“She says ‘cooties can’t hurt us if we wash them down the drain’.” Sammy dried her hands and scurried out.
As he was drying his hands, his phone rang. “Dakota Luck.”
“Mr. Luck, this is Detective Beeker. I’m handling the Hastings’s case. Would you be able to drop by the station this afternoon?”
Dammit.
“And if I can’t?” Dakota asked.
“I can pay you a visit.”
“Let me touch base with my attorney. Is this your cell number?”
“Sure is.”
“I’ll text you back.” Dakota hung up and called Warren, who said he would meet him there.
His chest tightened.I’m going to get arrested for a crime I didn’t commit.The damn irony of life.
He found Providence in the office, and paused to appreciate her. She was so focused on whatever she was working on, she didn’t see him.
“Hey.”
She looked up and smiled. Even in the midst of this shit storm, his aggravation dissipated, simply because she had smiled at him. “I didn’t hear you come home.”
Sammy flew in, gripping the construction paper from preschool.
Providence smiled at the tyke. “Hi, Sammy. How was school today?”
“Sooo fun! My teacher said we can get our way if we do nice things for others.”
Providence’s eyebrows jutted up as the two adults exchanged glances.
“Samantha, you do something nice for someone because you like that person or because you want to make them happy,” Dakota explained.
“Okay, Daddy.”
“I’m liking this new instructor less and less,” he grumbled.
“Sammy, did you tell your daddy about the spider during bath time, and how brave you were?” Providence asked.
“Uh-huh. I made you a present.” She set the piece of paper on the desk. “That’s us.”
Providence admired the picture. “It’s beautiful.”
“This is me and that’s Daddy. He’s the biggest.”
Providence chuckled. “Drawn to scale.”
Dakota appreciated that, despite everything going on, Providence spent time with his child.
“That’s Mrs. Morris and that’s you. You can be a part of our family, too.”
“This isthebest present. I love it. I can look at this every single day and be reminded of how lucky I am to know you. Thank you.”
Sammy threw her arms around Providence. As Providence hugged her, Dakota swallowed against the unexpected lump in his throat. He wasn’t the only one falling for this amazing woman.
“I’m going to have a snack.” Sammy skipped out of the room.
