Next Door Secrets (Secrets Series Book 2) Page 10

  Lina’s metallic bracelets rattled as she crossed her arms. “What about the weekly staff meetings? Those start at three o’clock.”

  “I can stay on those days.” Kaylee would just have to be alone for an hour. That was better than the way things had been. “It would mean a lot to me.” Remembering the way Kaylee drew out the word “Pleeeease,” made Beth smile. If Kaylee were here pleading her case, Lina definitely wouldn’t be able to say no.

  “Let me double-check with HR, but I suppose that would work.” She held her palm out flat as if to calm Beth’s enthusiasm. “Assuming you’d stay late for staff meetings and any other time a project demanded it.”

  Rising, Beth bobbed her head. “Of course. I could take work home, too. Whatever it takes.”

  “This little girl must really mean a lot to you.”

  “She does.”

  # # #

  An e-mail from Ivy labeled “Baby’s 1st Outing” appeared in Parker’s inbox. He hesitated before he clicked on it to see a picture of a baby boy dressed in a sailor suit including a little white hat. He had dark eyes, wisps of blond hair and a mouth that looked like an “O.” Ivy had written “Isn’t he cute? Any time you want to babysit, let me know.” He deleted it.

  He went to his office and lost track of time until his secretary said she was leaving for the day. His head popped up from his sales reports. “Wow. It’s quitting time already?”

  Tina wagged a finger at him. “Yes, including you.”

  “I just have a few more things to go over.”

  “You say that every night and then you stay here forever.” She gave him a playful scowl with her delicate features.

  “I know.” He shrugged. “Good night.”

  “Good night. Don’t forget to spend some time with the girl who’s job shadowing you.”

  Man, he’d completely forgotten about Hannah. His memory wasn’t what it should be any more. He’d offered to take her sightseeing in Chicago today, but she’d wanted to come to Mall Land headquarters again. As soon as she’d spotted the interns in the break room that morning, she’d waved at him and headed toward her circle of new found friends. Now he rose and headed toward the interns’ cubicles. As he approached, he heard their laughter crescendo. He caught Elaine’s eye first.

  She put down her pen and pushed a corkscrew curl out of her face. “We were just heading out for dinner, would you like to join us?”

  Larry, whose moustache still hadn’t completely grown in, gave her a sideways glance. It was obvious he didn’t want the boss along.

  Parker had no interest in crashing their dinner anyway. “No, thanks. Hannah, are you ready?”

  It was Hannah’s turn to give a quick glance to Larry. “Actually I was hoping I could go to dinner with these guys.”

  For the first time in days, his daughter had a smile on her face. How could he say no?

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  By the time Bethany arrived home, she’d caught her second wind and was excited to see Kaylee, dressed in a turquoise shirt and pants, getting off the school bus. Hannah would be with Parker for a few more hours and then they’d all meet up for dinner. Tomorrow her daughter would fly back to Texas and Beth was already starting to miss her. Thank goodness she had Kaylee to keep her occupied.

  Beth waved, then waited for the little girl so they could walk into her apartment together.

  Kaylee dropped her backpack in the foyer. “What do you have for snacks?”

  “Um, apples or yogurt.” Why hadn’t she anticipated this question? She’d been too busy brainstorming ways they could get in some exercise despite Kaylee’s broken arm. So far, walking or riding a stationary bike at the Y was all she could come up with.

  “Awww. I don’t like fruit or yogurt.” Kaylee went into the tiny kitchen and opened the pantry as if she lived there. It probably felt as if she did since the lay-outs of the apartments were so similar. “You don’t have anything good. I’m going home to get some cookies. Then what are we gonna do?”

  “I thought we’d go for a walk.”

  “My dad doesn’t want me to leave the apartment complex.”

  Beth crossed her arms. “Really? I thought I told him we’d go for a walk.”

  Kaylee shook her head. “Nope. I’m not allowed to leave. Soon as I get my snack, I want to watch more Voyager.” She left and Beth could hear the door slam shut next door.

  Day one and her mission to get Kaylee in shape was derailed. Eating cookies in front of the TV wasn’t a good idea for either of them. She picked up her cell phone and dialed Jim’s number.

  On the third ring, he answered. “Who is this?” It sounded so accusatory that Beth forgot what she was going to say.

  She swallowed. “Um, is this Jim Stein?”

  “How’d you get this number?”

  “It’s Bethany from next door.” She waited for him to exhale before she continued. “I thought it would be nice for Kaylee and me to go for a walk around the neighborhood, but she said she’s not allowed. I wanted to check with you.”

  “As long as she’s with you, I don’t mind.”

  “OK. Good to know. See you later.” She hustled to her bedroom to change out of her pantsuit into something more comfortable.

  Just then Kaylee returned with a package of Oreos under her good arm. “Got any milk?” She smiled and her blue eyes twinkled as if access to sugar had cheered her up.

  Beth pulled down a small glass with a brim wide enough for dipping, the same glass in which she used to dunk her cookies. As Kaylee picked up her glass and stuck the bag of cookies under her chin, Beth decided a trip to the living room couch wasn’t a good idea. “Hey, why don’t you eat in here at the island? I called your dad and he said he’s OK for us to go for a walk afterwards.”

  Putting down the cup and cookies, Kaylee climbed on the barstool. It was obvious she was still figuring out how to maneuver with only one arm. “Where are we going?”

  “Nowhere in particular. Just around. We need to burn off these cookies.” She reached in and took one. After she bit, she savored the way the wafer dissolved on her tongue. It’d probably been a year since she’d indulged in an Oreo. She picked up the package and read the calorie content on the label. A serving size was only three cookies.

  “But what’s the point of walking if you’re not going anywhere? I’d rather stay here.”

  Growing frustrated, Beth reminded herself not to eat while distracted. “I guess it depends on how much energy we have, but we could walk to my parents’ church. My mom teaches English to immigrants in the afternoons and she’d be glad to meet you.”

  Kaylee chewed her cookie with her mouth open. “How far away is that?”

  “You’re not eating seafood, so don’t talk with your mouth full.”

  “Huh?”

  Beth took a bite, then opened her mouth. “I don’t want to see your food. Get it? Seafood? See food?” They both giggled. “OK. Let’s go.” As Beth grabbed the package and closed it up, Kaylee let out a whine. Beth ignored her protests and hid the cookies in the high cabinet above the fridge. “Do you have gym shoes on?” Her gaze fell to Kaylee’s feet, which were wearing pink athletic shoes. “Perfect.”

  Once outside, a gentle breeze and birds singing greeted them. Kaylee started talking about her day at school, how she’d aced her math test and got another kid to sign her cast. Her chatter segued seamlessly from academics to the Rescue Princesses book she was reading to how great it was to sit out of gym class. The blocks flew by and soon Beth could see the cross on top of the limestone church.

  “There it is.” Pointing at it, Beth felt a mixture of warmth and guilt. Her mother accepted her, flaws and all, while her father, the minister, disapproved of her choices. He’d been mortified to find out she’d placed a baby for adoption her freshman year of college and he’d been furious when she’d moved in with her last boyfriend. In hindsight, Beth realized she’d made plenty of mistakes, but she didn’t want to beat herself up over them. Her fists clenched in an
ticipation of bumping into her father.

  Breathing in the sweet scent of the lilac bushes that lined the sidewalk, she relaxed a little. They walked up the stairs and in through the big double doors. In the chapel, the organist practiced “In the Garden” for Sunday’s service.

  Mouthing the words to the refrain, Beth led Kaylee down the stairs to the basement where voices speaking Spanish, Burmese and English mixed together. She walked into the classroom and spotted her mom working one-on-one with a Mexican woman whose daughter tugged on her elbow. The child looked about five or six and seemed determined to get her mother’s attention.

  Beth looked around the room for some toys and spotted a plastic ball. Crouching down, she whispered into Kaylee’s ear. “Why don’t see if that little girl wants to play catch?”

  Suddenly shy, Kaylee shook her head, so Beth picked up the ball and rolled it to the girl. The green sphere bumped her leg and she looked quizzically at it. When she saw Beth smiling at her, she picked it up and tossed it back to her. Her aim was off and it went into the corner. Apparently feeling braver, Kaylee chased after the ball and sent it back to the girl. After Beth stepped aside, the children rolled and tossed the ball back and forth about twenty times. Somehow, without the luxury of a shared language, they transitioned seamlessly from playing catch to playing with Barbies.

  Fifteen minutes later, Beth’s mom handed her student a business card. “Tell your cousin to ask for me when he stops by the Legal Aid office.”

  Smiling, the woman stuck the card in her large purse. “Gracias.” She visually checked on her daughter, who seemed to be having fun, then walked over to some other women and started a conversation in Spanish.

  Beth waited for her mom to approach and gave her a quick hug. “Is her cousin in trouble?”

  “A dispute with his landlord. I suspect once the tenant explains that he knows his rights, everything will be resolved.” Her silver bob shimmered as she nodded toward Kaylee. “Who’s this?”

  “She’s my neighbor. I’m going to start babysitting her after work.”

  Her mom’s brow furrowed. “Do you need money?”

  “No. I’m doing it because I want to. Her dad has to work all the time and I worry about her. She broke her arm riding her bike right outside my window and I had to take her to the ER.”

  Her mom covered her mouth with an age-spotted hand. “Oh dear.”

  “Anyway, I thought it would be good if we tried to get a little fresh air.” Beth decided not to mention her concerns about Kaylee’s weight. Anyone could see the poor girl needed more exercise. Plus, her mom had a naturally fast metabolism, so she wouldn’t understand. “She wanted to walk somewhere, so I thought we’d come here. I’m glad to see it looks like she’s already made a friend.” She lowered her voice. “I don’t think she has many.”

  After they visited a while, her mom said she needed to get home to make dinner. “Want to come over?”

  Not wanting to see her judgmental father, Beth shook her head. Since she didn’t want to hurt her mother’s feelings, she was glad to have an excuse; it was Hannah’s last night in town. “I have plans already, but thanks.” She pointed at Kaylee. “Do you mind if I bring her by again tomorrow?”

  “Not at all. If she can play with the kids while their parents study, that would be great.” Her mom waved her hands toward the door to round up the lingering families. “I’m afraid it’s time to go. Vamanos.”

  The Hispanic girl reached around and gave Kaylee a tight squeeze. A smile spread wide across Kaylee’s face and Beth felt the vicarious joy that a mother must feel when her child experiences happiness.

  Twenty minutes later, the two of them made it back to Beth’s apartment just in time to answer her ringing phone. “Hello?”

  “It’s Parker. I wanted to let you know that Hannah has finally stopped moping around.”

  “Good. I’ll be there as soon as Kaylee’s dad picks her up.” She looked to see what the girl was doing and found her digging in the pantry. Covering the phone, she whispered, “Don’t eat anything. You’ll spoil your dinner.”

  Parker seemed unaware of her distraction. “Actually Hannah went out to dinner with the college interns from the office and I’ve got a lot of work to do so there’s no point in your coming over.”

  She pictured him sitting alone in his office reading proposals and stock reports with his feet propped up. Someone knocked on her door and she saw Kaylee rush to answer it. Beth followed her and wasn’t surprised to see Jim on her stoop. Waving him in, she tried to quickly wrap up her conversation with Parker. “Hey, I’ve gotta go, but I wanna see you tonight.”

  “I have tons of stuff to do.”

  “You work too hard. I’ll meet you at your place in fifteen minutes.” She was tempted to hang up before he could respond, but she waited for him to confirm, then disconnected the line. Her gaze moved to Jim’s face. “Sorry about that.”

  He stuck one hand in his jeans pocket and the other on Kaylee’s shoulder. “Any man who’d cancel on you is a fool.”

  Her face warmed at the realization that he’d heard her conversation. “Just a change of plans. No big deal.”

  “Was Kaylee a good listener today?” He tousled his daughter’s dark hair.

  “She was great. We walked to the First Church and Kaylee made a friend.”

  His thick eyebrows lowered. “You took her to church?”

  Raising her hands, Beth spoke quickly. “My mom teaches English to immigrants in the basement so we just stopped by to say hi. Kaylee had fun, didn’t ya?” She smiled at the little girl who nodded.

  He let out a sigh. “As long as you didn’t take her to Bible study or something, I guess that’s OK.”

  “Of course not. But I would like to continue walking there after school, if that’s all right with you. Kaylee could play with the kids while their parents work on their lessons.”

  He closed his eyes for a moment as if he were considering it. Then he bent over to be closer to Kaylee’s face. “Do you want to go back?”

  Nodding, she held up her cast. “I had fun and I got another signature!” The name “Maria” was written in big, red letters.

  He returned to his full height. “I suppose it’s fine. But no religious stuff, got it?”

  “Sure. I would never. . .” but she stopped herself. She’d already gotten in trouble for assuring Kaylee that her mom and sister were in heaven. This guy apparently had even more issues with the church than Beth did. She smiled to herself. “I will respect your wishes.”

  Clearing his throat, he reached in his back pocket and pulled out his wallet.

  Beth held up her hand again. “You don’t owe me anything.”

  “I’ll owe you if you don’t take this.” He pulled out some bills.

  “Jim, it’s a treat to spend the afternoons with Kaylee. Can’t you believe me?”

  After holding the money in mid-air for a minute, he put it away. “In case you haven’t noticed, I have a hard time trusting people.” His mouthed curved up on one side.

  “Gee, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  # # #

  Parker kept reading about Togo on his iPad while Beth assembled a chicken salad in his kitchen and rattled on and on about the little girl she’d babysat.

  “Kaylee is so precious. She just needs someone to push her out of her shell and build up her confidence. You should’ve seen how happy she was to play with that little Hispanic girl. This way we can get in some exercise walking to the church and then she can have some social interaction with other kids. It’s perfect.”

  He heard a pause and threw in an “uh-huh.”

  Beth put a hand on her hip. “Are you listening to me?” She walked over and tried to see his screen.

  Before she caught him, he turned off his iPad. “Why do you think you like this girl so much?”

  “Probably because she reminds me a little bit of myself. She’s shy, but she talks to me with no problem. Plus she’s overweight. I sympath
ize with her, I guess. And I like to think maybe I can help her.”

  “Does she want to get in shape or is it your agenda?”

  Her face bloomed pink. “I don’t have an agenda. I suspect that if she gets out of the apartment and starts playing with other kids, she won’t eat so much. She probably eats because she’s lonely and bored.”

  He realized he’d offended her and he needed to backpedal. “Hey, I’m not criticizing. If you can relate to her and encourage her to make better choices, I’d say she’s lucky to have you around.”

  She smiled and put a little more mayonnaise into the chicken salad. “Thanks.” Turning around, she grabbed plates out of the cabinet and dished out their dinner.

  He jumped up and uncorked an expensive bottle of Sauvignon Blanc. “Sorry I’ve been so distracted. I appreciate your raiding my pantry and making us something to eat.” He poured the wine.

  Raising her glass for a toast, she clinked it against his goblet. “To us.”

  How was he ever going to tell her he was leaving? “To making a difference in other people’s lives.”

  Her forehead wrinkled. “OK.” They both took a sip.

  He pulled out her chair for her, then sat down at the small kitchen table. Everything in his cottage was small, but he didn’t mind. This was luxurious compared to life in a third world country, he was sure. He couldn’t wait to go, but he didn’t quite know how to leave.

  Feeling guilty, he took a quick bite so he could compliment Beth on her meal. “Delicious. Now tell me more about your neighbors.”

  “Even though she’s had a rough life, Kaylee is happy and sweet. Her father, on the other hand, isn’t so nice. Tell me if you think this is weird. I called him and instead of a polite ‘Hello?’ he demanded, ‘Who is this?’ It totally threw me.”