cleaning bill for getting grape juice out of today’s sundress. Shaking her head, she pocketed forty. Nothing for yesterday since she’d screwed up, and forty for today. Because she wouldn’t screw today up. Leaving the rest, she stepped out the back door with the sticky paper towels, which she dumped into the trash can. Now that she had a moment of privacy, she pulled out her cell phone and hit Josh’s number to fill him in.
He picked up, sounding harried. “Dr. Scott.”
Her brain stuttered at the sound of his low voice, the same low voice that had prompted her into a moment of insanity earlier. That kiss…“One hundred and sixty bucks?” she said in disbelief. “What exactly are you expecting for this hundred and sixty bucks?”
There was a beat of silence. She figured he was probably wondering who the crazy lady was, so she decided to clarify. “It’s Grace,” she said, trying for calm efficiency. She was used to calm efficiency, after all. Used to order. Used to things balancing.
Or she had been used to those things, back when she’d been gainfully employed, making something of herself, something very big and very important. Back way before she’d come to Lucky Harbor and taken on the first job she’d ever had that was completely over her head.
“You needed the money,” Josh said. “Right?”
“Well, yes,” she admitted reluctantly. “But a hundred and sixty dollars?”
“It’s what we agreed on, triple yesterday’s pay.”
“I didn’t mean to accept that. The kiss was my payment.” The crazy, wild kiss. The crazy, wild, wonderful kiss. She turned back to the door, which had shut behind her.
It was locked. Uh-oh.
“What?” he asked.
Had she said that out loud? “Nothing.” She peered into the window, thankful that the shades on it were open, but didn’t see Toby in the kitchen. “Well, nothing except your sister brought Toby home, and I’m watching him for her for an hour or so.”
There was another beat of silence while Josh processed this. Though he was a guy, and therefore a master at hiding his emotions, his thoughts weren’t all that hard to decode. Surprise and shock that somehow the same person who’d lost his dog yesterday was now in charge of his kid, and irritation at his sister. “Anna left you in charge of Toby?”
“I guess your nanny got sick, and Anna’s boyfriend picked Toby up from school.”
Nothing about that sentence seemed to bring him comfort. And it wasn’t even the worst bit of news she had to tell him. That honor belonged to the Facebook photo, which she decided he didn’t need to know about right now. Or ever. “It’s only for an hour,” she said, trying to make the best of the situation. “How much can happen in an hour?” She tried the door again. Still locked. She knocked.
Tank came tearing back into the kitchen, running more circles around the table with the lightsaber. But still no sign of Toby. She knocked again.
Tank stopped running in circles and panted at her. Then he turned his attention to the cabinet under the sink, where he started nosing around with what appeared to be a small trash container.
The container wobbled but didn’t tip.
Tank then sank his teeth into the plastic liner and tugged until the thing fell over, spilling trash across the kitchen floor. Crap. Grace looked around her. She was in the side yard, with two gates at either end—both locked. “I have to go,” she said.
“Don’t even think about it. What’s wrong?”
Oh, so many, many things. Tank was going to town on the trash, inhaling whatever he could get at. Toby was still nowhere in sight. That couldn’t be good. She knocked again, harder this time.
The puppy looked up from his mission of destroying the world and growled at her.
Grace whirled around, searching for a doormat. Everyone hid a key beneath a doormat. But there was no mat. Most likely because it was safer for Anna in her chair that way. So where would they hide a key?
“ Grace.
He picked up, sounding harried. “Dr. Scott.”
Her brain stuttered at the sound of his low voice, the same low voice that had prompted her into a moment of insanity earlier. That kiss…“One hundred and sixty bucks?” she said in disbelief. “What exactly are you expecting for this hundred and sixty bucks?”
There was a beat of silence. She figured he was probably wondering who the crazy lady was, so she decided to clarify. “It’s Grace,” she said, trying for calm efficiency. She was used to calm efficiency, after all. Used to order. Used to things balancing.
Or she had been used to those things, back when she’d been gainfully employed, making something of herself, something very big and very important. Back way before she’d come to Lucky Harbor and taken on the first job she’d ever had that was completely over her head.
“You needed the money,” Josh said. “Right?”
“Well, yes,” she admitted reluctantly. “But a hundred and sixty dollars?”
“It’s what we agreed on, triple yesterday’s pay.”
“I didn’t mean to accept that. The kiss was my payment.” The crazy, wild kiss. The crazy, wild, wonderful kiss. She turned back to the door, which had shut behind her.
It was locked. Uh-oh.
“What?” he asked.
Had she said that out loud? “Nothing.” She peered into the window, thankful that the shades on it were open, but didn’t see Toby in the kitchen. “Well, nothing except your sister brought Toby home, and I’m watching him for her for an hour or so.”
There was another beat of silence while Josh processed this. Though he was a guy, and therefore a master at hiding his emotions, his thoughts weren’t all that hard to decode. Surprise and shock that somehow the same person who’d lost his dog yesterday was now in charge of his kid, and irritation at his sister. “Anna left you in charge of Toby?”
“I guess your nanny got sick, and Anna’s boyfriend picked Toby up from school.”
Nothing about that sentence seemed to bring him comfort. And it wasn’t even the worst bit of news she had to tell him. That honor belonged to the Facebook photo, which she decided he didn’t need to know about right now. Or ever. “It’s only for an hour,” she said, trying to make the best of the situation. “How much can happen in an hour?” She tried the door again. Still locked. She knocked.
Tank came tearing back into the kitchen, running more circles around the table with the lightsaber. But still no sign of Toby. She knocked again.
Tank stopped running in circles and panted at her. Then he turned his attention to the cabinet under the sink, where he started nosing around with what appeared to be a small trash container.
The container wobbled but didn’t tip.
Tank then sank his teeth into the plastic liner and tugged until the thing fell over, spilling trash across the kitchen floor. Crap. Grace looked around her. She was in the side yard, with two gates at either end—both locked. “I have to go,” she said.
“Don’t even think about it. What’s wrong?”
Oh, so many, many things. Tank was going to town on the trash, inhaling whatever he could get at. Toby was still nowhere in sight. That couldn’t be good. She knocked again, harder this time.
The puppy looked up from his mission of destroying the world and growled at her.
Grace whirled around, searching for a doormat. Everyone hid a key beneath a doormat. But there was no mat. Most likely because it was safer for Anna in her chair that way. So where would they hide a key?
“ Grace.
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