“Mommy!” They raced to meet me, each claiming a side. It wasn’t until they were locked around me like two tiny octopuses that the weight of the worries I’d been carrying for the last week finally began to slip away from me. Maybe Vero was right. Why was my mind always jumping to the darkest conclusions? Not every situation had to be the plot of a suspense novel.
I kissed the soft crown of Delia’s head and blew a raspberry behind Zach’s ear, making him giggle, and I thought I’d never hear another sound quite that sweet. I held them to me as I glanced around the house. Toys and crayons littered the living room, but the place didn’t look much worse for wear. The kitchen table was set for dinner, and there was an empty Wegmans take-out bag left beside the stove.
“Where’s Nick?” I asked Delia.
“Upstairs in the closet,” she said with the tiniest hint of a lisp. “Zach took Nick’s cell phone while Nick was emptying the dishwasher. We looked all over the house for it, but we couldn’t find it anywhere! I tried to get Zach to tell me where it is, but I don’t think he wants to.”
“I see.” I raised an eyebrow at Zach. He giggled, delighted with himself, as I set him on his feet. I knelt in front of him with a grave expression. “Did you take Nick’s phone?”
Zach nodded.
I shook a reproving finger at him. “You know it’s not nice to take things that don’t belong to you. We need to give it back. Nick’s probably very worried about it. Do you remember where you put it?”
Zach turned his chubby hands palms up and shrugged. “I no me-member.”
“Uh-huh,” I said doubtfully. I rose and walked to the pantry. He watched me curiously as I reached for a box of chocolate chunk cookies I’d been saving for Vero’s return. “If I give you one of these, do you think you could remember?”
Zach’s eyes locked onto the cookies like a missile on a target. He ran to me, bouncing on his toes and pulling himself up my leg with grabby hands. “I have dat?”
I held the box out of his reach. “You can have one when you bring me Nick’s phone.”
Zach paused. I could picture the gears in his brain spinning like tiny hamster wheels. In a sudden burst, he darted out of the kitchen. We all followed him up the stairs. He made a sharp left into his bathroom and zoomed to the commode. I cringed, remembering my last fishing expedition for my keys, but instead of pointing inside the toilet, he reached for the box of baby wipes on the tank lid. Something heavy rattled inside as he handed it over to me.
I pried the plastic box open.
“Cookie?” Zach’s voice was strained. I sensed the thinly veiled threat of a tantrum in it.
Vero scooped him up and nudged Delia into the hall. “Come on, you two. I’ll take you downstairs for some cookies while your mom gives Nick his phone.” She winked at me on her way out of the bathroom.
I dried the damp phone on my sweatshirt on my way to my bedroom. A light was on inside my closet. I peeked my head in andfound Nick on his hands and knees on the carpet, shining a flashlight under the shoe rack.
“Looking for this?” I asked.
He sat up fast and smacked his head on a shelf. He winced as he turned around, relief washing over his face when he saw me. I wasn’t sure if his smile was for me or the phone in my hand until he took it and dropped it into the laundry basket on the floor. He drew me against him, his mouth hungry on mine as he backed me into a rack of hanging clothes. I was pretty sure he hadn’t shaved since I left. His beard was thicker than I was used to, the unkempt waves of his hair almost feral. It made kissing him feel a little wild, like I was experiencing a strange new side of him I hadn’t seen before. Judging by what was happening in Nick’s pants, he was enjoying it, too.
“I didn’t hear you come in,” he said when we came up for air. “Jesus, Finn. You scared the shit out of me.”
“I didn’t mean to. I texted you when Vero and I left Norma’s.”
Nick pulled back sharply. “Vero came with you?”
I nodded, unable to contain my wide, triumphant grin. “She’s downstairs with the kids.” The color drained from his face, and I laughed. “Don’t worry, her departure from Maryland was perfectly legal. They dropped the charges this morning.”
Some of the tension left his shoulders. “You found your witness?”
“Yes,” I said, hemming a little over that. “But we didn’t end up needing him after all. Vero and I figured out who really took the money. The young lady returned every penny and confessed what she did to the police. Vero had to pay a fine and do some community service for the gambling, but other than that, it’s all been resolved.”
A smile stretched across his face as he leaned in to kiss me. “I suppose this calls for a little celebration.” His teeth were whiterthan I remembered against the thick frame of dark stubble, and the effect was a little stunning.
“We should probably go downstairs,” I suggested half-heartedly.
“Or we could just stay up here,” he said into my neck, his hands beginning to wander. “There’s takeout on the counter. The three of them can fend for themselves for a while.”
“Was it really that bad, being here with my kids?” I teased.
Nick pulled back, his face suddenly sober. His eyes searched mine as if he were trying to make sense of the question. “No, Finn! Not at all. You know I’m crazy about them.”
I put a hand to his scruff, loving it even more for what he’d endured in the time it had taken him to grow it. “That doesn’t make them any less difficult. You look exhausted.”
