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“Da—Da!”
That brought him up off the bed fast. He shuddered and ran his hand through his hair. Then he shoved one side of his T-shirt back in his jeans and made his way to the front of the Winnebago. His neck was getting a crimp from having to keep his head ducked.
Lucy was nowhere in sight, but Nell sat in the passenger seat with her feet propped up on the dashboard and an expression of pure contentment on her face. He found himself pausing, just to watch her. A shaft of late afternoon sunlight had turned her skin to porcelain, and there was something almost ethereally beautiful about her.
She turned and caught him staring at her. He glanced down at the dashboard clock and saw that he’d been asleep for quite a while. “The baby’s on the loose. ”
“I know. She needed some exercise.”
The door swung open and Lucy came back in. “That’s the last time I’m peeing in the woods.”
“Then clean the bathroom,” Nell countered.
Mat felt something clutch his leg, caught a whiff, and looked down to see the Demon hanging on to his jeans. She looked up at him, all drooly grin. Then, using his leg to balance herself, she began to bounce.
“Da-da-Da!”
Maybe he’d died without realizing it and gone straight to hell.
“Don’t say that.” Lucy took her sister’s arms and drew her away, then knelt down and caught her small face between her hands to get her attention. “Say jerk, Butt. Jerk. Jerk. Jerk.”
Nell didn’t even have the decency to hide her amusement as she gingerly picked up the baby and carried her over to the couch for a diaper change. “You’ve got quite a fan club.”
He needed some fresh air. “I’ll be back in a few minutes, but don’t hesitate to take off without me.”
When he returned, the Demon was safely fastened in her car seat and Nell sat behind the wheel.
“I’ll drive,” he said.
She pulled back onto the road. “Soon. Right now I’m looking for a place to stop for dinner.”
“It’s not even six.”
“Lucy’s hungry.”
He tilted his head toward the teenager. “Eat potato chips.”
“I’m hungry, too,” Nell said. “And Marigold needs a decent meal.”
“Stop calling her that!” Lucy exclaimed. “She hates it! She really does.”
“Pull over,” he ordered.
“Right up ahead. The sign says one-point-five miles. Grannie Peg’s Good Eats.”
“I just bet that’ll be four-star cuisine.”
“What does a steelworker know about four-star cuisine?”
“Don’t stereotype.”
“I don’t type at all. That’s why I’m unemployed.”
She looked awfully pleased with herself for someone who was supposed to be desperate. He wondered how she’d react if he told her the truth about what he did for a living. He used to love telling people he was a journalist, but during the past year, he’d grown evasive. That alone had been a good reason for quitting. A man should be proud of his work.
“Oh, look! They’re having a picnic!” Nell slowed to gaze at a family of four that had stopped by the side of the road to eat sandwiches off the tailgate of an old station wagon. Her blue eyes danced with delight. “It looks like so much fun. That’s what we can do for dinner! We can have a roadside picnic.”
“No way. I’ve got my heart set on Grannie Peg’s fine cuisine.”
