Chapter 29

Gage

“Ollie come out from there!” She curled herself into a little ball in the farthest corner, and when I turned to see if maybe Lauren had any ideas, she was gone.

I got to my feet and let out a breath of frustration as I straightened my clothes. “Dammit.” I mumbled the swear under my breath where Ollie wouldn’t hear. The last thing I needed was a little girl with a potty-mouth.

I decided to leave Ollie to her corner and go find Lauren to apologize. I went out into the hall and didn’t see her anywhere. “Lauren?”

“She left, sir. I think your little angel scared her off.” I turned to see Helen at the top of the stairs with a smug look on her face. “I couldn’t help but notice that she was with child, sir. I’m assuming that you two are making plans for marriage?”

“Yes, eventually.”

She gave a nod and walked away. I didn’t really have time to go after her and ask her if she had a problem, and I really didn’t care if she did. I’d already told her she could fuck off if she had a problem, and if she needed directions, I’d show her the way. Her salary was paid, and she had a roof over her head, but like it or not, it was my roof. I made the decisions under it.

I went out to see Lauren’s car gone and then realized I’d left my phone on the console, charging. “Dammit.” I went to the office and called her, but she didn’t answer, and I even called my phone, but she didn’t answer that one, either.

I called the only person who would listen when I was in a jam: Noah. He picked up on the fifth ring. “What the hell do you want?” He gave a little laugh, and despite his words, I knew he was going to have fun messing with me.

“Someone to talk to. The ladies of my life are too complicated to deal with at the moment.”

“What did you do to make them so complicated?”

“I brought Lauren home to meet Ollie, and it blew up in my face. Ollie’s under her bed and won’t come out, and your sister took off in her car with both of our phones, which she won’t answer.”

His laughter was a kick in the balls, but one I was sure I deserved in his eyes. “That’s pretty bad.”

“Yeah, it’s horrible. I know I’m going to have to give Lauren time. At least she’ll see the cabin and what I did for her.” I hadn’t even told him about the cabin project and hoped he wouldn’t be upset when I told him about it. We had too many secrets between us lately.

“What did you do to the cabin?” I could already tell he didn’t like it by his tone. “And when?”

“Over the past couple of months, I’ve been working on a trade with your sister. She did the legal work I needed, and I gave her a new window feature and a skylight in the master bedroom.”

“You’re crazy. Thanks for telling me about it.”

“She doesn’t even know what I was doing. I wanted it to be a special surprise.”

“Maybe she’s not going to the cabin. Did she say she was? She might be driving around to blow off steam for all you know.”

“Maybe, but I doubt it. She was scared Ollie wouldn’t like her, and I promised her she would.” I saw something out of the corner of my eye and realized Ollie was listening around the corner. The mirror across the room reflected her standing just outside my door.

“She’ll come around.”

“Yeah, she’ll have to come around. With a new little baby brother or sister on the way, she’s going to have to learn to be a big sister.” I decided to lay it on thick. “If she only knew how much I love Lauren, she’d want her daddy to be happy.”

“Dude, that’s the sappiest shit I’ve ever heard from you.”

“I can’t help it, man. I do love her. I love her and my sweet Olivia, and I just wanted us all to be a family. If only Ollie would come out from under that bed.”

Noah laughed. “She’s listening, isn’t she?”

“Yes, she is. She’s the prettiest daughter ever, and I needed to find her a beautiful and sweet mother. One who I could trust with my special little girl.”

“You’re laying it on thick, brother. What you need to do is gather up that little one, and go after my sister.”

“Did you mean that? Brother?”

“Yeah, you stupid pain in the ass. You’ve got it bad enough already, so I’ll cut you some slack and forgive you. Besides, I’ve always been Uncle Noah; we’ll just make it more legal and official. You do plan on making an honest woman of my sister, right?”

“I haven’t asked yet, but, yes, we’ve talked about it. I just feel so bad that I think I might cry. I love them both and just wanted everyone to be happy.”

Noah laughed and then his radio went crazy. “Gotta go, brother. You stop your pussy whining and go get those two girls together. I’m sure Ollie’s in tears by now.” He hung up the phone, and I didn’t take it personally since someone’s life was at stake.

As soon as I placed the phone down, Ollie stuck her head in again. “Daddy? Don’t cry!” She ran across the room and climbed up into my lap with her big stuffed bear that usually wore my boa and crown.

“I’m so sad, though. Lauren left, and you’re mad at me.”

“I’m not mad at you, Daddy. I love you.” She looked up at me with those big, blue eyes and patted my chest. “Where did your friend go?”

“She thinks that you don’t like her. She really wanted to meet you, and now, she’s run away.”

“We can go find her if you want.” She shrugged her little shoulders and leaned over to hug my neck.

“I think that would be a good idea. And maybe you could explain to me why you hid under the bed on the way.”

She pulled her lips in tightly and climbed down from my lap with her bear. I got my keys out of my desk and then held her hand as we went out to the truck. I lifted her up and put her in the seat, buckling her in her little booster seat. After tucking her bear in beside her, I went around and climbed into the front. Lauren had a little head start, but with the roads free of ice, I hoped to do a little catching up. I’d be safe with my daughter in the truck, but she had better hold on to that bear.

When I spun rocks out of the driveway, she giggled and then she cheered as we headed out on the road. “We’re going to get my new mommy, aren’t we Daddy?”

“Do you like that? Her being your new mommy?”

“Yeah, she’s really pretty. Helen said that you were bringing a woman home and that hopefully, she’d be able to make me behave. That I’d have to mind the new lady of the house.”

“You do need to mind her.”

“Will she hit me?”

“Hit you? What gave you that idea?”

“Helen said she’d gladly hand her the strap.”

“What strap?”

“The one she shows me when I’m bad.”

“When you’re bad, she shows you a strap? Has she ever hit you?”

“No, Daddy, but only because I’m too fast. She swings and misses. She can’t outrun me, and I can hide better than she can hunt. She said one day, you’d take the strap to me, too.”

It took everything for me not to turn the truck around and go back to my house and run that old lady down, but I gritted my teeth and kept driving toward the cabin. No wonder Ollie was having so many issues with the woman. I should have known when the woman talked to me about discipline that she had some antiquated ideas about child-rearing. Spanking was one thing, but that was my place, and I’d never used a strap. But to threaten my child with abuse, her ass was out. She could enjoy her last few hours, oblivious to the fact that I finally had her number, and it was up.

“No one is ever going to hurt you, Ollie. You’re going to be a good girl, and we’re all going to get along together.”

“Will I really get to be a big sister?”

“Yes.” I hoped Lauren wasn’t going to be angry that she knew, but I needed to try and win her over somehow. It would have been a lot easier if that damned Helen hadn’t interfered and put ideas in her head.

“Where are we going, Daddy?”

“To Lauren’s cabin. I think that’s where she is.” I hoped. It would take another long trip home to use the phone if she wasn’t.

“Is a cabin a house?”

“Yes, it is. And this cabin is where I spent some of the best times of my life as a boy with your Uncle Noah. Lauren is his little sister.” I hoped that wasn’t too confusing for her and decided not to try and explain too much until she was older. Besides, Uncle Noah would be her uncle through Lauren soon enough, and it would all work its way out.

“Is it where you’d go fishing, Daddy?” I’d told her all about how Noah and I used to take our fishing poles down to Wade’s Creek and fish off an old log. And how we’d tried to tie logs together to make a raft like we’d seen on TV, but it sank on us as soon as we got out in the deep water. We’d hung onto one another as the current dragged us downstream, but thankfully, we’d caught onto a branch and pulled ourselves out. We’d kept that secret for years, knowing his mother wouldn’t have let us go down to the creek alone if she found out.

“Yeah, baby. It’s where me and Uncle Noah became brothers.” For life.