Next Door Secrets (Secrets Series Book 2) (10 page)

Lina
put down the copper watering can. “You mean today or
always?”

“Every day.”

“Why?” Her full
attention was on Beth now.

Beth hesitated.
“It’s so I can be there when the neighbor girl gets home from school.”

“Is she your niece
or something?”

“No.” Now that she
said it out loud, it did seem weird. She was risking her boss’ good graces for
someone she hadn’t even known last month. The tears in
Kaylee’s
eyes as she told about the babysitter calling her fat flashed in Beth’s mind.
Beth had to save her. She couldn’t explain it, but she felt some kind of
connection with the girl. “It won’t affect my work output, I promise. I know
other departments have flex time.”

“Flex time is for
parents.” Shaking her head,
Lina
sat down in her
cushy office chair. “You get paid for your lunch hour, so you can’t skip it and
leave early.”

“Oh.” Since
Lina
gestured for her to sit, Beth took a chair across from
her. She needed two extra hours. “What if I came into work two hours early?”
God, she would hate that alarm clock every morning.

Taking a breath,
Lina
steepled
her fingers. She
definitely had all the mannerisms of a boss figured out.
Would
she still choose this place over a baby when she was thirty-five?
Beth
didn’t think so. It was easy in your early twenties to think all you needed to
be happy was a car that didn’t break down all the time and girlfriends to call
when you wanted to go out. After living with a narcissistic college roommate
for four years, Beth had found it refreshing to live by herself in her twenties.
But a lot could change in ten years. Now she cared more about a child than she
did about kowtowing to her supervisor.

Lina’s
metallic bracelets rattled as she crossed her arms.
“What about the weekly staff meetings? Those start at three o’clock.”

“I can stay on
those days.”
Kaylee
would just have to be alone for an
hour. That was better than the way things had been. “It would mean a lot to
me.” Remembering the way
Kaylee
drew out the word “
Pleeeease
,” made Beth smile. If
Kaylee
were here pleading her case,
Lina
definitely wouldn’t
be able to say no.

“Let me double-check
with HR, but I suppose that would work.” She held her palm out flat as if to
calm Beth’s enthusiasm. “Assuming you’d stay late for staff meetings and any
other time a project demanded it.”

Rising, Beth
bobbed her head. “Of course. I could take work home, too. Whatever it takes.”

“This little girl
must really mean a lot to you.”

“She does.”

# #
#

An e-mail from Ivy
labeled “Baby’s 1
^st
Outing” appeared in Parker’s inbox. He hesitated
before he clicked on it to see a picture of a baby boy dressed in a sailor suit
including a little white hat. He had dark eyes, wisps of blond hair and a mouth
that looked like an “O.” Ivy had written “Isn’t he cute? Any time you want to
babysit, let me know.” He deleted it.

He went to his
office and lost track of time until his secretary said she was leaving for the
day. His head popped up from his sales reports. “Wow. It’s quitting time
already?”

Tina wagged a
finger at him. “Yes, including you.”

“I just have a few
more things to go over.”

“You say that
every night and then you stay here forever.” She gave him a playful scowl with
her delicate features.

“I know.” He
shrugged. “Good night.”

“Good night. Don’t
forget to spend some time with the girl
who’s
job
shadowing you.”

Man, he’d
completely forgotten about Hannah. His memory wasn’t what it should be any
more. He’d offered to take her sightseeing in Chicago today, but she’d wanted
to come to Mall Land headquarters again. As soon as she’d spotted the interns
in the break room that morning, she’d waved at him and headed toward her circle
of
new found
friends. Now he rose and headed toward
the interns’ cubicles. As he approached, he heard their laughter crescendo. He
caught Elaine’s eye first.

She put down her
pen and pushed a corkscrew curl out of her face. “We were just heading out for
dinner, would you like to join us?”

Larry, whose
moustache still hadn’t completely grown in, gave her a sideways glance. It was
obvious he didn’t want the boss along.

Parker had no
interest in crashing their dinner anyway. “No, thanks. Hannah, are you ready?”

It was Hannah’s
turn to give a quick glance to Larry. “Actually I was hoping I could go to
dinner with these guys.”

For the first time
in days, his daughter had a smile on her face. How could he say no?

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

By the time
Bethany arrived home, she’d caught her second wind and was excited to see
Kaylee
, dressed in a turquoise shirt and pants, getting off
the school bus. Hannah would be with Parker for a few more hours and then
they’d all meet up for dinner. Tomorrow her daughter would fly back to Texas
and Beth was already starting to miss her. Thank goodness she had
Kaylee
to keep her occupied.

Beth waved,
then
waited for the little girl so they could walk into her
apartment together.

Kaylee
dropped her backpack in the foyer. “What do you have
for snacks?”

“Um, apples or
yogurt.” Why hadn’t she anticipated this question? She’d been too busy brainstorming
ways they could get in some exercise despite
Kaylee’s
broken arm. So far, walking or riding a stationary bike at the Y was all she
could come up with.

“
Awww
. I don’t like fruit or yogurt.”
Kaylee
went into the tiny kitchen and opened the pantry as if she lived there. It probably
felt as if she did since the
lay-outs
of the
apartments were so similar. “You don’t have anything good. I’m going home to
get some cookies. Then what are we
gonna
do?”

“I thought we’d go
for a walk.”

“My dad doesn’t
want me to leave the apartment complex.”

Beth crossed her
arms. “Really? I thought I told him we’d go for a walk.”

Kaylee
shook her head. “Nope. I’m not allowed to leave.
Soon as I get my snack, I want to watch more Voyager.” She left and Beth could
hear the door slam shut next door.

Day one and her
mission to get
Kaylee
in shape
was
derailed. Eating cookies in front of the TV wasn’t a good idea for either of
them. She picked up her cell phone and dialed Jim’s number.

On the third ring,
he answered. “Who is this?” It sounded so accusatory that Beth forgot what she
was going to say.

She swallowed.
“Um, is this Jim Stein?”

“How’d you get
this number?”

“It’s Bethany from
next door.” She waited for him to exhale before she continued. “I thought it
would be nice for
Kaylee
and me to go for a walk
around the neighborhood, but she said she’s not allowed. I wanted to check with
you.”

“As long as she’s
with you, I don’t mind.”

“OK. Good to know.
See you later.” She hustled to her bedroom to change out of her pantsuit into
something more comfortable.

Just then
Kaylee
returned with a package of Oreos under her good arm.
“Got any milk?” She smiled and her blue eyes twinkled as if access to sugar had
cheered her up.

Beth pulled down a
small glass with a brim wide enough for dipping, the same glass in which she
used to dunk her cookies. As
Kaylee
picked up her
glass and stuck the bag of cookies under her chin, Beth decided a trip to the
living room couch wasn’t a good idea. “Hey, why don’t you eat in here at the island?
I called your dad and he said he’s OK for us to go for a walk afterwards.”

Putting down the
cup and cookies,
Kaylee
climbed on the barstool. It
was obvious she was still figuring out how to maneuver with only one arm. “Where
are we going?”

“Nowhere in
particular. Just around. We need to burn off these cookies.” She reached in and
took one. After she bit, she savored the way the wafer dissolved on her tongue.
It’d probably been a year since she’d indulged in an Oreo. She picked up the
package and read the calorie content on the label. A serving size was only
three cookies.

“But what’s the
point of walking if you’re not going anywhere? I’d rather stay here.”

Growing
frustrated, Beth reminded herself not to eat while distracted. “I guess it
depends on how much energy we have, but we could walk to my parents’ church. My
mom teaches English to immigrants in the afternoons and she’d be glad to meet
you.”

Kaylee
chewed her cookie with her mouth open. “How far away
is that?”

“You’re not eating
seafood, so don’t talk with your mouth full.”

“Huh?”

Beth took a bite,
then
opened her mouth. “I don’t want to
see
your
food. Get it? Seafood? See food?” They both giggled. “OK. Let’s go.” As Beth
grabbed the package and closed it up,
Kaylee
let out
a whine. Beth ignored her protests and hid the cookies in the high cabinet
above the fridge. “Do you have gym shoes on?” Her gaze fell to
Kaylee’s
feet, which were wearing pink athletic shoes.
“Perfect.”

Once outside, a
gentle breeze and birds singing greeted them.
Kaylee
started talking about her day at school, how she’d aced her math test and got
another kid to sign her cast. Her chatter segued seamlessly from academics to
the Rescue Princesses book she was reading to how great it was to sit out of
gym class. The blocks flew by and soon Beth could see the cross on top of the
limestone church.

“There it is.” Pointing
at it, Beth felt a mixture of warmth and guilt. Her mother accepted her, flaws
and all, while her father, the minister, disapproved of her choices. He’d been mortified
to find out she’d placed a baby for adoption her freshman year of college and
he’d been furious when she’d moved in with her last boyfriend. In hindsight,
Beth realized she’d made plenty of mistakes, but she didn’t want to beat
herself up over them. Her fists clenched in anticipation of bumping into her father.

Breathing in the
sweet scent of the lilac bushes that lined the sidewalk, she relaxed a little.
They walked up the stairs and in through the big double doors. In the chapel,
the organist practiced “In the Garden” for Sunday’s service.

Mouthing the words
to the refrain, Beth led
Kaylee
down the stairs to
the basement where voices speaking Spanish, Burmese and English mixed together.
She walked into the classroom and spotted her mom working one-on-one with a
Mexican woman whose daughter tugged on her elbow. The child looked about five
or six and seemed determined to get her mother’s attention.

Beth looked around
the room for some toys and spotted a plastic ball. Crouching down, she
whispered into
Kaylee’s
ear. “Why don’t see if that
little girl wants to play catch?”

Suddenly shy,
Kaylee
shook her head, so Beth picked up the ball and
rolled it to the girl. The green sphere bumped her leg and she looked
quizzically at it. When she saw Beth smiling at her, she picked it up and
tossed it back to her. Her aim was off and it went into the corner. Apparently
feeling braver,
Kaylee
chased after the ball and sent
it back to the girl. After Beth stepped aside, the children rolled and tossed
the ball back and forth about twenty times. Somehow, without the luxury of a
shared language, they transitioned seamlessly from playing catch to playing
with
Barbies
.
 

Fifteen minutes
later, Beth’s mom handed her student a business card. “Tell your cousin to ask
for me when he stops by the Legal Aid office.”

Smiling, the woman
stuck the card in her large purse. “Gracias.” She visually checked on her
daughter, who seemed to be having fun, then walked over to some other women and
started a conversation in Spanish.

Beth waited for
her mom to approach and gave her a quick hug. “Is her cousin in trouble?”

“A dispute with
his landlord. I suspect once the tenant explains that he knows his rights,
everything will be resolved.” Her silver bob shimmered as she nodded toward
Kaylee
. “Who’s this?”

“She’s my neighbor.
I’m going to start babysitting her after work.”

Her mom’s brow
furrowed. “Do you need money?”

“No. I’m doing it
because I want to. Her dad has to work all the time and I worry about her. She
broke her arm riding her bike right outside my window and I had to take her to
the ER.”

Her mom covered
her mouth with an age-spotted hand. “Oh dear.”

“Anyway, I thought
it would be good if we tried to get a little fresh air.” Beth decided not to
mention her concerns about
Kaylee’s
weight. Anyone
could see the poor girl needed more exercise. Plus, her mom had a naturally
fast metabolism, so she wouldn’t understand. “She wanted to walk somewhere, so
I thought we’d come here. I’m glad to see it looks like she’s already made a
friend.” She lowered her voice. “I don’t think she has many.”

After they visited
a while, her mom said she needed to get home to make dinner. “Want to come
over?”

Not wanting to see
her judgmental father, Beth shook her head. Since she didn’t want to hurt her
mother’s feelings, she was glad to have an excuse; it was Hannah’s last night
in town. “I have plans already, but thanks.” She pointed at
Kaylee
.
“Do you mind if I bring her by again tomorrow?”

“Not at all. If
she can play with the kids while their parents study, that would be great.” Her
mom waved her hands toward the door to round up the lingering families. “I’m
afraid it’s time to go.
Vamanos
.”

The Hispanic girl
reached around and gave
Kaylee
a tight squeeze. A
smile spread wide across
Kaylee’s
face and Beth felt
the vicarious joy that a mother must feel when her child experiences happiness.

Twenty minutes
later, the two of them made it back to Beth’s apartment just in time to answer
her ringing phone. “Hello?”

“It’s Parker. I
wanted to let you know that Hannah has finally stopped moping around.”

“Good. I’ll be
there as soon as
Kaylee’s
dad picks her up.” She
looked to see what the girl was doing and found her digging in the pantry.
Covering the phone, she whispered, “Don’t eat anything. You’ll spoil your
dinner.”

Parker seemed
unaware of her distraction. “Actually Hannah went out to dinner with the
college interns from the office and I’ve got a lot of work to do so there’s no
point in your coming over.”

She pictured him
sitting alone in his office reading proposals and stock reports with his feet
propped up. Someone knocked on her door and she saw
Kaylee
rush to answer it. Beth followed her and wasn’t surprised to see Jim on her stoop.
Waving him in, she tried to quickly wrap up her conversation with Parker. “Hey,
I’ve
gotta
go, but I
wanna
see
you tonight.”

“I have tons of
stuff to do.”

“You work too
hard. I’ll meet you at your place in fifteen minutes.” She was tempted to hang
up before he could respond, but she waited for him to confirm, then
disconnected the line. Her gaze moved to Jim’s face. “Sorry about that.”

He stuck one hand
in his jeans pocket and the other on
Kaylee’s
shoulder. “Any man who’d cancel on you is a fool.”

Her face warmed at
the realization that he’d heard her conversation. “Just a change of plans. No
big deal.”

“Was
Kaylee
a good listener today?” He tousled his daughter’s dark
hair.

“She was great. We
walked to the First Church and
Kaylee
made a friend.”

His thick eyebrows
lowered. “You took her to church?”

Raising her hands,
Beth spoke quickly. “My mom teaches English to immigrants in the basement so we
just stopped by to say hi.
Kaylee
had fun, didn’t
ya
?” She smiled at the little girl who nodded.

He let out a sigh.
“As long as you didn’t take her to Bible study or something, I guess that’s
OK.”

“Of course not.
But I would like to continue walking there after school, if that’s all right
with you.
Kaylee
could play with the kids while their
parents work on their lessons.”

He closed his eyes
for a moment as if he were considering it. Then he bent over to be closer to
Kaylee’s
face. “Do you want to go back?”

Nodding, she held
up her cast. “I had fun
and
I got another signature!” The name “Maria”
was written in big, red letters.

He returned to his
full height. “I suppose it’s fine. But no religious stuff, got it?”

“Sure. I would
never.
. .” but she stopped herself. She’d already gotten in
trouble for assuring
Kaylee
that her mom and sister
were in heaven. This guy apparently had even more issues with the church than
Beth did. She smiled to herself. “I will respect your wishes.”

Clearing his
throat, he reached in his back pocket and pulled out his wallet.

Beth held up her
hand again. “You don’t owe me anything.”

“I’ll owe you if
you don’t take this.” He pulled out some bills.

“Jim, it’s a treat
to spend the afternoons with
Kaylee
. Can’t you
believe me?”

After holding the
money in mid-air for a minute, he put it away. “In case you haven’t noticed, I
have a hard time trusting people.” His mouthed curved up on one side.

“Gee, I don’t know
what you’re talking about.”

# # #

Parker kept
reading about Togo on his
iPad
while Beth assembled a
chicken salad in his kitchen and rattled on and on about the little girl she’d
babysat.

“
Kaylee
is so precious. She just needs someone to push her
out of her shell and build up her confidence. You should’ve seen how happy she
was to play with that little Hispanic girl. This way we can get in some
exercise walking to the church and then she can have some social interaction
with other kids. It’s perfect.”

He heard a pause
and threw in an “uh-huh.”