Dread raced through her. “Can we get a sitter at such late notice?” She wasn’t ready for this.
“Yeah. Leddy’s down to do it.”
“But it might snow, and I have to wash my hair, and Evvie’s been asking me to take her ice skating.”
“And the dog needs a bath?”
She aimed a finger at him. “Yes. And that, too.”
He gave her a warm and compassionate smile.
“But IguessI can reschedule.”
“Good. Then, we’ll plan on leaving around ten, okay?” He hesitated in the doorway. The normally confident man seemed worried.
“You want to come in?” She patted the mattress. When he sat down, she said, “I thought you were all gung-ho about this, but now I’m wondering if you’re as worried as I am. Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“The same thing you are. No matter how great they are when we meet them, no matter what right things they say about taking care of the girls, we really don’t know what’ll happen after we drop them off.”
“No, we don’t. They might seem like the nicest people in the world, but we don’t see them when they’re angry or frustrated. We don’t know how they’re going to treat the girls. It’s scary. I mean, if you met my mom, you’d love her. You’d think she was the best, but I hated how she raised me.” The admission hung in the air between them. Oddly, she didn’t feel guilty. She’d needed to say it, and she knew she could trust Cole. She let out an awkward laugh. “Boy, it feels good to say that out loud.”
“What did you hate?”
“She didn’t line up the next gig when she knew her current job was ending. She got a thrill out of not knowing where we’d land next because she trusted the universe would deliver her a job.” It was like popping a cork. All the bubbles came flying out. “But no job meant we couldn’t pay rent or buy food. She had no savings. None. But she didn’t mind. Nope, she’d just spin the wheel and see which friend would take her in next. Nothing filled me with dread more than this particular smile she had when asking someone to feed us. ‘How about filling a couple of bellies for old times’ sake?’ Or ‘You got another steak for an old friend?’”
Interestingly, he didn’t cringe. He just…stayed intent. “Must’ve embarrassed the hell out of you.”
“It disgusted me. I became great at reading people’s expressions. If there was even a hint of exasperation or resentment, I would refuse to go. Which forced her to come up with a plan B since she wouldn’t go without me. I can’t tell you how many nights I spent in a sleeping bag on someone’s floor. And the thing is, people don’t mind letting you crash for a night or two, but after that, they want their space back. And sometimes, they were so over it they just pretended we weren’t there. I think it was a passive-aggressive way to get my mom to move on already. But did she get the hint? Nope. She was oblivious.” Such awful memories. “The things I heard at night…”
“What does that mean?”
“It’s just like, they could be on their best behavior for a day or two because a kid was in the house. After that, they’d go back to getting high or drunk or having very adult conversations. I’d overhear breakup calls and sex behind closed doors. But honestly, you can forget all that. Hands down, the worst thing for me was the hunger. I never want to see another can of beans as long as I live. I hated that my mom let me go without food. I hated that she pretended it was some great adventure. It wasn’t. It was cruel. And that’s why it’s so important for me to earn a living, pay my own rent, and buy my own food.”
“I get it.” He sifted his fingers through her hair. “I’m so damn sorry she put you through that.”
She found his touch so soothing she closed her hand around his wrist so he wouldn’t ever stop. But she’d talked enough about herself. Given his A-list dad, her indigent childhood was nothing he could relate to. “What about your dad?”
“My dad’s the best.” He gave a boyish grin that was lightyears away from the expression she’d seen during a face-off on the ice. “We’re tight.”
“But?” She said it in a teasing tone.
He nodded.That’s fair.“I don’t have a lot of complaints about him.”
“Even though he wasn’t around a lot?”
“You know, I always understood that my dad was important. And I don’t mean because he’s a famous actor. It’s the way people look at him. Everyone lights up. They genuinely like my dad. He’s never caught in a scandal because he leads a clean life. He’s respectful to everyone, and this thing he does? This movie franchise? It employs a shit ton of people and makes audiences around the world happy.”
“But what about you?” It made her heart hurt to think he justified his father’s absence by saying he madeotherpeople happy. Who made Cole happy? “Didn’t it suck to not have a parent around?”
“It did, but keep in mind, he was always in touch with me. He called or texted every day… He came home every chance he could, even if it was only for a weekend.”
It seemed he’d just accepted that he wasn’t worth more from a parent thanstaying in touch. “Do you mind if I ask about your mom? I’ve never heard anyone mention her.”
“There’s nothing to say, really. They met in a pub during the filming of the first movie. They had one night together, and he never saw her again.”
“Uh, I think you’re missing a few steps there. If he never saw her again, how did you wind up in his care?”
He grinned. “Oh, that little detail? She was a local girl, married. She was just having fun with the American actor…”