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“You’re a man now.” She smiles proudly. “And I see you made a friend on the plane already.” Raising her brow, she waits for me to respond.
“Californians are very welcoming.”
The timing is impeccable. Ivana, the stewardess from the flight, walks past and stops just shy of where Charlie stands.
“I’m staying at this hotel, call me.” She slides the paper into the breast pocket of my shirt. Charlie frowns, shaking her head back and forth.
“Let’s go, Noah. We have some rules we need to set in place if you’re staying with us.”
I let out a groan, a gesture that Charlie’s daughter notices.
“Uncle Noah, you won’t get bored at my house. We have a ton of things to do! Maybe your girlfriends can come visit, too?”
Leaning over to Charlie, I whisper, “What’s the name of this daughter?”
“Amelia,” she reprimands with an annoyed look. “She’s the oldest.”
“Right,” I respond, smiling at Amelia. “Uncle Noah isn’t used to being around kids, so you have to be patient. Do you know what that means?”
“Well, duh,” she responds with a bored look on her face. “I am in kindergarten. Daddy says that men like you only have women friends, not boyfriends. Unless of course, you’re like my Uncle Eric. He has boyfriends, he is gay.”
I stop mid-step. “Uh… kid, should you know that at five?”
“Daddy also says that for a five-year-old I’m super smart and one day I’ll run his company. He also says that if I’m the boss, I can make everyone wear capes to work.”
“That’s a pretty awesome idea,” I tell her. “How about if you become the boss, I’ll come work for you. I’d like to wear a cape to work every day, too.”
“Deal.” She smiles, happily skipping beside me.
Charlie directs us to the baggage claim area. Along with the hoard of people, I wait until my suitcases move toward us. The rest of my stuff is on a truck headed here. I didn’t know what I’d need to survive living with Charlie and her family. A move in my life I’d never expected to make.
On the car ride to Charlie’s house, Amelia falls asleep, giving us time to chat.
“Your mom told me about what happened back home.”
“My mom has a big mouth,” I tell her, staring out the window.
“You okay? It can’t be easy to lose your friends like that. Especially the ones who were like brothers to you.”
Putting on a brave face, I follow with a smile. “I’m fine. I’m ready for new things anyway.”
“Good.” She hesitates, turning her blinker on and driving up the ramp to another freeway. “You have Lex. He’s going to enjoy having you around. Being in a house with all girls and working himself crazy, he doesn’t get much chance to bond with other guys.”
“Is he into sports, specifically basketball?”
“Uh… yes.” She laughs. “He has courtside seats to all the Lakers games.”
“Sweet. Maybe living out here ain’t gonna be so bad,” I mumble to myself.
And just for a moment, when things look bleak, the promise of courtside tickets perks me right up.
And then, I remember my golden tickets—the one sitting in the pocket of my pants and the one sitting in the pocket of my shirt.
To fresh starts, a new career, and Californian babes.
Life is starting to look sweet—again.
Chapter Three
