Rina pushed the door open, looking past me at Ollie. “Dude, you ran off on me! I was supposed to be watching you!”
“Sorry.” Ollie shuffled through the back door as I held it open.
“Does Piper know where he is?” Rina asked me.
“Yeah, I texted her. She’s probably on her way back.”
Rina opened another door, revealing a tiny office space with a desk piled with papers. “Take him in here. I’ll grab the first-aid kit.”
Ollie went through the open door of Piper’s office and sat in a chair, cradling his hands. Piper appeared a moment later, out of breath and wearing a thunderous expression.
“I told you no skateboarding until later. I cannot believe you just left, Ollie.”
“I was bored. Rina was doing stuff, and you were busy, and I didn’t think anyone would notice.”
“Of course I noticed.” Piper crouched in front of him, her face a mixture of relief and frustration. “Ollie-bear, you’re all scraped up.”
“I’mfine, Mom,” Ollie said adamantly, glancing at me with his chin jutting out. Even as more tears were welling in his eyes.
Poor kid.
Rina popped her head in again. “Um, boss? I can’t find the first-aid kit.”
Piper sighed and got up. “It was right on that middle shelf.” She squeezed past me, going with Rina, and I realized how much of the space I was taking up in the small room.
I shifted my weight. “I’m going to head back out to the front and let your mom take care of you. Okay?”
“Wait.” Ollie’s voice was quiet. “Can you…”
I paused, studying him.
He dropped his gaze to his scraped palms. “My mom always puts hurty stuff on cuts. It stings, and I don’t…” His voice went even smaller, and the next few words came out in a rush. “Donwanna cry in fronofher.”
As soon as I figured out what he’d said, my chest twinged with empathy for him. He was trying so hard to be brave. “You can probably do the bandages yourself. You’re pretty grown up, right? I can show you what to do.”
He nodded, blinking the tears away.
When Piper came back with the first-aid kit, Ollie said, “Mom, I can do it myself.”
“Bud, I don’t think?—”
“Grayden’s going to help me. I asked him to.”
Piper gave me a questioning look, and I smiled sheepishly. “I’ve got plenty of experience with bandages in my line of work. I’m happy to give him some tips.”
“Please, Mom? Could I have a hot cocoa? I know you’re mad, but I’ll pay for it from my allowance.”
“I’d love a double espresso,” I said softly. “I’ve been saving my allowance too.” I added a subtle wink, and a tiny smile appeared on Piper’s lips.
“Okay. Both of you can turn off the charm, because the drinks are on the house. I’ll put your orders in with Rina, and I’ll be back soon. Just call out if either of you needs anything.”
“Yes, Mom,” I said.
She smiled bigger and shook her head, retreating from the open doorway.
When I was a kid, my dad never would’ve patiently shown me how to clean my hands after a scrape, making sure I got all the dirt and bits of gravel out. Nah, my father had been theShut up and quit being a crybabytype. Piper and Teller’s father had been the same way.
Made me wonder how Danny would’ve handled this, if he’d been the one to find Ollie instead of me.
