Josie wasn’t sure what to do with herself now. If it hadn’t been for urgent business, Xander would have been in bed with her still. Instead, he was in his home office and she was alone until he finished with his business call.
She hadn’t had a day off during the week in forever, and without Nick at home, she was at loose ends. She thought about calling Shawna, but a quick check of her pockets and she remembered her oldie phone she’d been working with had died on her the previous night.
She hadn’t managed to get it to turn on yet. Her thoughts ran back to the sensual promise Xander had made and she smiled. She knew just what to do to pass the time until she could see him again. Last night had been amazing, and she wanted to be in his arms again. Then she’d call Nick in a few hours for more dessert.
After hanging up with Nick, having made their plans, she waited for Xander to emerge from his office. It didn’t take much to convince him to join her and her nephew for a couple hours at the fair.
She hadn’t been at the fair in years. She’d forgotten how people packed in to buy cotton candy, take a try throwing a ring around a bottle, getting in line for the biggest, baddest roller coaster for miles. Cheery carnival music piped through old beat-up speakers, adding to the charm.
Josie rested her hand on Nick’s back. “Okay, Nick, what do you want first?”
He jumped up and down. “I want ice cream, two scoops. And a funnel cake and a fried Twinkie.”
“Nice.” Josie rolled her eyes. “You’re going to throw up all that on the first ride. You know that, right?”
“No, I won’t. I promise.” He looked to Xander on the other side of his aunt. “Do you like roller coasters? They have one here that does three loops in a row, then dives fifty feet in two point three seconds.”
He shook his head. “That is Puke-town, all the way.” He paused. “I’m in.” Nick hollered out and they high-fived. They were off to find ice cream.
With funnel cake and ice cream in hand, they sat at a weathered picnic table. They people-watched and laughed at the outlandish outfits the clowns and character animals walking around wore. Nick even got to shake hands with Batman.
“Aunt Josie, we didn’t get anything to drink.” She looked at the table and noticed no cups.
“I’ll get something,” Xander said as he pulled one leg over the picnic bench. He’d already paid for entrance tickets and the snacks here, lending her the nice car. Her pride was a bit bruised, but her morals were still strong.
“No.” The word came out harsher than she intended, but she wasn’t setting a precedent of somebody else buying everything for her. Both guys looked at her with concern. “What I mean is, I’ll get a drink for us on my way from the restroom. Be right back.”
Nick and Xander looked at each other with a WTF expression. Nick swallowed his bite of funnel cake. “Does Aunt Josie do strange things around you, too?”
Xander cocked his head. “Strange how?”
The one young shrugged. “I don’t know. Sometimes I hear her crying in the bathroom, but she says nothing is wrong.” He gazed into the milling crowd.
Xander knew his words could change the tone of the relationship between the woman he loved and the child who needed her. Should he bring Nick into the adult world of bills, money, evil people, or should he allow the worry-free childhood to last?
“I think your aunt misses her sister, your mom, a lot. Sometimes when you miss someone, it hurts enough to cry.” Nick dropped his chin to his chest. He pushed his ice cream around the bowl.
Great job, dipshit. You reminded him about his dead parents. “Then again, she’s a girl. And girls do strange things because they’re girls.”
Nick’s head popped up. “I know. There’s this girl in my class who tried to kiss me. That’s gross. That’s how you get cooties. From girls. Eww.”
“My man,” Xander raised his hand for a high five, “girls are eww. Don’t let them ever kiss you. ’Cause weird things start happening. You get stomachaches, all the time. You suddenly don’t know what you’re doing or why. You get pains in your butt, and you can’t concentrate.”
Nick nodded and sighed. “Brain damage. I knew it. Cooties.”
“We men have to stick together to get through these things.” He held out a hand to the boy. Nick stared at it, not moving.
“I’m guessing you’re my aunt’s boyfriend. Are you going to marry her?”
“As soon as she says yes, the deal will be done.”
“Are you going to make her sad like Uncle Michael did?”
“I will do my best to never make her sad. I only want to see a smile on her face.” Xander realized how much this child loved his aunt. If the boy was worried about her well-being, then Josie was a wonderful mother. Just like he knew she would be.
A huge smile came to Nick’s face, and he slapped his smaller hand into Xander’s. “Then, yeah. We men have to stick together.”
Josie stepped out of the bathroom stall, still chastising herself for acting so dumb in front of Xander and Nick. Yes, her pride at being a strong, independent woman was in danger. Xander had been the most awesomesauce man she’d ever been with. He wanted to take care of her and just because he had money—lots of it—didn’t mean she wanted him to pay for everything.
She wasn’t a leech, but this was a new feeling for her. Depending on someone else meant putting yourself in their debt. She didn’t feel comfortable there. What if she couldn’t repay the debt? What if she didn’t have enough or wasn’t good enough?
A bimbo-looking woman pulled brown paper towels from the dispenser. Normally, Josie wouldn’t notice others, but this woman blatantly stared at her. Chills raced down her back. Josie soaped her hands twice, waiting for the woman to move on.
“Excuse me,” the woman said to her. “Have we met before?”
Josie very seriously doubted she shared commonalities with this woman. But it was possible.
Josie said, “You could work for one of my past company’s clients?” Though, for the life of her, Josie wouldn’t know which one.
The woman flashed a toothy smile that was pretty except for the one missing canine. Elly May Clampett came to mind, but not so innocent. “Yes,” the lady said, “you’re the accountant.” She clasped her hands. “You’ve got to meet my husband,” she said, grabbing Josie’s hand and dragging her out of the restroom.
Josie tried to jerk her hand away, but the bitch had a clamp for a grip. “I don’t work for the company anymore,” Josie said. The blonde led her around the backside of the food court. People working the food stands paid no attention to them.
“Hold on a minute,” Josie said through clenched teeth. She dug in her heels, stopping the woman. “Look, ma’am. I’m sure your husband is a nice man—”
That was all Josie got out when the woman spun around and swung her arm at Josie’s head. For once, being short had its advantages. Josie ducked and shoved at the woman in her four-inch heels. Both ladies went down, Josie landing on her knees.
“Let go of me, bitch.” With Josie’s new job, the physical work had shaped and strengthened her muscles. With her free hand, Josie balled her fist and sent an upper cut to the over-made-up, heart-shaped face.
Freeing her arm, Josie climbed to her feet and ran back the way they had come. She came around the end of the restroom facilities and slammed into a human brick wall. Josie bounced backward and Xander grabbed her shoulders.
“Whoa, there,” he said.
Josie sucked wind, trying to pretend everything was all right. Nick stood next to Xander and she didn’t want to scare him with her story of almost being kidnapped or robbed. And both ideas sounded dumb now. She was a client who was overly happy with Josie’s past work.
“You okay, sweetheart?” Xander asked. “Where were you?”
“I’m good,” she replied. “I just made a wrong turn and rushed to get back here.” She ruffled Nick’s hair. “I know this little guy needs a drink really bad.”
Xander drew his brows down at her. She played it off as nothing, which it was.