Page 86 of Hello Doctor

I nodded with a smile. “Friday at seven.”

I couldn’t wait for our date... and all the things I wanted to do to her after. But there was still a pit of worry deep in my gut.

We still had to tell Rhett.

41

Liv

On Sunday morning, Maya and I got ready for a trip to the city. I’d promised to get her a back-to-school outfit, and there weren’t a lot of options for cute little girl clothes around here. I wanted her to feel extra special on her first day at a new school.

We were just about out the door when Rhett called. My stomach instantly filled with that guilty feeling because Fletcher and I hadn’t told him about our relationship yet. Even though there was no way for him to know, it still felt like getting caught with my hand in the cookie jar or being pulled over when I knew I’d done nothing wrong.

“What’s up?” I asked, opening the back door for Maya so she could climb in.

“Hey, I was hoping you could do me a favor?”

Only because you’ll be doingmea big favor by not blowing up about Fletcher and me...“What is it?”

“We have a sick cow, and the vet ordered medicine for it, but the clinic in Rutlage is closed, and I don’t have time to drive to Dallas today. I’m not sure what you have planned, but—”

“—you were wondering if I could go pick it up?”

“Only because Mom said she can’t because she’s getting ready for school to start, and Dad’s working with the cattle, and Tyler and Henrietta are busy, and Gage is watching Levi’s baseball game, and I’mbegging. Pretty please with extra cherries on top”

Maya buckled up, and I grinned at her. “How do you feel about running an extra errand for Uncle Rhett today?”

“Can we get ice cream?” she asked loud enough for him to hear. The little negotiator.

In my ear, Rhett said, “I’ll buy her a whole truck load if you go!”

Chuckling, I said, “I’ll hold you to that. Just text me the address and we’ll get it.”

We hung up, and I went around to the driver’s side.

“Can we go to Sugar Rush?” Maya asked from the back seat. “My mom always used to take me there.”

I glanced over my shoulder at her, my heart melting. “Are you sure you don’t want that to be you and your mom’s special place? We can try another spot if you want.” I just realized I might already be overstepping with the clothes shopping. Even though Regina hadn’t offered, it did feel like something a mom and daughter would do.

Maya looked down at her hands in her lap, orange fingernail polish shining against her tanned skin. “If you and my dad get married, you’ll be my mom.”

Oh my heart. I took a deep breath and looked at her. “Honey, your daddy and I are just beginning to date. It will be a long time before we get married, if that’s what we decide. But even if we do, I’ll never take your mama’s place. Okay? She’ll always be your mom.”

“I wish you were my mom,” she muttered.

And that statement hit me in the gut, because even though I was here with Maya every day, even though I knew she liked her pancakes with two squares of butter and a dash of powdered sugar or that she put one sock and one shoe on before moving to the other foot like a complete weirdo, I would always be the nanny. The stepmom. “I love you, Maya.”

Maya nodded sadly. “I love you too.”

I tilted my head. “I know this is hard.”

Another nod. A quiet sniff. “Can we have a jam sesh on the way?”

I smiled. “That, I can do. Queen Shania, our hero, we’re ready for you!”

I cranked the radio to my Shania Twain playlist, and we sang along as we drove. When Maya was tired of singing, she got out the art supplies she brought along to make her birthday invitations for the tubing party coming in a few weeks. And soon enough, we were at my favorite boutique, Dress Your Heart.

They had cute clothes with a little western flare, and I could just imagine how cute Maya would look in a pair of flair-cut jeans with a Holstein print and some turquoise jewelry.

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