Her rosy lips pull up halfway. “Wow…I don’t know what to say.”
“You can start by accepting and finish by naming your salary. The job is yours if you want it.”
“Can I think about it? Let you know by the end of the week?”
“What’s there to think about?”
Her gaze falls to the side as she worries her lip.
“It’s Jeremiah.” Fucking Jeremiah. “He doesn’t want you working here anymore.”
“I’d never allow a man to dictate where I work.” Her hands cross at her heart. “It’s just that something about me working with you makes him uncomfortable, and I’m trying to figure out why that would be.”
“He’s insecure.”
“It’s more than that,” she says. “I spent the weekend asking myself some pretty tough questions. Didn’t come up with a single answer. I hardly recognize half the things my heart tells me to do anymore. Maybe I’ll go back home for a bit. Spend time with family. Take some freelance jobs I can do remotely.”
“Walking away isn’t going to solve your problems.” I speak from experience. “It tends to make them worse.”
“Thank you, Dr. Phil.” She playfully punches my arm. “I’ll take that into consideration.”
Once again, I’m back in the friend zone. She shut me down. The distance between us widens, but maybe it’s for the best. Getting attached to anyone right now is irresponsible.
“Did you get the nursery put together this weekend?” I’m almost relieved for the change in subject. “Or is she still sleeping in a bassinet in your room?”
I’m in survival mode. Cribs and butterfly nursery art are the least of my concerns. “Not yet.”
“What?” Odessa’s brows furrow. “Why not?”
“I’m a little preoccupied. Still getting a handle on this whole dad thing.”
“Do you want help? I planned my niece, Aubrey’s, nursery when my sister in law was on bed rest and my brother was in Afghanistan.”
“I was going to hire this company to handle it, but yeah, I guess so?” I scratch my temple. A second ago she was slapping me and now she’s planning Sadie’s room.
“Give me your credit card.” Her palm extends toward my face. “I’ll have everything shipped to your place. We can put it together later this week. Sadie needs a room of her own.”
My lips separate as I debate telling her I’m terrified of not hearing Sadie in the middle of the night. My place is huge. The walls are thick and soundproof. If she needs me, if she needs anything, I want to be right there.
“And don’t worry about not hearing her.” Odessa reads my mind. “That’s what video monitors are for. You’ll be able to see and hear everything from anywhere in your home.”
I stave off an amused grin before pulling my wallet out. I can’t believe I’m doing this.
“Here you go.”
Odessa disappears into her office, and I return to my desk to answer the ringing phone. My chest pounds for a second as I assume the worst. Something’s happened to Sadie. Eva’s out of the hospital. Nothing worse than scooping my broken little world up into my arms only to have it all fall apart again.
Dane’s number flashes across the caller ID.
“What’s going on?” I cradle my desk phone on my shoulder, simultaneously texting Elizabeth to check on Sadie before I get too busy and forget.
“It’s Uncle Leo.” Dane’s voice is flat. Blood whooshes in my ears and my mouth dries. I can’t swallow, and I can hardly breathe. I’ve never lost anyone I loved before, not through death.
Oh, God.
Last weekend, Dane texted me to let me know he’d gotten sick shortly after we left Utah. He was admitted to the hospital while I was still figuring everything out with Eva and the baby.
I should’ve called.
I should’ve fucking called.
“He’s in hospice.” Dane is a mastermind at hiding emotion in his voice, but I know deep down, he’s taking this harder than I am.
“He’s still alive?”
“Yeah, but the doctors say it’s going to be any day now. You need to come home.”
“Fuck.” I slink back in my chair. “He was fine two weeks ago?”
“That’s the problem with pancreatic cancer. They tend to find it when it’s too late. He’s stage four, Beck. The doctor’s say this is how it usually happens. They’re fine one day, sick the next. You don’t always get a warning sign.”
It’s not enough that the old bastard spent years battling lung cancer and coming out on top like a goddamn beast, but to have his legs knocked out from under him with this? He doesn’t deserve it.
“I’ll be on the first flight out tomorrow.”
“Hey, what do you think of this?” I glance up to find Odessa strutting toward me, her iPad in her hand with a picture of a round crib on the screen. “I wanted to get your permission before I order this. It isn’t cheap. And I wanted to know if you wanted white or espresso.”
Dane rattles off in my earpiece. I’m caught between two worlds: one where Odessa’s picking out baby furniture and the other where the man who made me who I am today is lying on his deathbed.
“Dane, I’ll call you back.” I hang up.
“I can come later if you want,” she says.
I can’t speak. I can only picture my uncle.
Odessa chuckles. “What’s wrong? You look like someone told you you’re going to be a father again.”
“Uncle Leo is in hospice.” I rise though I’m not sure why. I need to go somewhere. The jet should be in the New York hangar. I could call the flight service and book a pilot immediately. “Sadie.”
“What?”
“Who’s going to stay with Sadie? I have to go to Salt Lake City.”
“Can you bring her with you?”
“Do people do that? Do they travel with twelve day old babies?”
She shrugs. “I’m sure it happens all the time. You could always ask her doctor.”
Right. If I knew who that was.
I toss a pen across my desk and lean back.
“Take her with you. Bring the nanny. People do that all the time. You’re flying private. I assume you’ll be staying with Dane again. She won’t be exposed to too many germs. I’d do it.”
I wish I had her carefree attitude. Mine abandoned me the day that baby was placed in my arms. Now I care about everything, all the fucking time.
“I’ll come with you,” she offers. “If you’re busy with your uncle and the nanny needs a break, at least you know she’ll be with someone you trust. Assuming you trust me.”
Recalling Dr. Brentwood’s speech about friends and family, I blurt, “I trust you.”
“Okay. Let me run home and pack. Send a car for me, and I’ll meet the three of you there.”
Gone are the days of hopping onto a jet and flying anywhere in the world on a moment’s notice.
“Tell Elizabeth to pack for Sadie,” she reminds me as she turns to leave. “No offense, but you’re kind of new at this and the last thing we need is to show up in Salt Lake City with two bottles, three diapers, and one change of clothes.”
Her eyes widen and her posture lifts. She wears the look of a sexy, confident woman taking charge, and in this moment, she’s everything I need.
“I might be new at this, Dess, but I’m not a moron.”
I just called her Dess…
That came out of nowhere.
“No one said you were, Beck...” She points her finger at me, winking before disappearing behind her door.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
ODESSA
“I need a word with my brother,” Beckham says when we arrive at TEH headquarters. The flight was smooth and uneventful, and baby Sadie only cried once. We settled her in with Elizabeth at Golden Oak and headed to the office.
“Not a problem,” I say. “I’ll set my things in the spare office. Got some emails to return. That article from Charity Falls should be online today too.”
Beckham heads toward Dane’s office and I make a beeline for the ladies’ room to freshen up.