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“Just follow me.”
She gave him a thumb’s up.
Ten minutes later, they turned into the long driveway leading to the club’s parking lot. Tim parked and came to meet her with the three girls. After unloading her trunk, he sat the toddlers in their strollers, strapped her bags to his shoulder, and grabbed Becky’s hand.
“David and you girls can carry the towels. Walk ahead of me to that building. Don’t try to run. We have to register everyone. Erin, Teresa, you have the twins. Let’s go.”
They followed him, each pushing a stroller.
Tim preceded them to the reception desk and registered his guests. “We’re good. Come with me.”
They crossed the elegant lobby and exited through a glass door to a sunny terrace dotted with tables decked with green umbrellas and beach chairs. Tim chose a table close to the pool. “Is this table good?”
“Perfect.” She smiled, relieved to let him take charge and lighten her burden.
“Listen, kids,” he called. “Take off your coverups and set them on a chair with your towel on top so that they’ll be easy to find when you come out of the pool.”
The children obeyed in a blink of an eye.
“Wait, spray each other with sunscreen,” Erin reminded them. “If you need goggles, I have them in this bag.” Two minutes later, the four older kids dove into the clear water and swam.
Erin changed the toddlers into pool diapers with bathing shorts on top. Tim had already jumped into the pool and opened his arms to receive Ethan and set him in his floatie. Nathan followed right away.
“We’re good.” Tim called. He was a sight to behold, tall and muscled, with an engaging grin, his first in several weeks. “Your turn.” He opened his arms toward her.
Dying to throw herself into his open arms, she peeled off her wrap and descended the three steps to enter the pool. Her babies had no such qualms and slapped the water, splashing cold waves over her shoulders.
“Wait, you rascals. I’m trying to warm up.”
“Go swim. I’m with them.” As always, Tim took control and saved her by twirling the floaties around until the babies giggled. She left and swam away, catching up with the older kids who were having a blast. After resting at the end of the pool for a couple of minutes, she returned to the other side to play with her babies.
Teresa entered the water, relaxed on her noodle, but didn’t linger too long, and soon left to change. A moment later she was back in her Capri pants and blouse. “If you want to get the babies out and change them, I’ll give them a bottle. It’s time for their nap.”
“Right, it’s enough for them.” Erin got out. Tim handed her one baby at a time to dry and change in the privacy of a corner chair. She set them in their strollers with a bottle to suck on under her mother’s supervision, and went back to the pool to swim with Tim and her children.
It was after six when they returned home. Tim and his daughter left. Her children hardly had time to eat dinner and shower, before collapsing into their beds exhausted.
Half an hour later, ready to drive to the hospital for her night shift, Erin turned the key to start the car. The engine sputtered for a moment, then growled. She turned it on and off several times. Nothing happened. “Damn it, what’s wrong with this car?”
The engine had died. Exasperated, she dashed upstairs to her mother’s room, Ben’s previous office that Teresa now shared with David.
“Mom, my car is dead. I’m taking yours. I’ll call a mechanic tomorrow.”
“Here are the keys. Good luck. I haven’t driven it for two weeks. I hope it starts right away.”
Erin sighed and ran back to the garage. It took three tries to awaken the engine on the twenty-year old piece of junk. She got the car out of the garage and into the driveway. It burped, jerked, and stopped.
“Damn, I’m going to be late.” The car started again, reached the end of the street and shuddered. “Oh no. Please, please, go.” The car rolled a few yards, and then thumped and stopped.
At this rate, she would certainly be late. What was the problem with her mother’s car? Anything and everything. She’d never heard Teresa mentioning a car service.
Her phone rang. It was Tim. “Tim, you’re a godsend.”
His chuckle warmed her. “Teresa called me. You’re having car problems.”
“More like car curse. My van won’t start, and Mom’s car coughs and stops every two minutes. I hate car problems.”
“I’m on my way. Where are you exactly?”
