Page 23 of Hot Puck
It works.
Sort of.
Almost face planting into the wall in the kitchen snaps my brain into focus more than it has been in the last few seconds.
“Fucking hell,” I mutter as I rest my forehead on the wall, aware enough to remember not to swear in front of the girls.
“Chase? Are you okay?” Natalie’s voice floats into the room. “Girls, can you watch Candace for a second while I check on your brother?”
“Sure,” Cass and Stell chorus.
Pushing away from the wall, I shake my head to clear it. The last thing I want is for Natalie to find me looking confused. She’ll wonder if I’m capable of taking care of my sisters.
Fuck. She’s probably already questioning it.
“Chase?”
I turn to find her next to me. “Yeah. I’m good. Got a fright when I woke up and realized the time.” I scrub a hand through my hair and yank on the ends.
“I let you sleep because you obviously needed it, but I should have let the girls wake you when they got home.”
“They wanted to?” A grin tugs at my mouth. “Of course they did. Let me guess. They wanted to dump a bucket of ice water on my head.”
Natalie smiles. “That was mentioned. I let them check in on you and that reassured them enough to let you sleep.” She tips her chin toward the oven. “There’s a plate of grilled chicken in the oven and salad in the fridge. We ate about an hour ago. We were just playing with Candace before I put her down for the night.”
I snort. “Good luck with that.”
“I didn’t mean all night. I know babies her age don’t sleep through yet.”
“She hasn’t slept longer than a couple of hours at a time yet. And like I said earlier, she’s more awake at night and trying to switch that around isn’t working so well.”
“She might just be a night owl. Some babies are.”
“You know a lot about babies?”
“Not really. But I’ve got friends who do. I made a few calls and when Cassidy and Crystal got home, I talked to them about what your routine is.”
“I suppose they told you we don’t have one because I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“No. The opposite.”
I frown at her words. “They did?”
“Yes.” She glances over her shoulder then urges me further into the kitchen. “Come on, I’ll make you a plate of chicken and salad and tell you what they said.”
“This I have to hear.” Parking my butt on a stool in front of the island I let this woman serve me. “Shit. You’re in my home and I’m expecting you to wait on me,” I say with disgust as I bury my face in my hands.
“No, you’re not. You’re letting someone help you for a little while. We had this conversation already.”
I look up, find her gaze, and hope she can see the genuine appreciation I have for her. “Thank you. It’s not enough but thank you.”
“You can thank me by hearing what I have to say when the girls are settled for the night.”
“You mean the contract offer?”
“Yes.”
“I can’t even?—”
