Page 8 of The Atonement (Arrangement #3)

CHAPTER SEVEN

AINSLEY

T he kids slept with me that night.

No. Sleep is a generous term.

The kids and I tossed and turned in the bedroom I’d grown up in. Maisy and Riley shared the full-size bed, while Dylan and I slept on separate air mattresses. There was a spare bedroom just down the hall, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave them. Lucky for me, they seemed to feel the same way.

The next morning, I was stiff and sore from sleeping on the slowly deflating mattress. I stood under the warm water of the shower for an extra few minutes, allowing it to ease the ache in my bones.

An hour later, I’d dressed in one of the nicest outfits in my suitcase and put on a light layer of makeup before straightening my hair. Despite my life falling apart, I couldn’t let anyone sense my weakness. There are few things that appear stronger than a woman who seems put together .

They were still sleeping when I walked in from the bathroom and planted a quick kiss on each of their foreheads.

When one of Dylan’s eyes fluttered open, I whispered, “Go back to sleep. I’m going to run into town for a bit.

Watch out for your brother and sister for me, okay? Call me if you need anything.”

He nodded with a seriousness that made my stomach seize. Though he didn’t understand what was happening, though I’d managed to avoid telling them anything concrete, he was unofficially taking on the role of man of the house. I could see it there in his golden eyes.

“We’ll be fine.”

“I know. I’ll be back soon,” I promised, walking out the door without another word.

As I passed the living room where Mom was sitting and drinking her morning tea, I lifted my hand with a passing wave toward her and kept moving. She lowered her mug. “Where are you off to so early?”

“Work.” I refused to stop long enough to talk. “I’ll be back in a few hours. The kids are still sleeping.”

“Don’t they have school?”

“No. I told you, they’re on fall break.”

I pulled open the door and stepped outside, releasing a heavy breath as I made my way toward the car. For the entire car ride—twenty minutes longer than it would’ve taken me from home—I rode in silence, making a list of everything I needed to do that day.

Work was at the top of my to-do list, though not because I was planning to return just yet. I still had a week of my vacation left, and I needed to make the most of it.

I walked into the branch just after they opened; the familiarity and utter coolness of the place were in perfect juxtaposition, just like the house had been.

It’s like that sometimes. When the place you’re visiting hasn’t changed a bit, but you have.

When you’re so different from who you were the last time you were there—be it a day or ten years ago—that nothing feels right or normal or familiar anymore.

“Well, hey. I didn’t think you’d be here until next week,” Tara said, hand on the pronounced bump under her blouse.

“Oh, I’m not here,” I told her. “Not officially. I’m just running a few errands.”

Brendan walked out of the vault with a cupcake in his hands. Upon seeing me, he froze, and I watched him contemplate hiding the dessert.

“Hey…” he said softly, keeping his distance.

“It’s okay. I’ve already seen it.” I didn’t have time to remind them I didn’t like for them to eat behind the counter in front of customers. “I need to make a large withdrawal.”

Tara passed me a slip as Brendan moved closer.

Finally at his station, he hid the cupcake and turned his attention to me, a too-bright smile on his lips. “How was your trip? Looks like you got some sun.”

“Yeah, a little bit.” I scribbled down my signature on the slip and passed it back. “I want to leave twenty-five dollars in each account. Transfer everything else into this account and then withdraw it all except for the twenty-five in there, too. I’m not sure how much that is exactly.”

Tara stared at the slip, then began signing into her system. Once she’d pulled up our account, she stared at me strangely, then turned to Brendan. “How much do you have in your drawer?”

“Not much. Mrs. O’Leary cleared me out. How much do you need?” He leaned over to check the screen. “Yeah, I don’t have that much. I can give you a thousand, maybe.”

“I just took in the deposit from Leo’s, but it’s mostly twenties.” She looked back at me. “Do you want this in hundreds or…”

“Yeah, as big of bills as you can do it, please. I don’t mind a few twenties, though.” It wasn’t as if we were talking about massive amounts of money. Even with our savings accounts, it would be less than five thousand.

“We’ll have to get into the vault for it,” she said, wincing.

“That’s fine. I can wait.”

She nodded toward Brendan, who grabbed his keys and jogged to the back.

“How are you feeling?” I hated making small talk when I had so much else going on, but it felt rude not to at least ask.

She seemed to relax at the question, rubbing her belly again. “Growing by the hour, it feels like.” She laughed, then raised a brow. “You aren’t leaving us, are you?”

“Hm?” The question caught me off guard .

“Taking all your money out and hitting the road.” She chuckled awkwardly.

“Oh.” I sighed. “No, not at all. Just a big expense. Hey, Peter hasn’t been in, has he?”

She looked worried then. “I don’t think so.”

“Just making sure. He said he’d let me know if he made it by before I had the chance, but I hadn’t heard from him.

I guess if the money hasn’t already been withdrawn, that answers my question.

” I waved off the question. “Anyway, I have a few things to take care of in my office. Will you let me know when you have the money ready?”

“Sure.” Her smile was small and decidedly un sure, but she gave it and I walked away.

In my office, I pulled up and checked my email, scanning through things I could ignore until I returned and responded to the few urgent matters. Next, I picked up the phone and dialed my boss’s office number.

“This is Tina.”

“Tina, hey, it’s Ainsley Greenburg.”

“Ainsley, hey.” She paused. “Are you already back from vacation? I thought I still had Mackenzie covering your branch…”

“I’m still out for the next week. Actually, that’s why I’m calling.

I wanted to see about taking a few extra days off.

” She was quiet for a moment, the silence dragging out, so I added, “I have the time. And I’ll work out whatever schedule the branch needs with the staff.

I’m sure Kenzie or Becca wouldn’t mind covering. ”

“What’s going on? Is everything okay? ”

I nodded, though she couldn’t see me. “Yeah, it’s just a family thing. With my kids.”

“Well, how long are you asking for?”

“Maybe an extra week, I’m not really sure.

I’d like to put in for all of the week after next, and then we can check in that Friday to see where I’m at.

” Guilt weighed on me. “I know this isn’t convenient.

Trust me, I do. But you know me. You know I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.

My family needs me right now. I haven’t ever asked for time off like this, not even when I had the kids.

I come to work no matter what I’m dealing with at home. But this is important.”

She sighed heavily, and I could hear her typing something.

“Yeah, okay. I know. It’s fine. We’ll manage.

I’ll call Mackenzie to see if she can still cover for you for a few more days, and then maybe some of the other managers can cover a day or two.

But keep me in the loop, okay? I’m counting on you to be back the week after that unless I hear from you. ”

“Of course.”

“And make sure to put in the request officially, so I can approve it.”

“I’m doing that right now.”

“Thanks, Ainsley,” she said, though she didn’t sound thankful at all.

“Thank you so much.”

“Hey—” She stopped me just before I was able to hang up.

“Yeah?”

“I just wanted to say I hope everything’s okay with the family.” Her tone was softer then, almost apologetic. “Keep us posted, okay? Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”

So, I wasn’t too deep in hot water after all. “I will. Thanks, Tina.”

A knock on my door startled me as I ended the call and, when I looked up, Tara was standing in the doorway with an envelope in her hand. “Here you go.” She passed it to me.

“Oh, you didn’t have to bring this out here. I would’ve come and gotten it.”

“I know. We’ve been slow, and I’ve been wanting to talk to you anyway.”

I froze, my breathing hitching. “Yeah?” I knew what she was going to say before she’d said it. Before she’d ever spoken a word. I recognized that nervous look in her eye; it was one I’d seen before, and it never brought good news.

She sank into the chair in front of my desk as I tucked the money away. “I, um, I hate to do this right now, because I know you’re not officially here, but…I need to put in my notice.”

“You’re quitting?”

She gave a guilty chuckle, rubbing her stomach again as if to remind me of it.

“I’m sorry. It’s just…we’ve always planned for me to stay home once we have kids.

I thought I’d still work through my pregnancy, but at my last appointment, my blood pressure was a little high.

They’re talking about putting me on bed rest if I can’t get it down and, well, Joel is really worried about my stress le vels.

It took us so long to actually get pregnant.

I just don’t want to mess this up.” She had tears in her eyes as she said the last sentence, making the guilt I was already feeling swell to double its size.

“Of course.” I put a hand out across the desk, patting the wood thoughtfully. “I understand.” Though it was the worst possible timing in the world, I did understand. I cared about Tara. I’d known her for years, and at one time, I’d considered her a close friend.

“I’m going to miss this place.” She glanced around the room sadly, sniffling.

“Well, would you rather use FMLA leave for a few weeks to see how you feel? I can help you put in that request.”

“No. If I use up that time, I wouldn’t have it around for after the baby’s born.

It’s only twelve weeks, and I still have a long time to go.

Plus, if something were to happen and I had to get put in the hospital, I’d run out of time and lose my job anyway.

It’s not worth the risk. I’d rather just put in my notice now, so I don’t have to stress about coming back before I’m ready. ”

“I understand.” I paused, tapping my finger against the desktop. “I’m really happy for you.”

A deep smile spread across her lips. “Thank you.”

“Okay, well, are you putting in a full two weeks?”

“Yeah. Two weeks from today is fine. I’ve already been training Brendan on my reports and LeAnn has been helping with shipments, so the two of them can train whoever comes in next.”

I nodded, a wave of heat washing over me like air from a dryer.

Life never stopped, did it? Not even when your world was ending.

“Okay. Perfect. Thanks, Tara. Just…um…” I couldn’t think straight.

“Just be sure to send me an email and CC Jenn from HR on it, so we officially have it in writing.” I paused.

“You’re on Joel’s insurance, aren’t you? ”

“I will be, once I leave. His company will only let him add me if I’m uninsured.”

“Good.” I tried to slow my breathing as my head throbbed. “Great. Okay, then.”

“Okay.” She stood, patting her legs. “I’ll, uh, I’ll see you next week, right? We can talk more.”

“Mhm.” I couldn’t say any more, couldn’t correct her.

The stress coursing through me was making it difficult to catch my breath.

Training a new teller was going to be hard enough, but training someone to do all of the head teller responsibilities would take weeks, if not months.

I had no time at all if I was going to miss all of the next two weeks, but what choice did I have?

At one point, I’d summoned the strength to work through a literal murder investigation, but I couldn’t do that this time. My children needed me too badly.

I closed out my email and stood from my desk, picking up my purse and double-checking that the envelope of cash was still there.

I needed to take care of my children.

For now, the rest would have to wait.