by D. R. Grady
“Yes, I think so. Unless you ladies can think of anything else you need?”
“No,” Savannah said quickly.
Macy recognized that tone. “What do you need?”
“Nothing,” Savannah replied. Too fast, again.
“Oh, you need bras, don’t you?”
She’d noticed Savannah’s bras were all showing elastic and thought the girl had outgrown her current ones.
“They are a bit stretched,” Savannah finally admitted.
“That means they aren’t doing you a bit of good.”
They steered into the lingerie section of the next store and found several bras and panties for Savannah. Macy picked up underwear for the rest of the family, too. She’d noticed Nick probably hadn’t replaced his underclothes in years either. His white t-shirts were almost beyond redemption. And it wouldn’t hurt him or the boys to sport new undies. They loaded everything in the car and the package of underwear for Nick fell out of the bag. She scooped it up and tucked the purchase inside again.
Not that Macy thought about Nick in his underwear. Often. Just once or twice. A day. Every hour. It wasn’t like she didn’t have better things to think about. Usually.
The worst time of day was at night before she went to sleep and she thought of him in the next room. Sleeping in his skivvies. That’s when she especially had trouble. And she could picture his underwear because she washed it.
Of course, now she just bought him some nice underwear in bold colors. Maybe the owner would pick up some ideas. Be bold, young man. Kiss the nanny.
Not that she expected Nick to necessarily catch on. She’d have to go into the Little Mermaid chorus of Kiss the Girl. Unfortunately, she couldn’t carry a tune, and Nick still might not catch on.
With a sigh, she signaled and changed lanes. The only way to really let on how she felt was to back the man against a wall or counter and lay the kiss on him. Even Nick couldn’t miss the fact that she’d just plastered his lips with hers.
Her eyes drifted to Savannah who hummed happily beside her and Starla, who’d fallen asleep in her booster seat. If she did lay a kiss on him, he’d probably fire her for sexual harassment. Then she wouldn’t have these kids any longer.
For some reason, Nick was really important in the equation. But now his kids had become equally as important. She couldn’t have one without the other. She didn’t want one without the other.
Vet school had to be much easier than this.
Chapter 10
When the intrepid shoppers returned Nick left his office to loiter in the doorway. As he expected, the girls were bubbling over with excitement and enthusiasm. Both of his daughters’ eyes sparkled and they had that shopper glow about them.
Macy, on the other hand, looked like she’d been left in the sun too long without water. The term wilted came to mind. Her eyes held minimum sparkle. She looked droopy.
“Maybe we should go out for lunch?” he suggested.
She perked up. “That would be wonderful.”
“Daddy, do you want to see what we bought?” Starla asked him, peering through her long lashes. He wondered, not for the first time, if Marilyn had started this young?
“Of course I want to see,” he said, and tried to look eager for the fashion show he was about to receive. Macy shot him an amused look and he mini-shrugged. They were his daughters. Sometimes you had to suffer a bit.
He approved of both their bathing suits. When Savannah left to try on the next outfit he frowned at Macy. “Savannah...” he groped for the words he needed, but they eluded him.
“Is growing up fast,” Macy supplied.
“Is it acceptable for her to wear a bikini?” He thought he sounded confused, which was apt.
“Yes. The one we bought her is modest. She’ll appear fashionable without looking like a floozy.”
“Savannah isn’t a floozy.” His voice rose an octave.
“I know that,” she said and sent him a look that indicated he wasn’t the brightest star in the sky.
“Yes, I guess you would know,” he mumbled, trying to figure out how to steer this suicidal conversation back to safer ground.
“She is a teenager now, so she can wear two piece bathing suits. Fortunately for you, she’s not comfortable in the racier ones.”
“She tried on ones with less material?” He swallowed, because that was about all he was capable of.
“Yes. If you think this is hard, wait until Starla is a teenager.”
“I’ve been in denial of that time since she was born,” Nick said resolutely.
“She wanted two pieces, too,” Macy said with a raised eyebrow.
“But you said no, right?” Now he sounded desperate. This was probably why he’d never thought to take his children shopping. He was pretty sure of the outcome and knew he wasn’t up for the task.
“Of course I said no. She’s bad enough in a regular suit. And Savannah venturing into the world of bikinis was enough.”
“Starla in a bikini. I’m never going to be ready for that.”
“I suggest you start training now.” Macy’s voice was dry.
“No,” he denied, with a firm shake of his head. Starla would cause riots. She’d be the cause of murders and mayhem. Savannah was bad enough, but she was also level-headed and sweet and modest. Starla...
“The world isn’t ready for Starla yet, but when she hits puberty, you’d better invest in some superior weapons,” Macy advised.
Fortunately the girls interrupted them with round two of the fashion show, so he didn’t need to comment. “I like those.” He nodded and smiled, and hoped his fatherly concerns and fears didn’t show. The girls scampered out of the room to complete the next round.
“Shopping wasn’t nearly as difficult as I feared it’d be.”
“Oh?”
“Starla already is aware that everything she puts on will look nice. Savannah has an excellent eye for what will compliment her and which colors look the nicest on her. It was a fairly painless trip.”
Macy dug into the remaining bags and tossed him several packages. She’d bought him underwear. Nick swallowed again. What did a man tell a woman he wanted to jump when she bought him underwear?
He was up to his hips in territory he didn’t know. This was not good.
Among his packages were t-shirts and of all things, two pairs of flip flops. “I see you made this a whole family affair,” he finally managed to utter. In what was even close to his natural voice.
“You needed underwear badly, and we got the flip flops on sale. Everyone got them. Including me.”
“Good,” he answered, not able to think of another suitable topic as he watched Macy sort through the remaining packages. He wanted to kiss her. Even wilted she was gorgeous. And she’d bought him underwear. He doubted many men could claim that about her.
“Have you noticed Savannah has a complex?”
The question came out of nowhere, so of course it caught him by surprise. “Excuse me?” he answered, trying to sort out what she was talking about.
“Yes. I noticed she feels like she doesn’t deserve even the basic necessities. She couldn’t believe that I planned to buy them two suits. And several pairs of shorts and t-shirts. All of which they desperately needed. I had to fight with her on the flip flop issue, and they were cheap plus on an excellent sale.” She frowned at him, and Nick wondered if she was blaming him for Savannah’s problems, or if she just wanted to talk.
“I haven’t noticed that about her before,” he hedged, and racked his brain to see if he could recall noticing the same thing. No, he was pretty sure he hadn’t. But then, the last year especially, he’d been happy when he remembered all four kids’ names.
Macy stared at him, frustration seething and roiling around her. She looked like she wanted to toss him into the garbage disposal.
He spread his fingers. “I’m sorry,” he said, trying to look sorry and innocent.
“Okay. You haven’t noticed on your own,” her voic
e told him she thought he was a complete idiot, “but now that I’ve pointed this out, maybe you could see if you notice in the future?” Her voice didn’t change in inflection, but he was certain she thought him one gigantic loser. Right now would not be a good time to kiss her, he decided.
“Here’s my next outfit, Daddy,” Starla’s throaty little girl voice said, close to him, and he jumped before turning his attention to his youngest.
“Very nice,” he said, more out of habit than because he noticed her clothing.
“And here’s mine,” Savannah stated. Her shoulders were hunched a bit and she seemed embarrassed. She wouldn’t meet his eyes. Nick frowned at her.
“You don’t like it?” Her voice bordered on panic.
“I like it, but I’m wondering if you do,” he said. Maybe Macy was on to something here.
Savannah stammered something he didn’t catch.
“What, honey?”
“I like them,” she said but she still wouldn’t meet his eyes. He looked over her head at Macy, who raised a brow as if to say, see what I mean?
“If you like them, what’s the problem?” he asked his oldest.
“I just didn’t know if we could afford them,” she finally muttered, still staring at the floor.
Ah. “Savannah, we can afford them,” he said firmly. Maybe he should pay more attention to his kids’ clothes.
Her head snapped up and the hope dawning in her eyes made his chest hurt. “Are you sure?”
“Macy could have taken you to the most expensive place in town and bought you the priciest suits and shorts there, and we still could have afforded it.”
“So it’s okay if we keep this stuff?” she whispered.
Macy was definitely on to something here.
“Yes. Macy’s right, you know. She also knows how much we can afford, but she didn’t even dent our budget.”
“No, I didn’t. I thought we’d add to your wardrobes throughout the summer,” Macy said, backing him up. He liked when she did that. It made them sound like a team.
“We’re getting more clothes?” Starla asked. She paraded around the kitchen, modeling for an unseen audience. Nick didn’t know too many little girls who could already walk like a model, but Starla looked like she could teach the part.
“Yes.” Both he and Macy said together. He smiled at her. She returned the smile, and he wished he could kiss her. The most beautiful woman in his kitchen ever, and she was off limits. Something was wrong with this equation. It was very much unbalanced, sort of like you, a voice barked in the back of his mind.
“Why don’t you two bring your clothes downstairs so I can wash them before you wear them?” Macy suggested and both girls disappeared again.
“Savannah does appear to have a bit of a problem,” he admitted to Macy when the girls were out of ear shot.
“Yes, I thought so,” Macy said and frowned at the empty doorway. “But why?”
“I don’t know. I don’t recall ever telling them we couldn’t have something.”
“What about your wife? Would she have complained about money?”
He shrugged. Nick tried not to think about Melissa if he could help it. Thoughts of her tended to make him angry. “I don’t know. I can’t imagine why she would. We haven’t been hurting for money since we married.”
Macy stared at him, a pleat etched between her brows. “I don’t understand where Savannah came up with her attitude then. Normally teenagers believe they deserve everything and more.”
Nick nodded. “It’s weird. We’ll have to watch her and gently try to correct her impressions.”
“That’s what I thought. I just didn’t want to have to do it alone.”
“We’d better tell my folks and siblings, too. Tia, my sister, and Savannah are pretty close.”
“I haven’t met any of your siblings yet,” Macy remarked. Casually, he thought, but there was a note in her voice that made him wonder.
“You’ll meet them all at the lake.”
“We’re not going until July, right?”
Nick whirled to stare at her. “No, we’ll go around Memorial Day.”
“Oh, that soon?”
“Yeah. That’s the trip where we open everything up and set up camp for the summer. We spend a few weekends there in the summertime. I guess I forgot to mention that?”
“You did,” Macy said and she fluttered a hand to her chest, like this was unwelcome news.
He cocked a brow. “Is there a problem?”
“Well, I hadn’t anticipated that.”
“What’s wrong with it?” He couldn’t for the life of him figure out why this would make her so anxious.
“It just makes my job a little harder.”
“How so?” He stared at her, trying to sort through the facts. Made her job harder? He’d always thought visiting the lake made life easier.
“Well, someone has to make certain the kids get packed. Then there’s food to think about. I’ll have to learn a whole new kitchen and all the appliances.” Macy’s voice indicated she wasn’t thrilled with the prospect. He’d never looked at this from the feminine point of view. He hoped to never have to again.
Nick offered her his perspective, which he liked a lot better. “The kids are freer to run there. There’s the lake and all the rellys to watch out for them. All the ladies plan the meals together, and some of the men grill. Usually the only meal you have to worry about is breakfast.”
“What do you normally cook?” Macy sounded fascinated now.
He shrugged. “Pasta, pizza, burgers, hot dogs, the usual stuff one cooks when one is away.”
“But they cook in bulk?”
“Yeah. A few of us have large kitchens, so we take turns whose kitchen is the preparatory place. It’s a system that’s worked since I was a kid.”
“How many rellys can we expect to be there?”
“At any given weekend there’ll be fifty to seventy of us, I’d say. Over the fourth, they’ll be in the hundreds.”
Macy choked on a sip of iced tea. He moved to her side and clapped her on the back.
“Several hundred?” she uttered in a strangled voice. Her eyes streamed involuntary tears.
“Yeah, but we don’t have to cook for that many. Usually immediate families cook and eat together.”
“So your mom and sister and I will be the chief cooks?”
He shrugged. “Not entirely. Dad and I handle the grill. I imagine you can take a turn cooking. Generally everyone does.”
“Are either of your brothers married?”
“No, but they’re both dating someone exclusively. You’ll meet them all in a couple of weeks.”
“Do any of them have kids?”
“No, just me.” he said and poured himself a glass of tea.
“Is your sister married?”
Nick snorted. “No.”
“Why is that notion funny?”
“Wait until you meet her. Tia is the biggest nerd you’ll ever meet.”
“I see.” Macy didn’t sound convinced. “You have something against nerds?”
“No, I’m fond of them, especially her.”
“That’s good,” Macy’s voice was Saharan dry.
He scowled at her. “What?”
She sent him a mysterious smile, one that told him exactly nothing. “Nothing.” Breezy, confident, and as cool as an ice pop, Macy turned and unloaded the rest of the bags. She calmly cut tags off and separated the clothing for the laundry.
Nick noticed he wasn’t likely to pull more information from her. Maybe that was a good thing. Then again, probably not, but what did he know?
Speaking of things he didn’t know, “The boys told us this morning that Savannah stayed home from school one day and helped you rearrange the kitchen.” He kept his voice casual, but he really wondered. His mom had decided Macy made the right decision, but he wanted to be included in the decision making process. Savannah was his daughter.
“Oh, yes. I told you about that. She g
ot her period and managed to throw up all through the night. The poor thing hardly slept. Then she was pretty uncomfortable when she did wake up.”
“You told me?”
She sucked her lips in and nodded. Her left eyebrow ascended toward her hairline.
“What did I say in response to this information?”
“You went really pale and started muttering about teenagers and puberty.”
That did sound like him. Dealing with Savannah’s ascent into boys wasn’t on his list of fun things to do. “So I basically denied she’s hit puberty?”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
“Well, thanks for taking care of matters.”
“Remember I asked you about Savannah’s mom and her periods?”
Yeah, he did. He had thought the conversation strange then, but in light of why she asked the information, it all made sense now. “You wanted to know so you could calm Savannah?”
“Yes.”
“Did it work?”
“No, not really.”
He frowned at her. “Why not?”
“Apparently her mother didn’t suffer like Savannah does.”
“Oh. What did you do?” Thank goodness he hadn’t had to handle this situation. He’d have fumbled the ball for sure.
“Fortunately, I had periods much like Savannah at her age, so I felt pretty confident in helping her.” Again, the dryness was back in Macy’s voice.
“I see. I’m glad you took care of matters. I wouldn’t have had the first clue.”
She smiled at him. “Sure you would have. You’d have called your mother or sister, and let them handle things.”
He grinned. “Yeah, that’s probably what I would have done.” Maybe, if he’d thought of it. But he wasn’t so confident in his own assessment of the situation. This was why he wanted a woman, specifically Macy, to help him raise his children. Because there were obviously some areas where the opposite sex excelled. Like puberty.
“Please tell me you intend to be here when Starla hits puberty.”
“No way,” Macy said and shook her head emphatically.
Chapter 11
When the sound came a second time, Macy finally rolled out of bed. She groped her way across the room and found the door, which she yanked open. Tiredness and aching muscles did not predispose her to dealing with this problem in an appropriate manner. She really hoped Nick had also heard the sound and was as she stalked down the hall, attending to the problem.
