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Presley’s room was a mess, the bed unmade and clothes strewn everywhere. There were two piles of laundry, one that looked like hers and the other Jeremy’s, folded neatly on the dresser, but beyond that her room looked like the space of someone who was busy. And tired.
I made sure she was warm and comfortable in bed and then quietly began gathering up the clothes from the floor. There was a hamper in the hallway, so I put them all in there, even though I wasn’t sure they were all dirty. I picked up a couple of empty baby bottles and carried them downstairs to the kitchen before joining Denise in the living room.
“Thanks again,” I told her. “I’m happy to pay you for your time.”
She looked affronted. “Absolutely not. Meg and I have been friends for decades. This is the least I can do. I think I’ll go over to the hospital to sit with her if the two of you are staying home.”
“For a few hours at least. Presley hasn’t been sleeping much so I’m trying to help out where I can.”
“That’s good. Presley takes on too much sometimes.” She paused at the door, looking over her shoulder. “Don’t hurt her, Mr. Zerkesian. She’s a good girl. And she’s had enough heartache in her life.”
I nodded solemnly. “No plans to hurt her. You have my word.”
She smiled. “Let me know if you need anything. I’m happy to watch Jeremy anytime while Meg is in the hospital.”
“Thank you. We will.” She closed the door behind her, and I pulled Jeremy out of the bouncy seat where he was happily gnawing on some kind of teething ring thing. It was early for teeth, according to the book I was reading about babies, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t play with it.
With Jeremy distracted and happy in his highchair, I loaded the dishwasher. I wiped down the counters and made a couple of bottles, so we’d have them in case we had to leave for hospital without much warning. The fridge still seemed well-stocked, and I figured I’d make us omelets or something once she woke up. I was too wound up to sit still, and desperate for something to do, I poked around until I found a notebook and a pen.
Then I sat down and, with my son bouncing on my lap, started to write.
* * *
Presley slept through the afternoon, and I finally went to wake her around five. She needed to rest, but she’d fallen asleep around two, and if I let her sleep much longer, she’d probably be up at midnight. Meg’s surgery wasn’t until tomorrow, so we had nothing to do tonight but relax. I was going to try my best not to let her go back to the hospital until morning. Meg was being well cared for and Denise was still with her, so she wasn’t alone.
This would also give me time to be alone with Presley. Not that I planned to seduce her—not yet anyway—but it was beyond time for us to talk. Spend time together that wasn’t rushed or solely focused on the baby. We needed to find out who we were again, even though part of me already knew. There was something about her. That was why I’d never forgotten her. My gut told me we would have found our way back to each other somehow, even without Jeremy.
“What time is it?” she murmured as I perched on the edge of her bed with the baby on my lap.
“Almost five-thirty,” I said.
“Oh. Wow.” She turned over and blinked, reaching for her glasses. “How’s Aunt Meg?”
“Denise is with her and said she’s resting. They spent the afternoon watching soaps. Surgery is at eight in the morning. Denise will come over around seven and we can head to the hospital.”
“You’ve been on top of things,” she murmured, sitting up and reaching out to press a kiss on Jeremy’s head. “Did he nap?”
“Yup. Two hours.”
“He’s probably hungry.”
“Not yet.” I smiled. “Why don’t you freshen up or whatever you need to do and let’s figure out food. How do you feel about breakfast for dinner, even though we had breakfast for lunch?”
“My favorite.” She smiled up at me. “I could eat it all day, every day.”
“Then let’s do it. Do you have a preference of ingredients in your omelet?”
“Anything but broccoli.”
I chuckled. “Bacon, cheese, and onions?”
“Perfect. I’ve got to go to the bathroom, and I’ll be right down.”
“Okay.” I left her alone and went down to the kitchen.
It had been a while since I’d cooked, but I enjoyed puttering in the kitchen on the rare occasions I had the chance to. On the road there were no opportunities, and at home my mother always took over, but I did get in there at breakfast sometimes. Hence my suggestion of breakfast for dinner. I genuinely enjoyed breakfast food, but it was about all I knew how to make. I could grill a mean steak, but we hadn’t defrosted anything, and I wanted to keep things simple. I had no idea when or if I’d have another chance to hang out with Presley like this, so I didn’t want to spend the whole time cooking and cleaning.
“Bum bum bum!” Jeremy pounded his little fists onto the table of his highchair after I strapped him in.
