Calvin turned cautiously, and his eyes lit up when he spotted her. “Mom, Mom. Look at me. I’m at the top.”
“That’s great, honey. Good job.” She stood beside Alex and whispered, “I’ve been trying to get him to do that for ages. He must be trying to impress you. Can he get down?”
“I hope so,” he said. “You ready to come down?”
“Yeah, but my hands are freezing.”
“Jump. I’ll catch you,” Alex said.
Calvin was only a foot higher than Alex’s head. He looked down dubiously, and Julia didn’t think he’d do it. But sure enough, he let go and fell right into Alex’s awaiting arms.
“Good job, little dude. I knew you could do it.”
Julia choked up at the sight of Alex holding her little boy. She wanted so badly for him to grow up with a dad in his life. Would she ever find someone? Someone who could do what Alex just did—encourage Cal out of his comfort zone and be so trustworthy that Cal would jump into his arms without hesitation.
Alex set Calvin down, and he ran to hug Julia’s leg. “Did you see me, Mom?”
“I did.” She picked him up and hugged him. She mouthed “Thank you” to Alex over Calvin’s shoulder.
“Don’t thank me yet,” Alex said with a smirk. “I promised him ice cream if he made it to the top.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
It was only mid-November, but overnight, a second, early snowstorm had dumped another two feet of snow. With more in the forecast, Julia was glad she’d stocked up on milk and bread. The power had gone out about an hour ago, and she was struggling to keep Calvin entertained. They’d played Candy Land and cars and read a few books, but his attention was waning.
A knock at the door was a relief. And the handsome man on the other side lit up her insides. Ellie’s advice to use him for sex ran through her mind. Just once couldn’t hurt, could it? No, sex with a neighbor was as dumb as hooking up with a coworker.
“Thought I’d stop by and make sure you guys were okay. They say the power won’t be back on until tomorrow sometime.”
“Mr. Alex,” Calvin called and rushed over. “Did you come to play with me?”
“I came to check on you,” Alex said to Calvin before turning to Julia. “Do you need anything?”
“A tranquilizer,” she mumbled. “They canceled preschool, and it’s too nasty to go outside. This kid’s energy is overflowing.”
“I bet.”
“You wanna play Hot Wheels?” Calvin asked Alex.
“Oh…I…um,” Alex stammered. “I guess?” Alex looked at Julia. She shrugged and pushed open the door as an invitation to enter if he dared.
“You don’t have anything better to do?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Not today. I did get the okay to go back to work though, which is great news. I’m going crazy with nothing to do.”
“Nice. Well, speaking of crazy, come on in.” He did, and she shut the door behind him.
The three of them played games, ate cold leftovers, and read books. Midway through a cutthroat game of Sorry!, her cell phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Julia. It’s Kenneth. The super? I’m calling around to make sure everyone’s okay. Power might not be restored until tomorrow.”
“Oh, well, thank you,” she said. “Our neighbor stopped by to check on us too. We’re fine.”
When he didn’t answer, she thought the call had dropped. “You still there?” she asked.
“Yes, sorry. Okay then. Take care.” He hung up without waiting for a response.
