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“Ew, is right. It was so gross. I kept wondering what that smell was.” She pinches her nose and elicits another belly laugh from my nephew.
We walk over to the last door on the right, and I watch as Jillian slowly cracks it open. “You’re awake!” She claps as we enter, Truitt squeals as he jumps up and down. She gathers him up in her arms and deposits him on the floor long enough to grab a diaper and a change of clothes.
My curiosity gets the best of me. He seems big for an infant. “How old is he?”
“Oh, Truitt is a year and a half.”
“Has he started walking?”
I don’t miss the slight downturn of her lips as she looks up at me. “Not yet. I took him to the doctor, and they said he’s probably just too fast at crawling and not motivated enough to walk. They did x-rays and checked him out, but said everything seems fine.”
“He’s not much of a talker,” I add, hoping she’ll share whether he has a hearing issue without upsetting her further. “I’m still working on Mama.” I wink.Don’t think I’m letting you forget about that kiss.
Her blush returns, and I know she’s picked up on my meaning. “Yeah. He seems to be taking his time with a lot of the milestones.”
Reaching out for her, I rub my hand up and down her arm. I shouldn’t be touching her, but the need to comfort her is overpowering. I’m not sure I could stop myself if I wanted to.
“I think he likes me,” Mimmo blurts.
“What’s not to like?” Jillian answers. “Oh, this is the medicine Truitt needs for his eye. Just smear a little bit over his eyelashes with his next diaper change. His body heat will melt it enough to get into his eye. I’ll do the next dose once I’m home. Just wash your hands well afterward. I’ll die if you catch it from him.”
Truitt slowly makes his way toward his mother like a little turtle. His head lifting up once he’s at her feet. My hand falls to my side as she bends to lift him up onto the changing table.
“Let’s see if we can change you without a fountain of pee erupting.”
Domenico throws his head back and laughs.
“Oh, you laugh all you want, Mimmo. I can bet you did the same thing when you were a baby.”
I chuckle. “Yes. You did.”
“What?” His look of shock is so expressive he looks like a cartoon character. This kid.
I ruffle his curls. “We’d have to cover you with the clean diaper quickly, or it was like a garden hose.”
His infectious laugh permeates the room and causes Truitt to shriek. All four of us are caught up in utter glee and, for a moment, I have to wonder if this is what it would feel like. To have a normal life. A happy life.
“You okay?”
Jillian’s voice breaks through my inner turmoil. I hadn’t realized my thoughts were so transparent.
“I’m good, Jillian. Happy to be here.”
The words have barely left my mouth, and she’s leaning toward me. Placing her soft cheek against mine. And it hits me. This is dangerous for a whole different reason.
This woman could wreck me.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Luca
“Nemo!”Caleb yells as he races toward us from the bus stop. Mimmo runs toward him, and they embrace like old friends, separated for far too long.
Myla strides along behind them at a brisk clip, but composed. As she approaches, she greets me and her little brother with a smile that could almost rival her mother’s.Almost.
“Did you have a good day at school?” I ask her as she adjusts her backpack, reaching for Truitt.
She nods in response, seeming quite shy. The complete opposite of her brother, who is now rolling around with Mimmo on the ground like they’re at a WWE wrestling event.
