Page 9

Now all three of them laughed, Michelle throwing back her head as she did so. That warmth came back.

Look away. Look anywhere else.

But before I could, Michelle’s eyes met mine. My mouth went dry. Her laughter died off, the smile falling off her face once more too. The sensation was so foreign, so alarmingly full-bodied, I froze. Luckily Jack chose that moment to yank a fistful of my hair.

“Ow,” I said.

The girls snickered.

“I… should get this guy back before he—“ow!” I said again as Jack yanked at another handful of my hair. “Are you going to swear again?” Emma asked.

“Pardon?” I swung the grabby toddler off my shoulders, holding him against my chest where his arms couldn’t reach the top of my head.

“You swore last time.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Yes, you did. We got a swear jar when we moved here cause Mom swore so much when she was moving all the boxes in. So if you swear, you have to pay us a dollar.”

“Emma!” Michelle said.

“It’s alright,” I said, still digesting the fact that they’d moved to the area. I glanced at Michelle. I knew last time they’d had to drive from out of town to get to their appointment. I remembered Michelle saying something about traveling to Millerville so they could see the best pediatric neurological specialist in upstate New York.

“Moving sucks,” I said. “But it’s no excuse for swearing.” I shot an exaggeratedly admonishing look at Michelle.

Michelle gawped. I could tell she was trying to keep from laughing.

“Having a swear jar sounds fair,” I said. “Damn fair.”

Emma and Macy shrieked while I scowled and made a show of pulling out my wallet with my free hand. The girls spent the next few minutes trying to get me to swear again while Michelle watched, lips pinched between her teeth.

Over by the building, the woman tapped at her watch. Shit.

“Girls, Will has to go back to work now,” Michelle said. “It’ll be our turn to go any second too.”

“Bye, Will!” Macy said, running off. Emma only gave me a curt little nod.

“You better go,” Michelle said once they’d gone. “She’s waiting for you. It was nice to see you again. Say hi to Hank?”

I wanted to say something more but Jack was making another grab for my hair and Michelle was already walking away.

My stomach sank. “Bye, Michelle.”

She turned and gave me a little wave that made my chest cinch.

That was it? Would it be the last time I saw her? Or would we run into each other in the grocery store? Make small talk? I had the sudden absurd image of running a hand through her hair. Getting up close and whispering something—what? In her ear.

I headed over to where Eli was still on the phone on the bench. When he saw me approach, he mumbled something into the phone and ended the call.

“I gotta run,” I said, thrusting Jack at him.

Eli took the boy awkwardly, setting him on the bench next to him like he was a backpack or something. The dude had no idea how to handle kids. Luckily Jack seemed unphased.

Then I saw Eli’s face. He looked pained. “You okay?”

“Who was that?” he asked, not answering my question.

We both looked over at Michelle, who’d joined her girls on the swings. Her hair flowed out behind her like some kind of mermaid.