Beth swallowed uncomfortably. Her pursed lips and furrowed brow made her look far more hesitant about her next words than she had been about Genni. That right there tightened Will’s stomach into a knot. “Will, do you know…is she in the state?”
“What do you meaninthe state?” Will’s body tensed. She’d better not be leaving her eleven-year-old brother alone.
“I’m starting to get the idea that Andy is playing a game to avoid babysitters. I don’t think she’s here as much as Andy lets us believe.” She sat back in the chair, her arms crossed over her chest as she pulled her lips into a tight line.
Will blinked. Andy might have an attitude about some things, but the kid love swimming and had so much natural talent that Will had always given him a bit more attention than the other kids. Could he have missed something that big?
Shit. Maybe so.
“If he needs a place to stay, Steve has an empty bunk in his room,” Beth volunteered. “What’s one more?”
As convincing as the question was, his sister had four kids,plusshe watched three more during the day. Seven was more than enough. She didn’t need another, especially one who had a completely different schedule from the others. Swimming was a beast.
“I’ll let you know what’s going on,” Will assured her.
“You need help with the brisket, Beth?” Morgan asked as she came back into the kitchen.
“I’ll string it,” Will offered quickly, because if there was one Evans man who knew his way around the kitchen, it was him. And if there was a woman who could ruin a meal, it was his sister-in-law.
But as Will cut the meat, thoughts swirled around his head; Andy going at the queso, the lack of a babysitter multiple times, his weight loss. How often was Andy alone?
CHAPTER3
“I understandhe’s been difficult but—”
“Ms. Gomez, let me be frank. Even if he wasn’t, as you say,difficult, we don’t have anyone available to start with him until the new year.” The woman’s tone was sharp. “I can put you on a list, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.”
Aly sighed. “Okay, thanks anyway.”
After two days and phone calls to six services, she’d gone back to the current service and begged, but she was still no closer to finding someone to watch her brother. She tried Andy again, but the call went straight to voice mail, as it had been doing since his teacher had called to tell her he hadn’t turned in his project on the states. And now he was at swim practice anyway.
Thetap, tap, tapon the door had her looking up.
“Sweet cheeks, sorry, but Logan’s losing his patience.” Garry Nolan, the director of the home improvement show, stood in the doorway to what would become a little girl’s bedroom, where Aly had come for privacy so she could try to find someone for Andy. “Get everything worked out with your brother?”
This was her fourth season on the of reality-esque show that aired on the Home Improvement Network on Tuesday nights. Although she was considered Logan Atwood’s assistant, she did most of the designs for the remodels, as well as some hands-on work. She liked that he did most of the social media and publicity and left the design to her. She had no interest in fame, but the show had shown her that she had a passion for design.
Garry tried to be as accommodating as he could for Aly and her situation with Andy, but when the show’s star threw one of his regular temper tantrums, everyone had to adjust. Nodding, she stood and put her phone in the pocket of her leggings.
“Hit makeup before you go into the master bath. Logan wants the mosaic done today.”
She nodded again. Of course he did. But custom mosaic tile work wasn’t something that could be completed in an hour or two. Especially when she had to factor in hair and makeup, lighting, camera angles, and reshoots. To viewers, it would look like the mosaic took minutes, but reality was different.
Reality wasalwaysdifferent.
“This one is turning out to be one of your best. The blend of the golds and pinks? It’s gorgeous.” Garry smiled.
“The tiny pieces are taking way longer than I planned though.”
She’d discovered her knack for tile work on accident, but it had been a happy one. Art had always been her passion, and after she completed a project during her junior year of high school, she fell headfirst into tile and glass work. Putting a room together and planning it around one piece was fun. And she had recently started working with some of the show’s carpentry staff on wood projects. As much as she hated theshowportion of her job, the actual work fit her perfectly.
The place was crazy, as always. From what their audience witnessed, the set seemed like a calm, empty place to work, but the reality was that there were always at least fifty people around. At any given moment, there were multiple teams working on the house, the crew filming the current shot, and the staff setting up the next one.
“Excuse me,” she said as she headed down the stairs, squeezing between two cameramen and a woman holding a light.
Aly walked into the quiet makeup room, which had been set up in what would be the dining room. The picture framing she’d designed looked amazing with the old textured ceiling and the off-white molding that stood in contrast against the maroon walls. It was hard not to smile when she took in how perfectly things were coming together. She could picture how the hutch and solid wood table would complement each aspect of the newly redecorated space.
As long as the crew took care of the house.