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“So do you like this one?” he asked, rolling a stroller back and forth.
“I do. I can run pushing this model.”
“You run?”
“I do,” she said. “Every day, unless I’m babysitting.”
“Well, now you can run on those days, too. Let’s get this one.”
“Yikes, it’s expensive,” Ava said, looking at the tag.
“She’s worth it,” he said, in his head thinking,And so are you.
Baby Violet fussed, lying in the middle of her father’s bed, jamming her fists in her mouth, waiting for dinner to warm up. He’d managed to keep her occupied all afternoon, from walking around the neighborhood with Ava, to bathing her properly with Roberta’s help, to sitting her in the baby swing that Tina had provided while he prepared her bottles.
“Knock, knock.” It was Roberta and Big Mike at the door.
“Hey, Pop, how’d it go today?”
“Fires all over the place,” he said, dwarfing the room when he entered. “A bad one way north at the county line. How’s the baby doing?”
“She’s awesome,” he said. “I’m going to try to keep her up awhile tonight, although I hear that’s nearly impossible for a baby this young.”
“Yep, they definitely have a mind of their own,” Roberta said.
They watched him take the bottle out of the warmer and test it on his wrist. “What’s up?”
“I have something to say,” Roberta answered.
“I figured.”
She stood there wringing her hands, building up the courage to speak. “Don’t get involved with the nanny.”
“We already covered that, Ma,” Leon said, trying to cover up his annoyance and failing.
“You spent the whole afternoon with her.”
“I did, but it was all about Violet. You don’t have to worry, okay? And if something happens and I piss her off enough that she quits, I promise you won’t have to babysit.”
“Now you’re making me feel bad.”
“I just don’t want you to worry about it.”
“Are you interested in her?” Big Mike asked.
Now here was where it would get touchy. Already thinking that his father might harbor a little jealousy if Leon got close to Ava, he’d have to navigate it with finesse.
“Pop, I’m only interested in her as Violet’s nanny. You two are planting a lot of seeds for being so worried about me dating Ava,” he said, smirking. “I wasn’t thinking about it until just now.”
“I was afraid of that,” Roberta said, turning away. “Come on, Mike, leave the boy alone.”
“You’re the one who dragged me in here,” he mumbled.
“Goodnight, guys,” Leon called after them, laughing.
Although the ringer on his phone was shut off, he noticed the face had lit up. It was Ava calling him. A zinger of heat swept over him as he answered it.
“Hey.”
