Courting Mrs. McCarthy by Ian Thomas Malone Page A

those details. He and Griffin had been there to smoke pot a few times though.
    That’s not to say that Martin was as shallow and flawed as Jerome. Martin took great pride in showing his daughters the ins and outs of softball and loved them very much. He was a simple man who tried his best to make his wife happy. In many ways, Martin was the anchor that held their family together, especially when Cassidy first found out that she was unable to conceive.
    The root of the problem was that Aunt Cassidy had trouble accepting that Nathan was an inherently different and independent boy who didn’t need fondling or micromanagement. His grades were decent, he stayed active, and had healthy relationships with his friends. He wasn’t perfect, but he felt no desire to try to reach that rather lofty goal.
    “Who are you babysitting?” she asked. She wasn’t much of a gossip, but this was a potentially juicy tidbit of information.
    “The McCarthy children. The mother asked me earlier today. I have no idea where the father is,” Nathan replied.
    “Oh, he has some business projects in Seattle. He used to play professional baseball, but I wouldn’t bring that up. He was one of the steroid users, and I’ve heard that Mrs. McCarthy doesn’t like to talk about it.” Heard was a nice way to say she’d gossiped about them.
    “I see,” Nathan said, whose mind had turned elsewhere. In all the time he’d spent thinking about Jackie, he hadn’t really stopped to consider the fact that she was in fact a married woman. The realism of the possibilities had not been something to worry about either until the ball had been put into play earlier that afternoon. With a husband who’s out of the picture, things had become a little more interesting to Nathan. What would divine intervention have to say about that?
    Five forty-five seemed like an eternity to wait to gather more recon on his new potential love interest, so Nathan left his house promptly at five-thirty. He wore a button-down that he opted not to tuck in, and khakis with flip flops in an attempt to achieve the “I’m dressed nice but casual” look in a manner that said, “I’m not dressed like this for you, this is how I always look.” All of these scenarios had been scrupulously examined in his head. He felt he’d achieved that to some extent which was further backed by his aunt, who’d said, “You look nice.” She would have mentioned if he’d appeared out of the ordinary.
    Nathan rang the doorbell. He had an aura of excitement around him, but he wasn’t as nervous as he was expecting. There were two rules Nathan tried to live by: “Always have an escape plan, and never let them see you bleed.”
    Jerome was there when Nathan had first heard the phrase but he had not supplied the wisdom. Q had issued the advice to James Bond . He didn’t particularly care for the movie, but the words stayed with him.
    A little girl opened the door. “Are you the babysitter?” she asked, forgoing the typical hello.
    “I am,” he replied, unsure if he should ask for her name. He felt silly that he was not privy to this information already.
    “You’re not a girl,” she said, in a statement that was not reflective of the obvious but of the preconceived stereotype that babysitting is considered the work of a woman. The child was perceptive.
    Nathan laughed. “No, I’m not. I hope that’s not a problem,” he added, as the young girl continued to block the doorway. This was not starting off very well.
    Jackie could be heard in the distance. “Is that you, Nathan? Come on in.” She walked toward the door. “April, don’t be rude. Let the gentleman come in or he’ll put you to bed early,” she said, with a facial expression that did not give away whether or not she was serious about the gentleman comment. Nathan hoped he would not have to be firm with the children. Griffin was the only person he ever yelled at.
    Nathan tried not to stare at Mrs. McCarthy for too long, but he