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She laughs. I like the sound of it, and I’m pretty sure Hendrix does too. He looks up at her with his bright eyes, and he’s no longer crying.
“No, it’s not just something I know. I took a few classes when I thought I was going to wind up doing childcare in a place I was working. It didn’t pan out, but I did take what I learned in that class with me. I don’t know if the day’s going to come when I have kids of my own, but I figured I might as well learn what I can in the meantime,” she says.
“Pretty sure that’s just going to give you a head start when the day comes that you do have kids,” I tell her.
“IfI have kids,” she says. “I’m not sure where my life is going right now. But yeah, you’re right about that. I’m already finding use for the skills with Hendrix, so I guess the class wasn’t a waste of time even if I don’t wind up with any babies of my own.”
“I’m actually pretty relieved to know you have training like that. Some training anyway,” I tell her. “I’m not very excited about the fact that we have to take Hendrix along in the middle of a tour, because I want to make sure he’s being cared for, and I wasn’t at all sure we’d be able to find someone who was qualified to do it.”
“I’m glad to know I meet your expectations,” she tells me with a smile that’s hard for me to read. I’m not sure if she’s being sarcastic, or if it’s some sort of a jab toward me.
“Me too,” I tell her, choosing to go along as though the statement is genuine. “I don’t want just anyone taking care of him, so it’s nice to have someone we know already as his nanny, and on top of that it’s nice for me to know that you’ve taken classes on this very thing. I guess this worked out in more ways than one.”
“You could say that again,” Julian laughs. “Not what he meant, I’m sure.” He winks at Jeanette as he speaks, and she blushes.
“I’m just glad it’s comfortable enough in here that the four of us get the chance to bond with Hendrix together,” Terry cuts in. “I think with how long you’re going to be around, it’s a good idea for the four of us to get to know Hendrix as a unit so he feels comfortable with everyone.”
“Kid’s already got a crazy-ass family,” I laugh. “Might as well throw in a few more unique details here and there. It’s not like he’s in any danger of growing up normal at this point.”
Everyone laughs at this, and our driver gets back on the bus. It’s time to get back into our seats and hit the road, and I let Jeanette keep Hendrix. She’s gotten him to stop crying, so she might as well be the one to put him in his seat while we get going again.
It’s clear he likes her, and I’m glad he does.
Since she’s been back, there have been a lot of things running through my mind about her. Things I want to do to her.
And it’s going to happen. I just have to find the right moment.
But it’s coming.
TWELVE
JEANETTE
“Mags has Hendrix,” Terry announces when he comes back into the bus. “She wanted to hold him for a few minutes while I was going over some of the stops we have coming up, and he was doing so well with her, she asked if she could just keep him for a bit. I figured you might want the break, Jeanette, so I said she could.”
Mags is the band manager, and I’m glad she’s taking turns with Hendrix. It helps me a lot more than I’m letting on, but I don’t want the brothers to necessarily know how tired I am. Hendrix is just a little guy, but he is a lot of work. Since I take care of him most of the time, I’m realizing now just how much he needs in a day.
“That’s fine with me,” I say with a smile. “As long as he’s happy, I’m okay with her having him. Not to mention you’re right, I’m glad for the break.”
“I didn’t know parenthood was so tiring,” Terry says as he flops down on the couch.
“And to think, you only have to do it a fraction of the time. Imagine if you were a full-time parent,” Julian says.
“I don’t know how that’s much different. Hendrix is here all the time, and even though he’s over with Mags right now, I’m not sure I’ll be able to fully relax in case there’s some reason for me to go over and get him again,” he argues.
“He does have a point,” I agree. “It’s not like any of us are able to fully relax and assume someone else will take care of Hendrix. If he starts getting worked up, we all respond to it until one of us is able to calm him down.”
“Even knowing that you’re the nanny, it’s not like I’m going to just sit here and let you be the one to take care of him by yourself. It’s not like we hired you to adopt him for us. I want him to bond with us too,” Caleb says. “God knows the kid’s got enough to deal with having three identical dads. I’m sure the more all of us can spend time with him, the better he’s going to get used to that idea.”
“I do wonder what he makes of the three of you looking the same,” I laugh. “I’ve always figured it would be weird to be a baby if you had a parent with a twin, and you’re triplets.”
“Right? But then, with all of us here all the time, he’s probably assuming that it’s just life. Like, do babies know if there’s something weird in their life if they don’t know what’s normal and what’s weird?” Julian asks.
“That’s fair. But we already know there’s no chance of him growing up to be normal, so I’m sure most of the weird things we want him to get used to he’s not even going to consider weird. In fact, he’s probably going to grow up and wonder why there’s not two more of him running around here too,” Caleb says.
“I’m glad there’s not,” I say. “I have my hands full enough with just him, I can’t imagine trying to take care of three.”
“You did a fine job taking care of the three of us when we were in high school,” Terry tells me.
