Everything

by Melissa Pearl

  Just today? Some of the mess seemed kind of stale. How did she live like this? I’d be out of my tree trying to function in this kind of chaos.

  “Yeah, yeah, no worries.” I nodded, giving her what I hoped was an encouraging smile as I said goodbye and let myself out. I turned to look at her one more time before I left.

  Her shoulders were hunched, and I noticed her swipe at one more tear as Angel’s fussing increased in volume.

  With a small frown, I closed the door gently and headed back to my piano.

  Maybe Jody wasn’t coping as well as I thought she was.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jody

  Okay, so the spider thing was freaking embarrassing. Not to mention the state of my apartment. I didn’t miss the slightly shocked expression on Leo’s face. I could have died.

  I wanted to give my boss a good impression, and there I was screaming over a spider, ignoring how much my reaction was terrifying Angel...and then the mess. Aw, man, the mess!

  “Seriously, Jody, you’re useless!” It’d been a week since my utter humiliation, and I still hadn’t gotten over it. I couldn’t even look at Leo when he came to do his weekly check-in the day before, and I actually chickened out this morning and just dumped his groceries outside his door so I didn’t have to face him.

  It wasn’t that he was being mean or anything, but the next time I saw him, I wanted to be able to look him in the eye and know that I was in full control.

  “Like that’s ever gonna happen!” I tutted, rinsing out yet another freaking baby bottle. I couldn’t wait for Angel to be past this stage. I was so over washing copious amounts of plastic!

  The only thing I did have going for me was that my duties as assistant building manager were running smoothly. I was keeping up with all maintenance requests, tenants seemed to like me, and the one short-term stay we’d had since I’d been working here went really well.

  I was proud of myself for that, but it did mean I was falling behind on everything else. When I lived at home with Morgan and Dad, my only responsibility had been Angel and a little laundry, so it meant that when she napped, I could put my feet up, but that never happened anymore. It was so tempting to call it quits and move back home, but I couldn’t do it. I’d hate myself forever.

  And that look on Dad’s face. UGH! Forget it!

  I was going to make this work if it killed me.

  The phone rang behind me. Flicking the water off my fingers, I dried my hands, glancing at the half-finished piece of toast on the kitchen counter. I had made that over two hours ago and still hadn’t gotten back to it.

  I could say one thing: this whole single parenting/working thing was definitely helping me shed my pregnancy weight. I never had time to eat; some days I’d get to lunch and realize I hadn’t had breakfast yet. I’d been too busy to even feel hungry!

  Glancing at the phone screen, I let out a loud sigh before pasting on a smile.

  “Hi, Ms. Thornby. How are you today?”

  “Not well. The man upstairs is making a terrible racket. I can’t even hear what’s going on in The Bold and The Beautiful and this is a very important episode!”

  “The man upstairs from you?” I cringed, squeezing my eyes shut and praying she’d say no.

  “Yes, Mr. Whatever-his-name-is. His TV is up so loud I can barely hear myself think. It’s not fair! Why should I miss my show just because he’s deaf? I need you to go and tell him to be quiet.”

  “Of course, Ms. Thornby. I’ll deal with it right away.”

  “I should think so. Good luck, dear.”

  She hung up, and I placed the phone on the counter with a heavy sigh. Mr. Kransten. Apartment 3B. “Oh, joy,” I mumbled, snatching the baby monitor and making sure it was working. I had tested it out in my first week, and thankfully it had a really good range, meaning I could leave Angel sleeping in her crib and not have to worry about missing her cries if she needed me.

  Locking the door behind me, I muttered my way down the stairs, hoping Mr. Cray-Cray would go easy on me today. If he screwed up my six-week trial in any way, I’d be tempted to kill him. So far, I’d managed to keep all his annoying antics out from Leo’s radar, but going down there to tell him off? The guy had already told me exactly what he thought of me, and he was not going to take kindly to this little visit.

  Pasting on a cheery expression, I knocked on the door until my knuckles stung. That TV was ridiculously loud. I held my breath, hoping he heard me...and also kind of not.

  “Please be nice this time,” I whispered.

  “What!” He threw back the door, barking at me like a police dog. The already-loud TV sounded a million times louder with the door ajar.

  “Hello, Mr. Kransten!” I smiled. “I’ve had a concerned neighbor call me, saying there was a bit of noise coming from your apartment, and I was wondering if I could assist you in any way...like maybe helping you turn down the TV?”

  “I don’t need your help.” He went to close the door in my face, but I held it open with my hand.

  “Please, Mr. Kransten, part of your tenancy agreement is that you will respect your fellow neighbors, and your TV is way too loud. You need to turn it down.”

  He was a tall, spindly man with hardly a hair on his head. His beady eyes narrowed as he peered down his long nose at me. “And what are you going to do if I don’t?”

  “Do I really have to answer that question? I’m asking you nicely to turn it down.”

  “I can’t, it’s broken!” he barked again.

  “Well, maybe I could take a look at it.” I moved to step into the apartment, but he blocked my way.

  “What makes you think I’m going to let a little kid into my house?”

  I sighed. “Mr. Kransten, we’ve been over this before. I’m not a kid, and my job is assistant to the building manager. Please let me help you.”

  “I want to deal with a grown-up!”

  It was impossible not to roll my eyes. “At least let me look at it, and we can go from there.”

  “Grown-up!” he yelled in my face before slamming the door shut.

  I couldn’t help a grunt of frustration as I stomped my foot and turned back up the stairs. I hated disturbing Leo. I didn’t want to have to face him, yet again proving that I wasn’t cut out for this job. But if I didn’t swallow my pride, Ms. Thornby would be up my ass, and she’d make sure Leo fired me.

  “Damn it.” I stopped outside Leo’s door and caught my breath, screwing up my face and knocking.

  “Just a minute!”

  I pinched my bottom lip as I waited for him, hating the sound of his lock clicking open.

  “Hey.” He smiled at me. He was wearing his pale green Quicksilver shirt today. I liked that one. “Everything okay?”

  “Oh, ah, no, not really. I’m sorry, I don’t mean to disturb you, but Mr. Cray-Cray is causing a disturbance on the third floor.”

  “Mr. Cray-Cray?” Leo’s face wrinkled with confusion.

  “Sorry, I mean Mr. Krantsen. I dubbed him a couple of weeks ago when he was yelling at the pigeons on his windowsill.”

  Thankfully Leo grinned, his green eyes dancing. I think that shirt made them look even greener.

  “So, what’s the problem today then?”

  I sighed, flicking my hands in the air. “Apparently the volume on his TV is broken. The neighbors are complaining, and he’s refusing to let me look at it for him. He said he wanted to speak to a grown-up.” I lifted my eyes to the ceiling. “I should never have worn pigtails the day I went to introduce myself to everybody. I was going for sweet and friendly, like Hey, I’m approachable. What a total backfire,” I ended with a mumble.

  Leo chuckled. His smile was adorable, his barely there dimple showing beneath his short stubble.

  I couldn’t help a rueful grin as I scratched the top of my head. “I really hate bothering you over this, but he just won’t deal with me.”

  “Don’t worry about it. The guy’s a sexist, old-school bastard. He treats me like
a third-rate citizen, too.” Leo grabbed his key off the hook beside the door and locked it behind him. “Let’s go deal with the old grump together, aye?”

  We headed downstairs, and of course Mr. K let Leo in immediately. He glared at me as I brought up the rear, probably because Leo had just reminded him that I was in charge of these matters and that I’d happily call a repairman if he wanted me to.

  Mr. K just grunted and opened his door, stomping back into the living room.

  His house smelled weird—old and stale. It matched him perfectly.

  I wrinkled my nose and crossed my arms, resisting the urge to lean against the wall as Leo and Mr. Cray-Cray yelled at each other, competing against the insane volume of the TV. Leo started by trying to switch it off, but the TV was seriously screwed so he ended up unplugging it from the wall.

  “What’d you do that for?”

  “So we can hear ourselves think while we try to solve this problem.” Leo placed his hands on his hips and turned back to the TV.

  The silence didn’t last long. A cry came through the baby monitor in my back pocket. I pulled it out to make sure I was hearing right. Yep, Angel was definitely up.

  “I need to go, sorry.”

  Leo flicked his hand. “No worries.”

  Mr. K grunted in disgust, mumbling something. I didn’t hear exactly what he said, but I was pretty sure the words “fire” and “hussy” were in there somewhere.

  It frickin’ stung.

  I hurried out of the room, trying not to let it bother me, but I really couldn’t help it. No wonder the old man hated me. All he saw was a young kid, stupid enough to get herself knocked up.

  Bolting up the stairs, I let myself into the apartment, willing the ugly feelings off me as I breezed into my baby’s room.

  “Hey, cupcake.” I forced a sweet smile and lifted her from the crib, feeling those all-too-familiar tears brewing as I nestled her against me.

  Damn it, Jody, not again!

  Pull yourself together!

  Chapter Fifteen

  Leo

  I wanted to punch Mr. Kransten in the gizzard for calling Jody a hussy and suggesting I fire her. What the hell was his problem? She worked her damn backside off to keep him happy, and it still wasn’t good enough. He was a bigoted arsehole.

  I couldn’t fix the bloody TV. I wasn’t a techy guy, and I didn’t know what the hell was wrong with it.

  “I’ll get Jody to call a repairman this afternoon.”

  “I don’t want to deal with her.”

  “Why?” I growled.

  He crossed his arms, his chin pointing into the air. “Any teenage girl fool enough to get herself pregnant is not capable of looking after a baby and running a building.”

  I pointed at him, willing my quivering limbs to stay put. “Now you listen to me, mate. Jody may be young, but she’s doing a damn fine job running this place, and if you can’t follow process and deal with her, you can bloody well move out!”

  “I just might do that.”

  “Go ahead!” I stormed toward the door and turned back in time to see him reaching for the remote. “Don’t even think about it!”

  He dropped it onto the couch with a scowl and muttered, “I want a repairman here by the end of the day.”

  “Fine, I’ll get Jody to call one right now.”

  I smiled at his black look before storming out the door and slamming it shut behind me. Muttering a string of obscenities, I took the stairs two at a time, pausing outside Jody’s door to reel in my anger.

  It didn’t work; she heard me outside and swung the door open before I could contain myself.

  Her face was blotchy, her eyes that vibrant blue color I’d seen before.

  Shit, she’d been crying. Bloody Mr. Kransten!

  She had a jar of baby food in one hand, and her shirt was already smeared with a spoonful of it. A large curl had escaped her ponytail and curved across her left breast. I averted my gaze.

  “Did you fix it?”

  “No.” I brushed past her, glancing at Angel in her highchair before turning back to Jody, my eyes darting to that damn curl again. I spun away from her and waved at Angel, who kicked her legs and started babbling.

  “So, what do you need me to do?” Jody walked back to her daughter, perching her perfect butt on the edge of a stool and attempting to get another spoonful of yellow slop into Angel’s mouth.

  “I told him you were going to call a repairman.”

  “Okay.” She nodded, looking nervous.

  Curse that man!

  “But does he want me to do that, because if I show up with one I’m worried he won’t let the guy in, and then if his TV doesn’t get fixed, Ms. Thornby’s going to complain again, and you know what she’s like. I just...” She cringed. “Do you think he’s right? I mean, should you fire me?”

  I grunted and threw my hands in the air, hating that an old, wrinkly-faced, bald-headed loser could make a sunshine girl like Jody start doubting herself.

  “That man’s as thick as bloody pig shit if he thinks I’m going to fire you! And I’ve told him if he can’t follow process then he can move out!”

  A sudden burst of laughter made me turn. It was an explosion of colorful sound that sounded sweet to my ears. It only got better when Jody snorted, her eyes popping wide with horror as she slapped a hand over her mouth.

  “What?” I found myself chuckling in spite of my confusion.

  She dipped her head and tried to hide it, but couldn’t. Her shoulders started shaking and she held her nose, no doubt trying to ward off another snort.

  “I’m sorry,” she finally giggled the words. “Thick as bloody pig shit. That has got to be one of the funniest insults I’ve ever heard.” She raised her hand in the air, her head shaking as the tip of her tongue popped between her teeth.

  I chuckled, feeling my cheeks heat as I scratched the back of my neck.

  Her laughter continued to float through the room like dancing butterflies. It was punctuated with a few quick intakes of breath and a lyrical sigh...and then her giggles would start all over again.

  It sounded more like a hysterical release of emotion after the way Mr. Kransten had treated her, but I didn’t care. It sounded beautiful.

  My smile grew as Angel soon got into the action, doing a funny dance and banging her spoon on the highchair tray. Jody grinned at her, wiping some food slime off that chubby chin, her laughter finally dying down.

  She cleared her throat as if embarrassed by her sudden outburst. Tucking that long curl behind her ear, she smiled at me. “I’ll make some phone calls as soon as I’ve finished feeding Angel.”

  “Yeah, good, thanks.” I headed for the door, my fingers suddenly burning for some piano keys. “Start with Mac. He’s Bobby’s go-to tech guy. I think his number’s in the book I gave you.”

  “Okay.” She grinned, looking lighter. Her blotches were already fading.

  “You’re doing a great job, Jo. Don’t let the Cray-Cray get to ya.”

  “Thanks.” Her smile was sweet and endearing. I took a mental snapshot of the image back to my piano. Sitting down with a slight sense of awe, I played a G chord then shifted to D major. Yeah, that was it. Her sparkling laughter danced through my brain as my fingers took charge, recreating the melodic sound of Jody’s laughter while another scene came to me—a lush green meadow filled with flowers and dancing butterflies.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Jody

  “I passed!” I giggled into my phone, enjoying Ella’s little cheer.

  “Well done.”

  Man, I was glad she’d called. I’d needed a positive blip on my radar today and her calling to check in was exactly that.

  “So they must be really pleased with your work then.”

  “Yeah, I mean, it’s not like it was a test or anything, but Bobby popped over yesterday and okayed me to stay. I am now officially assistant to the building manager, in spite of Mr. Cray-Cray’s complaints.”

  “Yeah, well Mr. Cray
-Cray can go shove it where the sun don’t shine.” Ella’s sweet voice saying that sentence was too funny.

  I burst with laughter. “Listen to you, getting your Morgan on.”

  She giggled. “I try.”

  “You don’t really pull it off.” I wrinkled my nose.

  “Shut up! I can do a Morgan!”

  “You can try,” I teased, enjoying the light banter between us. It was a nice reprieve from my totally shitty morning, and doing wonders to pull me out of my funk.

  “Hey, sorry, Jo-Jo, I gotta go. Cole needs me.”

  And the funk was back.

  “I’m sure he does.” My suggestive innuendo lacked its usual luster, but Ella didn’t seem to notice. I could imagine her blushing pink.

  “Stop it.” She put on a funny voice.

  “Go on then, go get some.”

  She giggled, but didn’t deny my assumption. With their late hours, Ella had confessed to often sneaking in some mid-morning nooky before the bar opened at lunchtime. When she’d first told me, I’d swooned at the romance of it all. Now it made me feel green.

  I tried not to let the fact my lady parts were out of service bother me. If anything, I had to get used to the idea. I couldn’t foresee any mid-day, mid-night, mid-anything nooky in my future.

  Sucking in a breath, I pushed the depressing reality aside and instead focused on the fact that it was a beautiful, sunny day and I was out strolling the Third Street Promenade. I loved this street—the shops, the cafes, the vibe. It was artsy and creative, and it made me feel just a little bit alive every time I came down here. It didn’t take away my problems, but it helped me escape them for a while.

  Angel had been awake most of the night. I had no idea what her problem was, but the after-effect of a lousy sleep had filtered into my day, turning me into a grumpy hag. I’d actually shouted at my baby girl. I rolled my eyes beneath my shades and cringed. She was snuggled into her stroller now, grinning up at me as if I hadn’t turned all dragon-lady on her less than an hour ago.