there something I should know?” he asked quietly, more gently than any other sentence I’d yet to hear come out of his mouth.
Was there? Palming my forehead, I closed my eyes and willed my heart to beat slower.
Something metallic clanked against the kitchen countertop. I could picture him taking cans of soup out and setting them there, keeping those big hands busy. “I can help, if you tell me what you need.”
He was offering to help me after he hadn’t been able to get away from me fast enough. Who would have known? Who would have fucking known?
Tears seemed to fill my closed eyes, but I wiped them away as I dragged my hand down my face. At what point had I turned into such a crybaby? When I opened my eyes again, my attention went to the cabinet in front of my face. The words out of my mouth were the truth. Lies and I weren’t friends. “That was Josh’s biological mom,” I told him steadily.
He didn’t say anything.
Turning around to face him, I found him with his hand on one of the cans I must have heard him taking out of a plastic bag. I met his eyes for a moment as I took one of the bags next to him and started pulling things out of it. “He’s not supposed to see her any more. She tried taking him out of daycare when he was three, and we had to put a restraining order against her. She hasn’t done anything like that since then, but she only comes around every few years.” I shrugged and balled up the plastic bag when I was done with it. I squeezed it in my fist and swallowed as I looked up at him over my shoulder, shrugging again. What else was there to say?
“Okay,” he said, damn near softly. Those hazel eyes locked on mine. There was only a tiny crease between his eyebrows then. “Okay,” he repeated on an exhale that seemed nearly painful. “I’ll keep an eye out.”
My mouth formed the shape of a smile that wasn’t really one. What a mess. “Well, thank you for that. I can’t—” God, this entire situation made me awkward. A part of me still couldn’t wrap my head around her showing up after so long. Why would she do that? When she’d shown up in the past, it had always been to troll on Rodrigo. I genuinely didn’t think that she had some deep love for Josh. Then again, what did I know? I would probably do the same thing if I were in her shoes. We all made mistakes we regretted. “I really appreciate it.”
“You don’t need to thank me. I wasn’t gonna leave you to handle her alone.” His hand went up to touch the back of his neck in a gesture that didn’t seem as casual as it should have. He probably didn’t like getting involved in things that didn’t include him. I couldn’t blame him. But the thing he said next explained it. “I owe you.”
“You don’t owe me anything,” I said to him slowly, meeting his gaze.
That wary face didn’t move a single muscle. “You’ve been nothing but nice to my family. I owe you,” he repeated himself.
Figuring he was talking about Dean and Trip, I focused on his other words. What the hell was I going to do with this man? Be ungrateful about what he’d done even if it had mainly just been moral support? I knew I should take what I could get for whatever reason.
We worked in silence for a few minutes. He’d take things out of the bags and set them on the counter while I put them where they needed to go. A few times I caught him looking around the kitchen, I’m sure taking in the crappy cupboards and the paint that needed to be redone… and the floors that had seen better decades, but he didn’t comment on them. I didn’t let myself get all bent out of shape over him being in my house, this near stranger.
“If you wanna call the cops, have them come over, I can be your witness she was here,” my neighbor offered in that easy voice that reminded me this was the type of man who didn’t want to talk to women who flirted with him because he was married and who also coached little boy baseball.
I’d been thinking about it while putting up groceries. The truth was, I didn’t want to involve the police, mostly because I didn’t want this getting back to my parents and stressing them out, and I also didn’t want the boys getting involved in it either. Josh had made me promise him something I would never take lightly that night after the funeral. You don’t ever have to see her again if you don’t want to, J. I won’t let her take you. I promise.
“I’m not,” I told him. “I really don’t think she’ll come back.”
The noise that churned in his throat didn’t say whether he approved of my decision or not.
For a moment, I thought about telling him about Rodrigo, but I didn’t. Seeing Anita had given me enough to deal with. Talking about my brother was a mountain I didn’t want to tackle yet with this man who was slowly becoming friendly with me.
When we were done a few minutes later, Josh’s coach gave me a serious, solemn look. “I’m gonna get going, but I’ll be home the rest of the day. Holler if you need anything, but I’ll keep a look out and make sure you don’t get any more visitors.”
“You really don’t have to do that,” I tried to insist.
Dallas let his head lull to the side a moment, watching me with those eyes. That pink mouth opened just enough so I could see the tip of his tongue tap the corner of his lips. “You’re friends with my family. We’re neighbors.” His eyelids hung low in a way that was almost a glare. “Give me a call if you need anything.”
The look I gave him must have said “You sure you’re not going to freak out about me calling?” because I would swear he scowled.
“Holler,” he repeated in that bossy tone.