Her little lip was trembling and if I knew them better, I would have pulled her in my arms and swore to her she had nothing to worry about.
And when she said what she did next, my heart melted. “I’m scared.”
“No need to be scared, Buttercup, you got this. You’re going to kick as… butt. You’re going to kick cancer’s butt.”
She inhaled a breath, and with a nod of her head, she smiled brightly. “Right.”
“Damn straight. You want to help me?” I nodded down at the bike.
“Yeah, what can I do?” She had a giddiness in her tone.
“Can you grab a four-millimeter socket for me?” I nodded over at the small toolbox I had at that back wheel.
“Yep.” Grinning when she handed me the right socket, I said, “You’re right handy. Want to be my apprentice?”
“Yeah, totally. Can I have a leather vest like yours?” Her eyes were lit up with excitement.
Chuckling, I said, “Can’t do that unfortunately Buttercup, these are for members and property vests for ole’ ladies only. But I can get you a t-shirt and stuff.”
“Yeah? That’ll be cool.”
For the next half an hour, Collins helped me with the bike. That was when Conleigh walked over and asked, “Gage, you want to eat dinner with us?”
“You have to. Mommy makes the best tamales.” Collins nodded expertly, and I guessed in the mind of a five-or six-year-old, she hadn’t had the best of anything yet.
“Tamales? Been a while since I had them.” Just then, my stomach started growling.
“You won’t be disappointed.” Collins grinned.
“Yeah, okay, sounds damn good.” Conleigh held her hand out for Collins as I watched them walk out of my yard and into their house.
After I took a shower and dressed, I walked over to their house. Knocking on their front door, I opened it when I heard Conleigh say, “It’s open.”
Walking into their house, I never wanted to leave. The smell of fall permeated the air with apple cinnamon. I’ve never walked into a home other than my parents’ house and felt at home immediately. “Smells great in here.”
“Thanks, it’s about ready,” she called over her shoulder. Seeing her in leggings and a flannel button-up, something about the way she wore it, really did something for me.
She didn’t need tight dresses and miniskirts. She was fucking beautiful without it. Clearing my throat while trying to hide how I was feeling, I asked, “Need any help?”
“Thank you, Gage, but I’ve got it.” That smile, I wanted to take a picture of it and memorize every detail, however, I wasn’t a creeper. Yet.
Standing there in her kitchen, I took everything in. Her little house was cute as fuck. She had a small kitchen and a small dining table. However, the space didn’t feel small. That was all thanks to the decorating that she had done.
The walls were painted a soft gray with white and light brown accents.
Turning away from her, when I spotted Collins, I walked into the living room. “Hey Buttercup, what are you doing?”
She smiled up at me. “Coloring.”
“Yeah? Got another page so I can color.” It was out of my mouth before I could stop it and to tell you the truth, it didn’t scare me.
She smiled as she nodded enthusiastically, then opened a drawer in the coffee table that was full of coloring books.
Grinning while she found me one to color, I took in the living room. They had a long dark chaise gray couch. A white coffee table with two white end tables with these cool-looking lamps on them that twisted up from the base. They had a white tv stand with a built-in fireplace. Since we were in the northern part of Tennessee, I knew this came in handy during the colder months.
A picture in black and gray of Conleigh and I’m assuming Collins hung above the television. It had to be from her newborn photos. How did I know that? Lil and June had similar photos hanging up in their homes.
So, there I sat, coloring a dog picture right beside her when Conleigh said, “Everything’s ready. Let’s eat.”