I shook her hand, although I was confused. I glanced at Faye, silently asking what is she doing here?
“This must be little Gretchen. It’s so wonderful to finally meet you properly,” Pauline said to the baby, then looked at me. “I came to see who was crying when she first got here, but Faye kicked all of us out pretty quick.” Back to Gretchen. “We’re going to have such a good time together!”
Okay… I was still missing something. I looked at Faye, hoping for an explanation.
“Pauline’s going to babysit Gretchen tonight,” she told me.
What? But I babysat Gretchen. Had I messed up somehow? Why would she need a sitter other than me?
Seeing the look on my face, Faye explained further. “I figured if someone else was looking after Gretchen, you and I could relax for once.”
Oh. I guessed that was okay.
Still, I felt a little funny as I handed Gretchen’s bag to Pauline. “She’s the world’s sweetest baby,” I told her. “Make sure she eats enough, because she doesn’t always cry when she’s hungry. If she starts fussing, that means she’s probably ready for her bottle. All her stuff is in here, I doubt you’ll need anything that isn’t there. And let me give you my number in case anything does come up.”
Pauline blinked at me, then laughed. “It’s all right. I already have Faye’s.”
I saw no other way to procrastinate on handing the baby over. I undid the sling and helped Pauline get it around her neck.
“I’ll see you later, Gretchen. Be good for Pauline.” I gave her a kiss on the forehead.
I felt a little empty as Faye and I walked out of the office. How could I be so jealous? I left Gretchen with Faye all the time. Usually at this hour, too.
But that was different. She was her caregiver, not to mention her aunt. Pauline was some stranger. Of course I was going to worry about her.
“She’ll be fine without us,” Faye said. She was walking awfully close to me, and she nudged me in the ribs as we approached the building exit.
Suddenly I remembered that I was alone with Faye for the night. “What were your plans, anyway?”
“I thought maybe we could get that drink I owe you.”
Right, she’d said she was going to buy me a drink. She was just sticking to her word. Nothing romantic about this.
We made small talk as we crossed the campus and entered King’s Tooth. Somehow I felt like there was something Faye wanted to say, something she was holding back.
You’re just trying to convince yourself there’s something to this that there isn’t. She already told you how she feels. She’s being nice, and that’s all.
Once we were sitting down with some beers, Faye asked about my day. I told her about my inability to focus, which seemed to make her unhappy. But she listened with evident pleasure when I told her about taking Gretchen to story hour.
“I never knew there was one,” she said. “How did you hear about it?”
My face heated up. “I did some googling about events for babies in the Rosebridge area. They have kid-friendly afternoon movies at the theater on Peach Street once a week, too.”
“Let me know if you want to go. I’ll pay your admission.”
“I’d pay.” I inched my chair closer to the table. “It’s not an issue, Faye. Every second I spend with Gretchen is a joy.”
Her lips twitched. “You miss her now, don’t you?”
“A ridiculous amount.”
We talked about Gretchen some more, then about my thesis, and then about poetry in general. Faye didn’t ask me to quote any more lines, thank fuck!
But by the time the bill came at the end, I got the feeling Faye was still keeping quiet about something.
Okay, fine, I’ll admit it. I thought—hoped—she hadn’t told me the real reason she’d invited me out.