“Is she okay?”Avril, his other dance partner, asked.Immediate concern.Tyler sisters took care of Tyler sisters, there was no denying that.“She was mad in the car, too.”
“I think she’s not feeling good, Av.She said her ear hurts.We’ll go find your mom and a quiet place.See if that helps.”
“I don’t want her to get sick.Sick people die.That’s what happened to our other mom.”She was always talking about her other parents, her other life.Cal suspected it was the eight-year-old’s way of processing the sudden changes and utter hell she and her sisters had gone through.He held out his hand for her.Sometimes, she was leery of him—all men, he’d noticed—but this time she took his hand without hesitation.
He took her trust for the gift that it was.He led both girls off the dance floor, and toward where he’d seen Auggie, the baby, and Tobi.Em was off somewhere supervising Jules and the new love of her life—that punk Ricky Weatherby.Cal had checked him out himself when they’d all arrived.The boy had been bright red in the cheeks and stammering—and a clone of his uncle Ransom.Cal was reserving judgment.What if being a Weatherby Butthead, as Claudia called them, was hereditary?
January had concerned him a little though.She’d wanted to stay off to the side of everything.There had been other kids her age at the party—the Talleys and Tylers had invited a ton of people to celebrate Auggie’s cousin Ben and his new fiancee Dusty Talley.There were even a few Hollywood execs, friends of Ben’s brother-in-law Hunter Luis Clark.And a fifteen-year-old star from the latest film, who had all the teen girls following him around like he was a god.Except for one January Tyler.
Of course, January was the girl Mr.Heartthrob noticed.He’d sought her out and kept flirting with her.January kept rebuffing him every time.
Cal had been doing his duty to supervise.No teenage punk was going to get near one of the she-devils without close supervision.He was going to make sure of it.
It was probably a good thing he’d had so much practice with his trio of sister-devils, honestly.Otherwise, he’d not be able to keep up with the six child she-devils he now found absolutely amazing and hilarious.
And challenging.Keeping an eye on six she-devils waschallenging.Add in watching over Em and Junie and he was toast.
Auggie was swaying slightly to the music, holding Maeya, while talking to Flo Talley—and Marin’s father Gerald and his new wife, Rhea.Cal tensed.He and Gerald were never going to see eye-to-eye on anything now.Not since what had happened.But that was Cal’s woman right there, and he held a little girl who wanted her mommy because she didn’t feel well.
Auggie looked at him.“You all okay?”
Markie was already reaching for her.Cal helped her swap girls, taking the baby.Maeya patted him on the cheek and laid her head down on his shoulder.Sleepy baby time, too.“Markie says her ear is hurting and I think she has a fever.Avril and I are here because we’re concerned.And Markie wanted her mommy.”He put one hand on Avril’s shoulder as the crowd jostled.She looked up at him and shifted closer to him and Auggie.Like she felt safer with him between her and the crowd.
“She’s warm.I know she was fussy earlier.”Auggie had that look.The one he remembered his own mother giving whenever one of her children were ill.
“Here now.”Rhea was there, looking at Markie.“Can I hold you for a moment, sweet girl?I’m Dr.Rhea.I used to take care of little girls all the time.”
Markie just eyed her.Then reached back…for Cal.“No.Cow-way hold Markie.”
They shuffled again, until Gerald Talley somehow ended up with the redheaded devil baby.And Cal had Markie again.“It’s okay, sweetheart.It’ll be okay.I bet if you let Dr.Rhea check you out for a minute, we can tell Baby Miss Missy all about it.”
He did what he could to soothe, while Rhea felt the little girl’s forehead and checked her neck and throat.“I don’t have all my cool doctor equipment with me, but I suspect somebody may have a touch of an upper respiratory infection or an ear infection.Probably some OTC fever reducers tonight, and make an appointment to get her in with a clinic or pediatrician soon.”
Auggie thanked the older woman.Avril had run back to their table to grab the doll and Markie’s favorite blanket, like a good big sister.When she returned, she had Em, Junie, and January in tow.
Somehow, the Talleys stepped away.Leaving Cal and his girls.
“I don’t want to leave early for the rest of the girls.And I wanted to dance with you,” Auggie told him bluntly.“But if Markie’s sick, I don’t want to keep her here.”
“Why don’t you bring her and the baby back to my place?It’s much quieter there, and we can put the playpen in one of my sisters’ rooms?Em and Junie can keep the rest of the girls here.We’ll let Markie—and Baby Miss Missy, of course—sleep in Clancy’s bed or something.It’s the closest to the living room.You and I can talk, and if they still haven’t picked up my sisters yet, we can hassle Jack and Gabe Masterson.”And Cal would get her alone.Plus, he was closer to town.If Markie was too sick, he did not want her too far from the hospital like Gil’s place was.“We’d just be about five minutes from here.”
His house was just four blocks up and two blocks over from where they were now.“Your sisters can stay as late as they want here and not worry about you, and the girls.”
Auggie looked at Em and Junie.“You two good with that?”
“Works for us,” Em said, adjusting Markie’s blanket over her shoulders.“We’ll pick you up at Cal’s when we leave.”
Just like that, he had his woman and two of his eight favorite redheaded she-devils headed for his truck.All he had to do was grab the playpen she carried in her van everywhere, and they were all set.
He was pulling into his own drive before he realized he’d not seen Claudia at the dance.Once he got Auggie and the little girls settled in, he’d text her, find out where she and Cadell were, and then he’d help Auggie tuck the babies in if needed.
And then…he would have his woman alone.
Not exactly how he planned, and he’d not want Markie feeling bad for anything, but they would be alone.Time for him to bare his soul, scars and all.
And tell the woman he wanted to start on forever.
57
