Page 22 of The Grizzly Situation
“What? No! I’m kidding.”
“I’m not. If I had done this years ago, maybe now I wouldn’t be so messed up.”
He sighed. “I didn’t tell you this years ago. Wanna know why I told you now? Remember Kayla, Deb’s sister? A couple of months ago she called and said her daughter was having problems focusing. She took her in to have her tested, and they found that she had ADHD. A lot of what you describe are the same things she did. She always felt like she was walking around in a haze. School assignments wouldn’t get completed. If Kayla gave her something to do, she’d find her later working on something else. Then she’d cry because she was angry at herself.”
That sounded familiar. “I understand the feeling.”
“I never really put it together until Kayla called to tell us that Mia had been six months on the pills and they’d done wonders for her. I started to think maybe they’d help you, and after Mr. Lockhart made his speech about the heights you could reach? I thought now was the right time to bring it up.”
“I appreciate it.”
“Okay, back to business. How much was the appointment? I can send you?—”
“Mr. Lockhart already got me insurance from his company. It’s all covered, including the pills.”
It was quiet for several long, agonizing moments. I knew we hadn’t been disconnected, because I could hear Jamie and Deb breathing.
“Are you okay?”
Jamie snorted. “Never in my life have I thought I would appreciate a billionaire.”
But I’d looked him up and Mr. Lockhart seemed to be the furthest thing from a billionaire there could be. He donated wads of cash, he ensured all the people who worked for him were well taken care of, he paid incredible salaries, handed out exorbitant bonuses every year, had lavish parties for his employees, and made sure their families were all taken care of. Maybe it was naive of me, but he wasn’t like anyone I’d ever heard of before.
“He seems like a nice guy.”
“He does,” Deb agreed. “We’re already talking about our future with the added money coming in. We’re thinking about a bigger house because….”
The pause was killing me. “What?”
“I might be pregnant. I missed my period two months in a row. I’ve got an appointment to see the OB/GYN next week.”
Both of them were the cautious type. They wouldn’t make this announcement if they weren’t pretty sure it was true. And I knew they had to be over the moon. They’d talked about having kids, what they’d name them, how they’d split the household chores, what kind of school they wanted them to go to—both agreed public was best—and needing to get a larger house.
“That’s amazing!” I gushed.
“This doesn’t mean we won’t have room for you, if you need a place to crash,” Jamie added quickly. “Our home will always be open to you, Uly. Always.”
“Because you’ll need a babysitter?” I teased.
“What? No. Well, yes, but no.”
We all laughed, and a strange calm washed over me. Everyone was moving up and on with life. I could take the bull by the horns and get it done. I could be the employee that Mr. Lockhart saw in me. Heck, I could be the one I wanted to see in myself.
If only I wasn’t, you know, me.
BRENT
Beingable to make it to the concert was everything I’d hoped. For several days after, I thought about it constantly. The kids had talked with their friends about Daddy being there during the performance. Everyone was excited that I’d come, and the boys were like Velcro all night. When they asked what I liked best, I told them the songs were my favorite part. In truth, the pitchy voices of the children—except mine, of course—lacked all harmony, some who couldn’t sing well did their best to be the loudest, and more than a few were so shy that they were whispering the words, although I still heard—and loved— each and every one. And seeing the new generation of the sleuth made me happy. What intrigued me the most was all of the kids had their eyes locked on the teacher, Ms. Lopez, who was leading them. Her bright smile seemingly gave them a modicum of courage to belt out holiday songs with the abandonment and glee that only children could possess.
As everyone shuffled out, I watched as Ms. Lopez hugged each kid when the show was over. In human schools this closeness would probably send some people over the edge, but we’re grateful to our teachers because they were showing their commitment by valuing the children. Over the years, membersof the sleuth had suggested, sometimes vociferously, that Ms. Lopez would be a good person for me, but in our interactions, there was no spark between us. At least not for me. Jenna was the only woman I could see, even years after her death.
As long as I had my—our—kids, I was happy. Did I want to get laid from time to time? Well, yeah, but thankfully the internet provided plenty of opportunities to relieve the stress. As long as the kids were asleep. Those little buggers had ears like you wouldn’t believe. Open a chocolate bar, and even though they were on the other side of the place, they’d be there before you got the first piece in your mouth. I knew dogs that didn’t hear as well as they did.
I shook my head to clear my thoughts. While thinking about the concert made me happy, I needed to get some work done while I had the chance. Fortunately, as a favor to me, Dr. Ross was able to pull together a team and get Uly in quickly. He needed to have this weight taken from his shoulders, and I was happy to help him. Ugh. I needed to stop thinking about Uly so much. My mind was wandering like it never had before. Between Uly, Chaim, Benjy, and my kids I was hopeless. Get to work, Brent!
I tapped the space bar to open the page I was supposed to be reading when there was a soft knock at my door. I inhaled, wondering who it was. I couldn’t stop the smile that the knowledge gave me, because with everything going on, I hadn’t seen her since I gotten back from Milwaukee a couple of weeks ago.
“Come in, Sandy.”
