AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’ll take care of them. Let me know if I can help somehow—aside from babysitting. Good luck,” Seth said and walked away.
“Okay,” Ava said to me as she pulled up a blank note page on her phone. “I’m hoping we can get what we need at the Country Market. Although, if you need me to, I can drive into Nashville.”
I sat Juniper’s tush on the table, holding her with both my hands around her middle, and tried to distract her with goofy faces and silly sounds. She stared at me with big eyes, curious enough to stop fussing for a few seconds.
“I bet you’re hungry,” I said to her in a cooing voice, then switched to my adult tone to tell Ava and Knox, “You’ll need formula, first and foremost. There wasn’t any information with her? Like what brand she takes? Whether she’s on solids?”
“None of that. Just her name and that she’s about five months old.” Knox didn’t take his eyes off Juniper’s back, as if he’d never seen a baby close-up.
“She’ll need diapers,” I said. “Are you wet right now, sweet pea?” I touched my nose to hers. “I’d be surprised if she wasn’t, so we’ll need those ASAP too. You’ll have to guess the size, but there should be some guidance on the package.”
As I racked my brain for other necessities they’d need short-term, Juniper lost interest in my goofy faces and remembered she wasn’t happy. She ramped up into a full-on cry, and as soon as I pulled her back against me, the stink emanating from her told me why.
“Uh-oh. How soon can you get diapers?” I asked.
Ava and Knox both shot me looks of horror.
“We’ll need to get this one off her as soon as we can,” I said. “Phew. Toxic. We don’t want her to get a rash.”
Ava pushed out from the table. “I’ll go now. Give me your number in case I have questions.”
I recited it, and she headed out in a hurry.
“Are you taking her to your house?” I asked Knox, who also stood.
“Uh, I guess I am.” He swallowed, looking panicked.
As he put the carrier on top of the table, I said, “Oh, you still have the base attached. That’s the part that stays belted into the car.”
“The base?” He looked at the carrier, then stuck both hands up in surrender. “I’m out of my element here. Is there any way I can convince you to come with me and help? I’m totally safe, not a serial killer. Ava will vouch for me. I’ll pay you double for whatever you miss out on by leaving your shift early. I’ll even bribe Seth to let you go if necessary.”
His desperation was impossible to miss.
I would’ve done it for free, but who was I to argue? The one thing I didn’t want was to be the one to ask Seth. “If you can convince Seth, I’d be happy to.”
“I’ll go track him down.”
“I’ll have her fastened in by the time you come back,” I told him.
Knox might be in a perpetual panic, but my Wednesday afternoon had taken a turn for the better. It had nothing to do with his gorgeous eyes and everything to do with his tiny, adorable “wrinkle.” This darling baby was too much to resist.
CHAPTER6
KNOX
Seth might’ve questioned my character last night, but any lingering doubts were apparently superseded today by approximately twenty pounds of baby. He’d readily agreed to let Quincy leave early to help me.
Thank fuck.
A half hour ago, I’d barely known who Quincy was. Now I didn’t have a goddamn clue what I’d do without her.
“This is home,” I said loudly, so Quincy could hear me over the crying in the back seat, as I pulled the SUV into my driveway.
“The Sanderson place,” she said, referring to the elderly woman I’d bought the house from.
“I just moved in. You’ll have to excuse the mess. I’ve got boxes everywhere.”
We both got out and shut our doors. I breathed in the fresh air and appreciated the momentary muffling of the crying. Quincy hadn’t been kidding when she said that bundle smelled toxic. The whole interior of my vehicle would need to be fumigated.
