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He leaned down to offer his hand to Marisa, who transferred her rapt attention from Joe to Ben. She smiled in delight. “Are you a daddy?”
Julie suppressed a sigh of anxiety. Clearing her throat, she nodded at Carla. “And, ah, this is my friend, Carla Hartshorn.”
Carla grinned at him, all teeth, and Julie stiffened in anticipation of something embarrassing. Carla didn’t disappoint. “So, you and your wife been in this neighborhood very long?”
Julie fought the urge to close her eyes in mortification. Leave it to Carla to go straight for the marital status.
His smile twitched as he reached for Carla’s hand, his expression acute but good-natured. Julie could see in his face that he understood the question completely, and when he switched his glance to her, she almost laughed at the awareness she saw there. She smiled, sharing the joke with him.
“We’ve been here five years, and we’ll probably be here forever. We like the neighborhood. But it’s just me and Joe.” The child at his side tugged on his arm, and he gave Julie a wry smile. “Which reminds me. The one with no clothes is Joe, the terror of the neighborhood. I’ll replace the sand in your sandbox and clean it tomorrow.”
He pulled his son around to face him and leaned over to look into the child’s eyes. “Apologize to Ms. Miles, and promise her you won’t do that again.”
“But I’m a cat!” Indignant exasperation.
His father took him by the chin. “Then you better learn to be a cat with manners, because cats without them end up staying in the house a lot. Apologize.” He released both chin and wrist and straightened, expectant.
Joe eyed Julie, then looked at the ground. “Sorry.”
“And?” His father’s tone was insistent. He wasn’t letting his son off that easy.
“And I won’t do it anymore.” But as he said it, Joe cast a calculating gaze toward the sandbox, as if trying to come up with some loophole.
Julie didn’t quite know what to say. She didn’t remember Marisa ever misbehaving like this, or shrieking at anyone, not in the four years she’d known her. Plus Julie was a little uncomfortable with the fact she was talking to an almost naked person, even if he was just a little boy. “Well, that’s okay, Joe. I’m pleased to meet you, and thank you for not…um, using the sandbox that way anymore.”
She cleared her throat and looked again at Ben. “Actually, I was just coming over to ask if I could borrow a phone.” She held up her dead cell phone. “Murphy’s Law.”
He nodded. “Be my guest. In fact, it’s a portable. Joe and I’ll go get it for you. No use you getting wet, too.”
Marisa, who’d been staring at Joe again, said, “Cats don’t like rain.”
Joe stopped struggling for a moment. Julie almost laughed at the expression on his face as he considered that pronouncement.
Ben hoisted Joe back up onto his hip. “I better take advantage of the temporary lull in motion while he works that one out. Just give me a couple minutes to get something warm on him, and we’ll be right back over.”
Julie thanked him, but he waved her off. “That’s what neighbors are for. Go back inside, get out of the weather.”
Throwing the small boy over his bare shoulder, he headed toward their house. Joe bounced up and down, hooting with glee as they crossed the yard in the drizzle.
Marisa went to investigate the sandbox. Julie bit back a smile as the little girl peered over the edge, then turned to look at the neighbor’s house, her face full of curiosity.
Carla breathed out. “Man, you have all the luck, moving in next door to that.”
“What, a small boy who’ll pee in my sandbox? Yup, I’ve got the luck of the Irish, all right.”
Carla laughed. “The father, silly. He’s quite the specimen. I wonder if he wanders around without his shirt all the time? I wonder if that’s all natural, or if he works out? Want me to find out for you?” She peered over at the darkened windows of the house next door, as if trying for a peek inside. “And he’s going to be living there for a while. Did you notice I found that out for you?”
Julie gave her a wry look. “I noticed. And that he’s single, too. And, no, please don’t find out anything else.”
“Subtlety was never my strong suit.” Carla grinned. “So shoot me.”
“He is pretty cute, isn’t he?” Julie pretended to peer at the windows, too. “You know, if I trimmed that hedge a bit, I bet we could sit on the patio at night and, well, see what’s what.”
“Voyeurs R Us.” Carla kept her face straight. “I like it. We could probably sell tickets.”
They both jumped when a light appeared in one of the windows. When Ben followed his son into what was obviously the child’s bedroom, Julie gave a guilty laugh. “Guess I don’t need to trim the hedges after all.” She called Marisa, and they turned to go into the house.
The big mover was poking his head into the kitchen when Julie stepped in from the patio. “Oh, there you are, lady. Come here, I think you better look at this.”
Julie’s heart sank as she followed him upstairs, trailed by Marisa. What now?
Upstairs, in the bedroom that was supposed to be Julie’s, the mover opened the closet door. The floor was covered with water, which had splashed onto the walls.
Julie looked up at the ceiling of the closet at a large, dark stain. As they watched, a drop of water formed and fell to puddle on the floor, splashing the walls.
Marisa looked at the wet spot, then up at Julie. “If we had a daddy, I bet he could fix it.”
BEN KNELT ON THE FLOOR in front of Joe’s bed and hustled the now-shivering child into a sweatshirt and sweatpants. Joe’s feet were clammy as he slid socks over them. “Weren’t you cold out there?”
“N-no!” Joe shook his head, stubborn. “Cats aren’t cold outside. Cats are cold inside, though.”
Ben bit back a laugh and gathered the child into his arms, rubbing him to warm him. He held him close for a moment, enjoying the feel of the small body in his arms. How much longer would Joe let his father cuddle him close? Ben felt a pang of yearning, part of him wishing he could keep Joe four years old forever. Nuzzling his neck and making snarfing noises, Ben carried Joe to the living room, grabbing the portable phone on his way out the front door.
The two of them stepped under the front porch overhang at the new neighbors’. The front door was off the hinges, so Ben called in through the open doorway, “Telephone man.”
Julie came around the corner, her red and white sweater setting off the flush of her face—not to mention hugging her curves. The faded jeans didn’t say anything bad about her, either. She smiled at him, her lips parting in a fascinating way. The little girl, Marisa, followed right behind her, almost clinging to her side.
He held up the phone. “It should be all charged up, and at this distance you shouldn’t have any trouble. But if you do, I can bring over the charger.”
She shook her head. “Won’t do any good. No electricity.”
Marisa tugged on Julie’s arm. “It’s ’cause we don’t have a daddy. A daddy could turn the lights on.”
Ben watched Julie bite her lip and sympathized. Joe was almost as good as Maggie at making Ben aware of all that he was not. He smiled at Marisa. “I thought you people just liked having the lights out.”
Marisa laughed, and as he watched, Julie relaxed ever so slightly. “It was supposed to be turned on, but they still haven’t gotten to it. That was one of the things we needed the phone for.” She glanced over her shoulder as Carla walked into the room from the kitchen. “I was going to sic Carla on them.”
“Grrr,” said Carla.
He turned the handset over and started pushing buttons. “Here, let me try.”
“I’m sure Carla can handle it.”
Carla said, “Oh, let him try. Men love fixing problems. Makes them feel useful.” She grinned at Ben.
He finished dialing, then listened while it rang. “Alberta Owen, please.” He waited a moment while the call was transferred.
Her line clicked on. “Alberta.”
“Alberta. Baby. Sweetheart.” He smiled, waiting for it.
“Ben! Ben Harbison, you better not be sweet-talking me for help at four fifty-five at night. I’m late for the door.”
“Guilty.”
“Rascal. What is it?”
“My new neighbor. She was supposed to have her power turned on, but it hasn’t happened. She’s moving into a dark house with her little girl.”
“Address?”
“Fifteen sixty-five Glenbeck.”
“Oh, right next door, hmm? And is she pretty, this new neighbor?”
His eyes shot to Julie, who was watching him. “Uh, yes.”
“And will this make you the hero?”
He coughed. “Well, it wouldn’t hurt any.”
“Mmm-hmm. So Alberta gets to play Cupid, does she? Let me see…” He heard her fingers on her keyboard. “Mmm-hmm, should have gone on today. I can take care of it from here.” Another few keystrokes. “Okay, ready?”
“Ready.”
The living room’s overhead light came on.
Carla gasped.
Marisa clapped, and when Joe said, “My daddy can do anything,” she turned to Ben, her eyes shining.
Ben grinned and looked at Julie. She was staring at him in astonishment, her mouth slightly open. He said into the mouthpiece, “Thank you, Alberta.”
“Mmm-hmm. Invite me to the wedding, hear?” She clicked off.
He pressed the off button on the phone and held it out to Julie. She stared at it for a moment, then at him. For a moment, her deep blue eyes on his, he was sure he’d blown it. Too sure of himself, as usual. He toned down his grin for a moment.
Finally she smiled back at him. “Do you know anyone at Cincinnati Water? They keep saying they’ve turned the water on, but there’s no water.”
Ben swallowed. “Er…did you check the main valve to the house?”
Carla snorted.
Julie narrowed her eyes at her friend in exaggerated irritation. “The main valve? No one said anything about a main valve.”
Ben tried not to smile. “I’m sure very few people know about it. It’s practically a secret.”
She turned her mock displeasure on him. “Just go get a wrench or something, okay?”
“Right. C’mon, Joe.” He made his escape.
Ben found his tool belt and strapped it on, then walked around Julie’s house until he found the water shutoff valve. Yep, it was off. He adjusted the fitting, then walked back into her house, Joe at his heels. “Try it now,” he said.
Julie walked into the bathroom under the stairs, and he heard the water running. She came back out. “It’s brown, but at least it’s running.”
Joe, apparently realizing he was trailing around after a bunch of adults doing boring stuff, turned to Marisa. “Do you like swings?”
Marisa nodded and smiled shyly at him.
“Want to go swing?”
Marisa nodded, and the little boy grabbed her hand and tugged at her. She turned to Julie.
Julie glanced through the open doorway. “Well, it’s starting to get a little dark….” She looked at Marisa. “But at least it’s stopped raining. Go ahead, honey.”
The two children ran off, and Ben followed Julie into the kitchen. She watched as they ran through the backyard to Ben’s house. She turned to him, frowning slightly. “They’ll be okay, won’t they?”
Ben nodded. What could happen to them? “They’re just out in the backyard. It’s probably been a pretty boring day for her, with moving and all.”
She bit her lip. “I guess we can see them from here. Well, then, now that I have water—” Carla smirked, and Julie ignored her “—I guess I’ll start unpacking boxes.” She opened one of the cupboards and coughed as dust flew out.
He glanced over her shoulder into the cupboard, which was thick with dust. “Why don’t you let me wipe out those cupboards for you before you put stuff away?”
She smiled. “You’re hired.”
Carla grabbed her purse off the kitchen counter. “Sounds too much like work to me. I’m off for those curtain rods. Back in a flash.” She waved goodbye on her way out, and Ben heard her tell the movers the door better be back on its hinges when she returned. So she’d be back. He’d better work fast.
Julie smiled at him. “Thanks for the offer of help. You really don’t have to stay.”
Ben shook his head. “I don’t mind at all. A little adult company is always welcome.” And now that they were alone, he wasn’t going to waste the opportunity. He grabbed a bunch of paper towels from a roll and wet them at the sink. “And I can see you have your hands full. I guess all single parents do.”
She turned slightly away from him, leaning over to open a box. “It’s just all so new, I guess.”
He tried not to leer at her backside, with limited success. It was a very nice backside. What the hell, she couldn’t see him. He jerked his gaze from her jeans as she turned around. He had to think a minute before he could remember what she’d just said. “Ah, what, being a single parent?”
She nodded. “I just adopted Marisa two days ago.”
“Brave woman, walking into single parenting with your eyes open.”
She laughed. “I don’t know how open they were.” She turned half away, started rinsing a pile of plates one by one, stacking them on the counter, her arms graceful, in and out of the water. “I was her guardian ad litem for four years. She’s been in foster care, and when she had to be moved to a new foster home, I just couldn’t stand to see her have to start all over again.”
“So you decided to adopt her? Just like that?”
“More or less.” She made a wry face, and he guessed it had been a little more complicated than that. She dried the stack of plates and set them into the cupboard above the dishwasher.
“Do you get a lot of people telling you how much they admire you?”
She laughed. “Yes. And so far I’ve felt like I’m doing a totally unadmirable job.”
“Oh, that never ends. It’s always going to be harder when you’re going it alone. You don’t have anyone to bounce your thoughts off.” He shook his head. “Or if you do, sometimes they end up making you feel worse.” She turned to him, concern clear on her face, and he gave her a wry grin. “I’m guessing I’m not making you feel any better, here.”
She laughed at that. “Not at all. But next time you need to bounce some thoughts off someone, come bounce them off me. I’ll try not to make you feel worse.” She smiled, that fascinating curve of slightly parted lips. What was it about her smile? If he didn’t watch out, he could lose himself in it.
She crossed to the stack of unopened boxes again, struggling for a moment opening one. He pulled his penknife out of his pocket and squatted beside her, his knees brushing hers lightly. She moved out of his way, and he wished she hadn’t.
For the next half hour, while the movers put the door back on its hinges and cleaned up after themselves, he and Julie worked together, she unpacking boxes, rinsing dishes and pans, and putting them away; he wiping cupboards and trying not to obviously watch her stretching and bending and doing other fascinating things.
Just as Julie was finishing stacking pots in the cupboard under the stove, Carla returned, her arms sprouting curtain rods, and Marisa came in from the backyard with Joe. “Julie…Mom, I mean. I’m hungry.”
“Me, too, Dad.” Big surprise. The kid had a hollow leg.
Julie looked as if all she wanted to do was collapse on the couch, but she grinned at Marisa. “I hope you’re willing to have peanut butter for dinner, then, because I am not up to cooking.”
“How about we call for pizza?” Ben looked around for the phone. “My treat—in honor of Marisa’s first day in her new house.” He gave Marisa a smile, and she rewarded him with a bright one of her own. Nice kid, that one. “You do like pizza, right?”
Marisa nodded, her eyes wide. “I love pizza.”
“Yea, pizza!” Joe jumped up and down. “Spicy Tomato, Daddy!” He turned to Marisa. “That’s the best one. But LaMama’s is good, too. We get pizza all the time, so we know the best ones.”
“Well, not all the time,” Ben said.
“Yeah, we have macaroni and cheese sometimes, too.” Joe pursed his lips. “I like Power Rangers macaroni and cheese better than Rugrats, Daddy.” He turned back to Marisa. “But if we get Spicy Tomato, we have to eat all of it, because Spicy Tomato isn’t as good at breakfast. LaMama’s is, though, huh, Daddy?”
Ben grinned, a little weakly. Carla said, “That’s what you get for teaching kids to talk.”
AS THE FIVE OF THEM WERE eating the pizza, Ben picked up a flier that had been delivered with it. Noted Parenting Expert Maynard Frader To Speak.
That Frader idiot again. Maggie was forever clipping his column and bringing it with her when she visited. He tossed the flier on the table.
Julie picked it up. She pursed her lips. “This is what I need.”
“That windbag! What about him?”
Julie laughed. “Maybe you should at least hear what he has to say before you call him a windbag.”
“I’ve read his column. The man has no idea of the real challenges facing parents.”
“He’s supposed to be an expert.”
Some expert. “How can he be an expert when he has no kids of his own?”
“He has a Ph.D., that’s how.”
Carla was watching them, her avid gaze switching from one to the other as if she were watching a Ping-Pong match.
Ben bit his tongue. Better to say nothing than to get himself in trouble.
Julie eyed him suspiciously, as if she knew what he was thinking. “You think you know all the answers, don’t you?”
He shrugged. “Of course not. I just know what’s best for my kid.”
“And you don’t think you could improve things?”
“Not by listening to a bunch of advice from someone who probably doesn’t know any more than I do.”
Julie frowned at the flier. “But how could it hurt?”
“It could confuse you, that’s how it could hurt.” He took a bite of pizza to give himself a minute to think. “He says one thing, someone else says something else. Who’s right? You just have to trust your instincts.”
“That’s your whole parenting plan? Trust your instincts?”
He shrugged. “It’s worked so far.”
She eyed him, looking unconvinced. She had great eyes, a great color of blue. Even when they were all narrowed up like that. He took another bite of pizza and grinned at her, and an answering smile crept over her lips. She knew he was enjoying the view and she didn’t seem to mind a bit.
Now, this was an interesting woman.
AFTER BEN AND JOE LEFT for the night, Julie said to Marisa, “Bedtime.”
“What about my bath?”
“Oh, right. Bath time, I mean.” Another first. Was there any special trick to bathing a five-year-old? She looked at Carla.
“You’re on your own, girlfriend. It’s the kind of thing you can only learn by doing.” Carla lay back on the couch. “Besides, I’m exhausted from my exertions.”
Julie found the pile of boxes marked “Books” and pulled the largest one open. Every Parent’s Guide To Doing The Right Thing was on top. Julie had been reading it up until the movers arrived at her old apartment.
She paged through the index while she led Marisa upstairs, leaving Carla on the couch with a glass of wine and the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Bathing, page 42.
Remember that a child’s skin is very delicate. What seems like a reasonable temperature to an adult can feel burning hot to a young child…. Remember never to leave a baby or young child alone in a bathtub. Young children can drown in even a few inches of water and in less time than it takes to answer the phone….
How young was too young, Julie wondered. Could a five-year-old really drown in a bathtub?
She ran the water. Marisa stepped in and Julie hovered over the tub, one hand steady on Marisa’s arm in case she slipped. Marisa sat down and looked up at her expectantly. “Do we got bubbles?”
“Bubbles.” How could she make bubbles? Shampoo, maybe? Julie opened the nearest box and pushed things around inside, looking for the green bottle. She poured some shampoo into the stream of water. It bubbled beautifully, and Marisa clapped. “Bubbles!” She splashed, then looked up at Julie anxiously.
“Don’t worry, honey, just try to keep it in the tub.”
She washed the little girl’s long dark hair, then watched her splash a bit. She’d have to get some bath toys.
“All ready?”
Marisa nodded, and Julie helped her out of the tub and into a towel. She dried her off, rubbing the too-thin little legs and arms gently, hugging her through the towel as she dried off her back. “Oh, Marisa, I’m so glad you came to live with me. I’m so glad I’m your mom now.”
Marisa stiffened. Then, almost convulsively, her arms went around Julie and hugged her back. Julie almost cried.
She helped Marisa into her pajamas and made up her bed for her. “Shall we read a story? Which one do you want to read?”
Marisa knelt by the small pile of well-worn books—Julie added a bookcase to her list of things to buy—and pulled out an especially tattered one. Sharing Danny’s Dad. The story of a little boy who one day shared his best friend’s dad while his own father was away at work. The Trocens, Marisa’s foster family before Mary and George, had given it to her last year for Christmas. She’d wanted it read to her almost daily.
As Julie was tucking Marisa in, she could tell the little girl had something on her mind. “What’s up, honey?”
“Mom, can I share Joe’s dad?”
Julie froze her face, trying to keep from showing any dismay. “Well, I’m sure you can be good friends with Ben.”
“But I can’t share him?”
Julie sighed silently. “I guess you can share him a little, sometimes.”
She kissed Marisa good-night and walked back downstairs. She sat down next to Carla on the couch, poured herself a glass of wine and propped her feet on the battered coffee table. “Marisa wants a dad.”
Carla shrugged. “Everyone wants a dad. I want a dad.”
“I know. But Marisa really needs a father. More than most kids do. It’s all she talks about. It’s as if getting a mother gave her hope that she could actually get both.” Tears stung Julie’s eyes and she wiped them away.
Carla watched her, sympathy in her eyes. “So get her a dad.”
Julie snorted. “As if it were that easy.”
Carla leaned back and put her feet on the coffee table, too. “What’s so difficult about it? You weren’t planning on staying single forever, were you?”
“Well, no. But things are different now. For one thing, he has to be a really great dad.”
Shrugging, Carla said, “Then find one of those.”
“How do you find ‘one of those’?”
Carla smirked at her. “Well, it would help if you were actually dating someone.”
“Thanks so much.”
“My pleasure.”
Julie thought for a moment. “Okay, so I date. How do I recognize a great dad?”
“I think it’s just something you have to take a chance on.” Carla thought for a moment. “Don’t you think most well-intentioned people probably end up being pretty good parents?”
Probably true, for most kids. But Marisa wasn’t most kids. “But is it enough to be a pretty good parent? Marisa needs a great parent.”
“She’s got you. That’s one great parent.”
Julie shook her head. “But I know nothing.” Every new day proved that to her in alarming ways. She felt as if she were treading on eggshells with Marisa, trying not to make some huge permanent mistake.
“You know what you want to be, as a parent. Just find a guy who wants the same.”
It sounded simple, but Julie knew better. “No, he needs to be better than me. He needs to be enough to make up for me. To make up for my shortcomings. Someone who knows what he’s doing. I need to find someone who can be a great dad.”
Carla laughed. “So falling in love doesn’t enter into it?”
Julie smiled at her friend, sheepish. “Of course, I have to love him, too. But if it’s just as easy to fall in love with a rich man as a poor one, then it ought to be just as easy to fall in love with a good father as a bad one.” She collapsed against the cushions, frustrated. “Which brings us right back to figuring out which ones are the good ones. And then dating them.”