King of Pain - Tasha Black Page 0,37

hand wrapped around Oliver’s, the other held a flat of paper coffee cups.

Bane was tall, dark-haired, and covered in tattoos, though you wouldn’t know it with the long sleeve t-shirt and jeans he wore today. Axel figured Bane was trying to make a good impression on the moms of Tarker’s Hollow too.

Good luck with that.

“Look at your handsome nephew,” Axel said. “You’re getting so tall, Ollie.”

“My handsome son,” Bane said quietly. “The adoption went through last week.”

Axel felt a pang at the mixture of pain and pride evident in Bane’s deep voice.

“That’s awesome, man,” Dax said appreciatively. “Congratulations.”

They all watched quietly for a moment as Oliver immediately began putting together a wooden puzzle. Ollie was a super smart kid - he was only a toddler, but you could already tell.

“So, what’s new with everyone?” Bane asked.

“Axel’s babysitter went back to high school this week,” Chase said immediately.

“Oh wow, what are you doing for childcare?” Bane asked.

“I found a nanny through one of those services,” Axel said. “She’s coming into town today.”

He held his breath, hoping his friends wouldn’t judge him. He loved his son, but he had to work, and he couldn’t keep asking his apprentice to babysit.

“What, like Mrs. Doubtfire?” Chase asked.

“Well, hopefully not exactly like that, but yeah,” Axel laughed.

“Aren’t there a dozen women in Tarker’s Hollow who would love to help you with Noah?” Chase said with a playful wink.

“Very funny,” Axel said. “I’m not looking for any kind of entanglement. I just want a professional.”

There was a moment of awkward silence in which Axel cursed himself.

His friends knew he had some trust issues especially when it came to Noah. After all, the child’s own mother had abandoned them.

“I think it’s fantastic,” Dax said quickly. “You could definitely use some live-in help.”

“Isn’t that kind of expensive?” Bane asked.

“It’s less than you might think,” Axel said. “And it’s an investment in Noah’s future. The service tells me she has a degree in early childhood development, and her references were amazing. Noah will be in great hands.”

“But don’t you have to, like, feed her?” Dax asked with a furrowed brow.

It was no secret that Axel was a terrible, bordering on dangerous, cook.

“They said for an additional fee she’ll prepare meals,” Axel said, “and even teach me to cook.”

“Good thing she has that degree,” Dax quipped.

“What?” Axel asked with mock offense. “I’m not that bad in the kitchen.”

“No comment,” Chase said, his eyes twinkling. “But the fire department might have a thing or two to say.”

“Okay, that was one time,” Axel admitted.

“Yes, but we almost died,” Chase reminded him. “So it’s worth mentioning.”

“Okay, mommies,” Jessica yelled in her cheerful nasally voice, completely ignoring the fact that there were dads and other caregivers in the room. “Time for music!”

“Here we go,” Dax said, leaning into Bane. “Just try to keep up.”

2

Delilah

Delilah bit her lip and signaled a left-hand turn.

The sign for Tarker’s Hollow indicated a shaded, tree-lined street. Hopefully the town wasn’t too sleepy.

As soon as she pulled in, branches met overhead, forming a green canopy. Beautiful old Victorians peeked out at her from behind the dappled shade of the enormous trees and hedges.

She felt as if she were driving into another world.

Two women approached each other on the narrow sidewalk, one with a dog, the other with a stroller.

Delilah glanced back at them, expecting a showdown.

But the dog lady stepped onto the grassy shoulder and the two waved to each other in the soft morning light.

Wow.

She’d been in the city so long, with nothing but concrete, glass and unfriendly faces. This town looked like something out of a fairy tale.

A person like Delilah didn’t belong in a place like this.

Even the misty air tasted too pure.

A few minutes later she passed the Tarker’s Hollow College campus and a little village came into sight. It was just a train station and a block or two of small shops. The library seemed to be the largest building in the whole town.

Delilah glanced around, anxious to find a mechanic or service station.

She had hoped she’d be able to dump the car at a big franchise, but that wasn’t going to happen, which was too bad. Small town people asked too many questions. And this was a pretty fancy car.

But the low fuel light had kicked on when she was still on I-95, so she’d had to take the Tarker’s Hollow exit and hope for the best.

The village shops passed by quickly, and she found herself back in the residential section. The trip had