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“I know, Mom. And I’m sorry,” he said. “Getting this business up and running has taken all my time.” Guilt washed over him. Yes, he was busy, but not so busy he had to neglect his family. His last visit had been right after quitting the police department, seven months ago.
“Sounds like you need a vacation.”
He chuckled. “Probably, but not yet. I promise I’ll come up soon. Give my love to everyone.”
His family was fun but took a lot of energy. As the only Walsh child not married, he was often forced into blind dates and unwanted setups whenever he visited. He was also the only one to leave White Sulphur Springs, the small town in West Virginia where he’d been born and raised. So, when he did come home, it was a big production.
At eighteen, he’d been chomping at the bit to ditch the sleepy town. College seemed like his ticket out, but after two years, he decided that wasn’t for him either. A buddy showed him an advertisement for the New Bern Police Department, and the rest, as they say, was history. He finished up his AA while working as a police officer and then got his bachelor’s degree in business a few years after that.
Business was his plan for after retiring from the police department. But after The Incident, the allure of police work vanished. Adrift, and having lost his edge, Noah quit the department and started Walsh Security Consulting.
Noah returned the other calls and worked on scheduling before heading to lunch. He’d blocked off the rest of the day to work on a presentation for a consulting job he was vying for. Securing the job would mean a good chunk of change for the business, but it would also be a way to expand his repertoire of services offered.
“Need anything before I take off?” Janet said, poking her head into his office.
“It’s five o’clock already?” He glanced at the clock. “Where did the afternoon go?”
“Guess that means no hot date tonight. You know, I could set you up with—”
He held up a hand, stopping her midsentence. “We’ve had this conversation, and my stance hasn’t changed.”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said, waving and mumbling something about him needing a woman on her way out.
He sighed. Women were off his radar for now. Janet knew that. He packed up his stuff, turned off his computer, and drove home. To an empty house. He ate dinner for one, watched a movie by himself, and went to bed alone.
Alone was how he did most everything nowadays. After working a job that required a partner and having a live-in girlfriend, adjusting to living solo had taken some getting used to. But alone, he couldn’t get hurt and couldn’t hurt anyone. It was better this way. For everyone.
CHAPTER THREE
The next Sunday, Daisy once again found herself embraced by the chaos that was her family. She and her sisters had shown up early to lounge by the pool. They considered it “resting up” before helping their mom with dinner. Kate and Lucy fanned themselves at a table in the shade while Daisy, Lizzie, and Emma sprawled in chaise lounge chairs soaking up the sun.
“Note to self,” Lucy said. “Do not get pregnant in the winter again. It’s too bloody hot to be sweating for two all summer.”
“How many more days?” Emma asked, wistfully rubbing her own six-month belly.
“Twenty-nine,” Lucy said. “Not that I’m counting.”
“That’s just the due date,” Kate said. “Could be early. Or late.”
Nana made an entrance and sat with Kate and Lucy. Today her shirt read, “Step aside coffee. This is a job for alcohol.”
“Love the shirt, Nana,” Lizzie said. As a bartender, she appreciated liquor humor.
“I thought you might,” Nana said, sidling up to Kate. “Great-grandma reporting for duty. You want me to take that little one off your hands?”
“Sure, Nana,” Kate said. “That would be great.”
Kate kissed Abby on the head and handed her over.
“It’s too hot out here for her,” Nana cooed. “I’ll take her inside.”
Kate was already moving to a spot in the sun. “Scooch your chair, Daisy. I need some vitamin D.”
“You just wanna sit with the cool kids.” Daisy shifted her lounger to accommodate Kate’s. “I can’t believe how fast you lost that baby weight,” she said. “You look freakin’ fantastic.”
“Thank you, Daisy,” Kate said. “That might be the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
“You’re one to talk, Daisy,” Emma said. “You and those legs! I’d kill for a set of stems like those.”
