“Thank you for watching her for me. Hopefully, I can find a place today.”

“No problem, dear. I am sorry to drop this on you so sudden.” Mrs. Gonzales gives me a sympathetic look. I want to yell at her, but I know how important family is.

“No, Ma’am. You need to be there for your family. Olivia and I will be just fine and right here waiting for you when you get back.” I force a smile onto my face as I squat down to give my little superhero a hug. “Alright baby girl, you listen to Mrs. Gonzales. I'll be back soon.”

“ ‘Member Momma, you said lots of kids,” Olivia whispers in my ear as she gives me a big hug.

“I promise,” I whisper back before placing a kiss on her forehead and give them both a wave before I head out the door and down the stairs.

After I finished my letter to Lieutenant McMillion this morning, I spent some time scouring the Internet for day care centers near the hospital that catered to working families. Lucky for me, I found a newly opened place called Kidology located between the hospital and the Coronado Naval Base that catered to military families. It opened rather early for a day care center and stayed open later than most. Now, fingers crossed they still had space available. Finally in my car, I send a prayer up to the powers that be and head in the direction of Kidology.

About twenty minutes later, I am parked in front of a brightly painted building, with Kidology in different sized letters attached to the front awning. It’s still rather early, but I can see parents coming in and out. My nervousness returns as soon as I shut off my engine, this place looks like something out of a kid’s dream. Olivia would love it here; I think I love it here.

I take a deep breath and hop out of my car, and as I get closer to the building, I can hear squeals of laughter and babbling babies. I quickly open the door to find a wide-open space full of colors. There is what looks like a waiting area with some seats, a small table, and a reception desk. Then a hallway with three doors on the right. Behind the desk is another door on the left that is probably an office for the director.

I head right for the desk, leaning over slightly to see if I can get someone’s attention. “Hello? Is anyone back there,” I whisper, I don’t want to yell and scare any of the children.

“What can I do for you?” a bright and cheery voice says from behind me, causing me to nearly tumble over the desk.

“Whoa there! I didn’t mean to startle you.” The owner of the voice grips my arm, helping me stand upright. I turn to find a young girl, a little taller than me, with brown hair and beautiful blue eyes. “Now that I almost killed you let me introduce myself. I’m Emma, the owner of Kidology. What can I do for you today?”

“Wait, you own this place? How old are you?” I startle myself at my reaction. Damn, I want this woman to find space for Olivia, and here I am insulting her age. For all I know she has good genes and could be twice my age. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to be so rude.”

Lucky for me, she begins to laugh, a full belly laugh at that. “Don’t worry. I hear worse on a regular basis. Just wait until you meet my two best friends.”

Wait, I’m confused. I insult the poor girl, and she wants to introduce me to her friends. Maybe I don’t want to leave Olivia in her care.

“What I came for is to see if you have any space for my little girl Olivia. I work over at the hospital and have a similar schedule to a service member. I saw your website saying you catered to service members and their families. I figured this would be a perfect place for her.”

“Well, let me look. We have just opened, but we are filling up quickly and do have a waiting list for some of our classes,” Emma responds as she heads to the other side of the counter.

I hold my breath as she pulls out a binder looking for something. “How old is little Olivia?”

“She just turned three.” I begin tapping my fingers, I don’t understand why it takes so long to look down a list.

“If you could follow me for one minute, I just need to check a few things before I answer your question.” Emma walks around the counter and grabs my hand. I have no choice but to follow her toward one of the rooms. She walks toward one of the doors and enters a passcode before entering. This room is decorated similar to the waiting room but is filled with children around the same age as Olivia and two women that seem to be my age. Emma pulls me along and right up to one woman who is holding a little girl with curly dirty blonde hair and crystal blue eyes and looks just like her. The woman is a little taller than me and gorgeous! Not a toothpick but has curves in all the right places. If only I looked like her after I had Olivia. I feel Emma tug on my hand, causing me to blush. “She’s gorgeous, isn’t she? Don’t worry, I stop and stare sometimes too.”

“Now I know you want something. Whatever it is, I paid for bail last time. Call Avery, it’s her turn and more than likely her fault,” she responds as she hands off the little girl to Emma.

Placing a chaste kiss on the little girl’s cheek, Emma puts her down and then gives my hand a squeeze. “This is my bestest friend in the whole world, Katie. Katie, this is … Wait, I didn’t even get your name before I tried to scare you to death.” Emma begins to giggle.

I finally remember my manners and hold my hand out to Katie. “I’m Becca. You and your little girl are beautiful!” I blurt out like a nervous teenager.

“Why thank you, but if you are trying to get laid, you’re talking to the wrong friend. Emma, why didn’t you introduce her to Avery. Her and Amber will be here with Ryan in a little while,” Katie says as she crosses her arms. I can’t help but look between these two and wonder if I really want to leave my little girl here.

“Well, I’m just going to get going. It was nice meeting you.” I turn to leave, but Emma reaches out to grab my hand.

“Katie, you’re scaring a new client away. Emma came to talk about getting her little girl Olivia into your class.” Emma gives me a panicked look before continuing, “I was also kind of hoping we could all be friends. I have a good feeling about her.”

Katie’s cheeks immediately pink up. “I’m so sorry for being unprofessional! It would be my honor to have your little girl in my class. Emma brought you here probably because I said I couldn’t take any more kids. The little one I handed to Emma earlier is my daughter, Emerson. Her twin Ryan should be here in a little while as well.”

I raise my eyebrow slightly at both of them. “I really do like it here, and Olivia does want to have more kids her age to play with. I also could use some friends. However, I can assure you, I stick strictly with the male anatomy.”

Emma and Katie share a look before they burst out laughing. “We are all going to get along just fine. Do you have plans this weekend?” Katie asks.

I pull my lip between my teeth, I don’t have many friends in the area but what happens if this doesn’t work out? I don’t want Olivia to lose her spot.

“Don’t stress about Olivia. We are a lively bunch, but business is business. As long as you pay your tuition payment on time,” Emma chimes in, setting all my worries at ease.

“Unfortunately, I have to work. Are you open weekends?” I laugh, but in all honesty, I’m serious.

“Not usually, but let’s do a trial run. If you can trust me with Olivia for the rest of the week, I would be willing to watch her for you this weekend IF you come to my barbeque after work on Saturday,” Emma says with a devious smile on her face. This girl is going to be trouble, but I can’t say that it isn’t a fair bargain.

“Okay, you have a deal, but if you and your friends corrupt my child, I’m coming for you.”

“I make no promises,” Emma says with a wink. I can tell this is going to be the start of a beautiful friendship and the need for a lot of bail money.