Gina ended the call, and Debbie raced to shower before Noah—what a cute name!—got there.
Twenty-five minutes later, she was still fluffing her damp hair when the doorbell rang. Debbie hurried down the hall, then forced herself to slow her stride and her breathing before she opened the door.
She sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of tall, slender, forty-something Gina standing there holding a duffel bag and a small dark-haired boy with the biggest brown eyes Debbie had ever seen.
Noah had the thumb of one hand in his mouth and the other wrapped around a lock of Gina’s long blond hair.
Debbie waved Gina in and guided them down the hall to the playroom, where she hoped to distract Noah from the fact he was about to be left with a stranger.
Still holding Noah, Gina sat on a sofa. She rubbed his arm. “Noah, this is Debbie. You get to stay with her for a few days. She’s really nice.”
Debbie’s heart pounded out an erratic pattern against her ribcage as she sat nearby.
“Want my mommy.” Noah’s eyes filled with tears, and Debbie’s heart ached for the sweet little boy.
“I know you do, sweetie, but your mommy has to stay in the hospital for a few days. She asked me to find someone really nice to take care of you while she’s there.”
Debbie slowly reached out and gently stroked Noah’s arm. “Hi, buddy. I’m so glad you’re going to stay with me. We’re going to have so much fun.”
Noah turned his head into Gina’s chest and pulled the lock of hair he clung to close to his face.
Gina gave Debbie an apologetic look then shifted to the floor with Noah to sit by the toy cupboard.
Debbie joined them and pulled out blocks, cars, and animals for Noah to play with. Her nephews had mostly outgrown these toys, but Debbie kept them around, hoping someday she’d have kids of her own that would play with them.
It took twenty minutes for Noah to finally slide off Gina’s lap and engage with Debbie. During that time, Gina filled Debbie in on the situation. “Noah’s dad hasn’t been a part of the picture since right after he was born, and his mom was in a serious car accident this morning. She’s in serious condition. His grandmother will be flying in from Georgia, but she’s a caregiver for her disabled aunt and needs time to make some arrangements. She may not get here until next week.”
Debbie sent up a little prayer for Noah’s mom, as her heart broke for the little boy.
Thirty minutes later, Gina left Noah with Debbie. Equal parts excitement and apprehension filled her as Gina disappeared.
Fat tears fell on Noah’s cheeks. “Want my Mommy.”
Debbie gathered him into her arms. “Shh… It’s going to be okay, sweet boy.”
When Noah refused to be distracted by toys again, she curled up on the couch with him and turned on a movie. After thirty minutes of crying, the poor boy grabbed a lock of her hair and fell asleep in her arms.
Debbie’s heart pounded extra hard for half a dozen beats before settling down. She continued to hold him, gently stroking his baby-soft skin. She felt bad for the circumstances that brought Noah to her, but her heart swelled at being given the opportunity to care for this precious little boy.
Sometime later, Debbie’s phone chimed with a reminder. Disoriented, she opened her eyes. It took her several long seconds to realize she’d dozed off too.
He stirred when she pulled her phone from her back pocket. She checked her screen to find the reminder to pick up the Reed children. Gasping, she sat up straight. She was supposed to pick them up in fifteen minutes.
She got to her feet, still cradling Noah and hurried to find her purse. When Noah got teary-eyed and wrapped a fist in her hair again, she shoved a juice box, a package of goldfish crackers, and some Smarties into her purse.
Hurrying out into the garage, she remembered she’d told Gina she already had a car seat for Noah. A car seat that still sat in a box on the shelf in her garage. She opened the door of the Escalade and set him inside, then grabbed the box with the car seat and ripped it open, breaking a nail in the process. She bit back the swear word that flew to her lips. Just one of the many changes she was trying to make.
Noah started crying, so Debbie opened the package of goldfish and set him on the leather seat to eat his snack while she buckled the car seat into place. It took a lot longer than she expected because the safety restraint system wasn’t that easy to figure out.
By the time she was ready to buckle Noah into the car seat, goldfish littered the seat and floor. Many of them crunched to pieces.
Debbie bit her tongue to keep from cussing again. She could clean the SUV. There was no point in getting upset with a child who had been through so much today.
She finally got him buckled in and the goldfish cleaned up, mostly, then remembered that Austin said Cody still needed a booster seat. Debbie grabbed another new box off the shelf and ripped it open, being careful not to break another nail.
Noah cried all the way to the high school, where Savannah waited outside, looking stressed. She made it a point of checking the time on her phone before climbing into the SUV.
“I know,” Debbie said. “I’m so sorry I’m late. My afternoon got derailed.”
