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“Okay.”
“If this doesn’t work, we can give her a bath. She needs fluids too. That’s really important with a fever.”
I absorbed everything Jenna said and committed it to memory.
“Here.” She flattened one of the washcloths against Marley’s back, guiding my hand on top of the damp rag. “Hold this on here. This one is for her head. Let’s get her out of this harsh light so she can rest.”
I carried Marley to her bedroom, shielding her eyes from the hallway light. I kissed her forehead. Instead of taking a seat in the rocking chair, I sat on the floor with her, pressing my back against the crib and stretching my legs out.
Marley straddled my lap. She sniffled and whined softly, her big eyes blinking the room into focus. Tears continued to roll down her cheeks.
Jenna folded the second cloth and bent over me to put it against Marley’s head. I held it in place. When my daughter tipped forward, resting her cheek against my chest, Jenna smiled.
“There we go. Keep this one here.”
“Okay,” I said, not caring at all when my shirt became damp and clung to me. When Jenna didn’t sit down, I almost told her my reason for getting on the floor. Only one of us could fit on the chair. And I didn’t want her to leave yet.
“I’m going to grab her a drink. I’ll be right back,” she said before fleeing the room.
A heavy breath left me. I dropped my head against the crib rail and willed my heart to slow.
Jenna returned minutes later carrying one of Marley’s cups. It had a lid she could easily drink from without spilling.
“Here you go, baby. Do you want some water?” Jenna knelt beside me and offered Marley the cup, holding it for her while she drank from it. “There. Are you feeling any better?” she asked quietly.
“I think she is,” I said. “The rag must be helping already. She’s not crying like she was.”
Marley’s little body hiccupped with her breaths as she whimpered.
“We’ll check her temperature again in a little bit.”
“We?” I asked, with unmistakable hope in my voice. I peered into Jenna’s face. “You’ll stay?”
She shifted beside me. “I want to make sure the medicine is working,” she said. “If her fever spikes any higher, we should probably take her to the hospital. Hopefully, that won’t happen.”
“Thank you,” I said in a rush. “I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t here. I definitely wouldn’t be doing this.” I repositioned the rag on Marley’s back after flipping it over, giving my daughter the cooler side.
“You could’ve called me. I would’ve helped you through it.”
I watched Jenna offer Marley another drink.
She would’ve helped me through it—I knew that. I also knew it wouldn’t matter how late it was. If I needed something and reached out to her in the middle of the night, she would answer. It was Jenna, down to her bones. I’d never met a kinder, more selfless person.
Did she know I’d do the same for her?
“I’d help you through anything,” I told her. “I hope you know that.”
She blinked, smiling softly.
“You’re always here. You’re always doing stuff for me…I’m not sure there’s anything you would ever need me for, but if there was, I’d do it. I don’t want you to think this doesn’t go both ways.”
“I don’t think that.”
“Good. So, if something comes up, I want you to tell me…although I doubt there’s anything you couldn’t do damn well on your own…” I tried to think of something. Anything. “Seriously, what can’t you do?”
Jenna giggled, dropping her head back. “You only see me around kids. I’m not good at everything. There are things I don’t know how to do. And there are absolutely things I’m just flat-out terrible with.”
“Until I see proof, I won’t believe that.”
“I can’t change a tire to save my life,” she said, sounding almost proud in her admission. “Don’t remind my father if you ever meet him. I’ve been shown how to do it several times. No dice—I can’t get it down. I always mess up. My brother is my go-to if I ever get a flat.” She looked at me for a moment. “Would you like to be that guy for me? I could call you instead.”
“I would love to be that guy.”
This could’ve felt like the silliest thing compared to the countless ways Jenna was there for me. Yet somehow it didn’t feel small or insignificant. The smile I received in return made that clear.
Before any more could be said, Marley sat up quickly and blinked at me, looking like she just now realized I was holding her. The rag from her head fell between us.
“Hey, sweetheart.” I brushed damp curls out of her face. “Are you okay?”
My daughter looked from me to Jenna, then back to me. She yawned and rubbed at her eyes. Then she collapsed forward, hitting my chest with her full weight.
