Stella: You are very talkative when you’re drunk. I especially enjoyed the part about his butt. Never knew there were so many words for lickable.
I wanted to die of mortification. This was why I never drank; I talked nonstop and had no filter.
Me: You better not have told anyone about this.
Stella: …
Stella: Only Malena.
Stella: And Willa.
Stella: Oh, and Maisie.
Me: You are the worst friend.
Stella: xx
I put my phone back and took a deep breath. I’d almost survived another night with only minor incidents. I could do this. I was a kick-ass bitch who took charge of her life. Even if that meant working at a strip club.
I made my way back out to the floor and finished my shift, making sure to catch another glimpse of Sebastian before driving home.
CHAPTER TWO
“My knees are cold,” Luca complained.
“I told you to wear long pants.”
He was looking out the window, never once taking his eyes off the front yard. “But I want to wear shorts.”
The small stool he was standing on provided him with just enough height to look outside so he wouldn’t miss my friend Malena pull up.
I put the last of the clean dishes away and walked over to him. “I know. That’s why your knees are cold.”
“Malena,” he exclaimed, cold knees forgotten. He raced to the door and opened it, disappearing outside. I followed at a slower pace, watching him come to a sliding stop in front of my best friend.
“Hey, buddy, how’s it hanging?” she asked and fist-bumped him before ruffling his hair.
He giggled and ran off with her son, Felix, the two disappearing inside the house. We probably wouldn’t see them again for the rest of the day.
Lena skipped up to Malena, who picked her up and carried her to where I was waiting.
“Thanks so much for watching him,” Malena said and hugged me, squashing Lena between us.
“No problem at all. We were just going to hang out at the house today anyway.”
It was one of those rare days that I didn’t have to work at either of my jobs. And it really didn’t make a difference to me if I watched another kid. Especially one as gentle as Felix. And he loved playing with Luca, so it was a win-win.
“I’ll pick him up around five,” she said and handed Lena back to me before leaning her head inside the house. “See you tonight, mijo.”
I waved her off. “No rush.”
She left to go to work, even though it was Sunday. She was a lawyer, and her job was the second most important thing to her, right after her son. Usually her parents watched Felix, but they were on a weekend trip to celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary.
And I was all too happy to help. Usually I needed people to do me favors, so whenever I had the chance to pay them back, I jumped at it.
We spent the day playing in the backyard, then walked to the playground just across the street. I watched them go down the slide 2,876 times and get on and off the swing 5,409 times before I convinced them that going home was a great idea.
It was getting dark, and I didn’t want to be outside too late, no matter how safe the neighborhood.
