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Tinkers were made after Hadley worked her magic! Alsoooo, I gotta thank all of the ladies who put up with my endless nagging over this story lol—Paige, Sarai, Abby, Pamela, May, Heba, Mel, & Mich. What would I do without y'all?!

See you Thursday!

7

My phone rings at two in the morning, and I blink against the bright screen.

It's Chelsea.

"What's wrong?" I immediately ask, sleep in my voice.

I can hear Riley crying in the background, and then I hear that Chelsea is crying, too.

"Can you come over?" She sniffles into the line.

I sit up against the headboard, and Bella shifts in bed next to me, but stays asleep.

"Is Riley sick?" I ask, throat dry, trying to wake up enough to focus.

"Yeah. She woke up with a fever, and she won't take Tylenol. She only wants you," Chelsea mumbles. "Can you come?"

"Shit. Okay." I scrub a hand over my face.

"I've been trying to have her take the medicine for an hour, but she just—"

"Chels, it's fine. Let me get dressed, and I'll head over."

"Thank you. Daddy's coming, baby, it's okay," Chelsea says to Riley before she hangs up.

I leave the bed and throw on the T-shirt and jeans I wore to the brewery last night.

"What's going on?" Bella murmurs, her eyes still closed.

"Riley's got a fever," I say quietly. "I'm sorry, but I need to go over there."

She stirs, opening her eyes a little. "Oh, no. What time is it?"

"Like two."

I move to her side of the bed and crouch down so our faces are close.

"You can stay," I murmur. "I'll be back."

She blinks at me sleepily. "You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure I'll be back."

Her laugh is tired. "You're sure I can stay?"

"Yeah. Go back to sleep."

I think about kissing her then don't. But when her fingers brush my jaw then clutch the collar of my T-shirt, I give her a quick peck on the lips.

The drive to Chelsea's is quick, the roads empty and quiet. I park in the driveway behind her car then jog up to the front door and use my key.

Riley's still crying when I walk into my old bedroom, Chelsea lying next to her.

"Daddy," Riley whimpers, the sound cutting straight to my heart.

"Sorry you don't feel good, Peanut," I say gently, sitting on the edge of the bed. "The medicine will make you feel better, though." Chelsea nods toward the nightstand where the Tylenol and plastic measuring cup are sitting. "Will you take it for Daddy?"

"No-o," she cries, rubbing her eyes with her fists. She's exhausted but fighting it.

I feel her forehead. "She's burning up," I say aloud.

"I know." Chelsea sighs, looking exhausted herself.

After a little more convincing and one tiny bribe of ice cream when she eventually feels better, Riley sits up and takes the medicine, washing it down with water. Chelsea thanks me and kisses Riley's forehead after smoothing back her wispy blonde hair.

I stand from the mattress and slip into the attached bathroom to put the Tylenol away and to rinse the cup. When I open the medicine cabinet, I notice an orange pill bottle inside. I'm curious, so I quickly look at the label. I know Chels was taking Zoloft a couple of years ago, but I didn't know she got back on it.

"Daddy stay," Riley begs when I'm back in the room. I wasn't gonna leave necessarily, but I also wasn't gonna stay in here.

"Can you?" Chelsea asks.

"Yeah…" I think of Bella alone in my bed, but I know Riley needs me more. I type Bella a quick text that I'll be a little while longer. I know she might not see it, but I send it anyway. Chelsea watches me curiously, but she doesn't ask.

I untie my boots and crawl into bed next to Ri just as Chelsea gets up from the mattress.

Riley whimpers. "Mommy stay, too."

Chelsea looks at me, like she would stay if I let her.

I'm not gonna tell her not to in front of Riley, but I hope she can read my expression—that if she stays in bed with us, I'm not gonna be fucking thrilled.

"I'll be back," she says gently. "Stay with Daddy." She shuts the door, leaving us in the dark.

Riley snuggles closer, and I hold her, feeling exhaustion kicking back in for me. I sigh, wondering if I can get a couple more hours of sleep before I have to go back home and get ready for work.

I think about Bella again. I feel bad leaving her there, but she seemed to understand. This is why it would be hard for me to actually be with someone, to have a relationship. I wouldn't know how to be all in. I'm never going to be fully present or available when Riley needs me. But that's the way it should be.

"Daddy?"

I close my eyes and softly stroke her hair. "Yeah, baby?"

She doesn't say anything and just buries her little face into my neck. I don't move until she grows sweaty, and I hear her breathing steady, letting it lull me into sleep, too.

When I wake up, it's just starting to get light outside. Glancing at my phone, I see it's six minutes before my alarm. I turn it off, not wanting it to eventually sound and disturb Riley.

I feel her forehead. It's still warm, but it's not as hot as a few hours ago. I carefully slip out of bed, leaving her there and grabbing my boots.

When I pass by the living room, I see Chelsea sleeping on the couch. Rounding the corner into the kitchen, I find her mom sitting on the built-in bench in the breakfast nook. Soft morning light filters in through the window behind her.

"Morning, Vera," I say quietly. She looks up from her book and smiles gently, her head wrapped in a cover to hide the side effects of the chemo.

"How's Riley?" she whispers.

"Still sleeping. She might need more Tylenol when she wakes up. Can you let Chels know?"

"Will do."

Bending over, I step into my boots and groan softly. I straighten and stretch a little, wincing at the tightness in my lower back. It's a little worse today from sleeping at a weird angle with Ri.

"How're you doing?" I ask Vera.

She shrugs. "I could complain, but that takes energy I don't have."

I nod, unsure of what to say as I sit down at the table and lean over to tie my boots. "You need anything?"

She shakes her head. "No, but… Chelsea told me you got upset over the whole bath thing."

I look her in the eyes. "Yeah."

"Riley wasn't in there by herself for long," Vera promises. "You know she wouldn't do anything to hurt Riley."

"I know," I agree. Just because Chels wasn't a great wife doesn't mean she's a bad mom. I know this.

"I'm not trying to make excuses, but Chelsea's been having a hard time lately," Vera confides, and I think of the Zoloft prescription in the medicine cabinet. "Between the divorce and taking care of me… endless appointments." She pauses. "That's why I'm thinking of stopping treatment."

"What?"

Her gaze grows distant. "The tumors aren't going away. This isn't how I want to spend the last part of my life. Sick and exhausted and a burden."

I swallow the lump in my throat. "Vera."

She holds up a hand. "Chelsea needs her life back. She needs to raise Riley and move on. She doesn't need to be looking after me."

Grief twists my insides. "You know she'd do anything for you."

"I know. I do know. But it ain't doing any good now."

My knee bounces nervously. "Does Chels know that you're thinking of stopping treatment?"

Vera just shakes her head again, her expression somber. "Not yet."

"Christ." I drop my head in my hands. I wish I could offer some support or say something inspirational to get her to keep fighting. Words fail me though. My chest hurts.

I think back to just four years ago, when we suddenly lost Chelsea's dad. Watching Vera and Chelsea mourn him was devastating. I can't imagine how Chels is going to cope with eventually losing her mom now, too.

"What's wrong?" Chelsea asks, suddenly in the kitchen. I sit up as she glances between her mom and me.

I look at Vera who doesn't seem interested in telling her daughter her plan yet. So I keep my mouth shut, too.

"Nothing," I lie, my heart fucking heavy.

"You heading out?" Chelsea asks, yawning. "I could make breakfast."

"It's okay. I gotta go." I need to get back to Bella and get ready, so I'm not late for work.

"Thanks for coming over to help," she mumbles. "Seriously."

"Of course. Keep me posted on how she's doing. I think the fever might be coming back, and she shouldn't go to camp today. My mom should be around and can take Riley if you need to be at any appointments with Vera."

Chelsea nods, her eyes on her mom. "We have one around noon. I'll call Esme in a bit."

"I'll probably be back here tomorrow. I wanted to install that new garbage disposal for you, anyway."

"Sounds good." She starts a pot of coffee. "Thank you."

I grab my phone, give Vera's shoulder a gentle squeeze, and then I'm on my way.

=.=.=

It's not quite 6:30 when I'm finally back home. Bella's awake and sitting on the couch, mug in one hand, phone in the other.

"Hey," she says, wearing my shirt and nothing else. Not that I can see, anyway.

"You're up." My eyes are on her bare legs, and I drop my keys in the bowl by the door. "Sorry it took me so long. Riley wanted me to lie down with her, and I passed out."

"It's totally fine. I got your text. I made coffee—hope you don't mind."

"Not at all." I move into the kitchen to pour myself a cup then sit next to her on the couch.

"How's your daughter?" she asks.

"I don't really know. I think her fever went down a little. She was asleep when I left." I think of the time she had a fever when she was just a baby, and how Chelsea and I had to spend the night with her in the ER. That feels like a lifetime ago.

"I hope she's okay," Bella says kindly.

"Thanks. Me too."

We drink coffee in silence, but it doesn't feel heavy or awkward.

"What time do you usually have to be at work?" she asks.

"Well, when you're not distracting me," I say with a smirk, thinking of the last morning we spent together, "I'm usually there at 7:30."

There's a fucking sparkle in her eyes. "You enjoyed the distraction."

"You're right." I hold her gaze, wondering if she's gonna try to distract me this morning, too. "Doesn't take me long to get there, but I gotta leave a little early today to drop you off at home and pick up one of the guys I work with."

"I can Uber."

I shake my head, laughing a little. "Let me be your Uber."

She raises her brows. "You want me to pay you to give me a ride home, hm?"

I smirk. "It's not money I'm after."

"Oh. Sexual favors?"

I fully laugh now. "Nah. Just… you."

She leans closer. "Is that your way of saying you wanna see me again?"

I don't actually know what the fuck I'm saying or doing. But that's kinda what she does to me, I guess. She disarms me. Surprises me. When I'm with her, it feels like I can forget about all the shit that weighs me down. So, yeah, I do want to see her again.

"I'd like that."

"Me, too," she says softly.

"Yeah?"

She rolls her eyes. "You're so surprised?"

"Kinda. I thought you'd be a little pissed that I had to run out on you in the middle of the night."

"Well, I'm not pissed. I get it."

"I appreciate that." Relief takes over. "I don't know how good I'll be at, uh, juggling all of this." She waits for me to expand, maybe. "Work and a kid and finding time to see you."

"You worry too much," she says simply.

I chuckle. "Maybe, yeah."

"Don't put so much pressure on yourself. Or this, you know? We can hang when we both have time. If we want."

She makes it seem so easy.

And maybe it is easy.

So, I say, "Okay."

"Okay."

She stands up from the couch and takes my mug from me. I watch her curiously, but I let her place it on the coffee table. I'm about to ask what she's doing when she lifts the shirt over her head. I was right—she isn't wearing anything else underneath.

"So, do you have time for a shower?" she asks, eyes dark and glazed over.

My mind goes blank. I have to touch her. I reach out and smooth my hands up her waist, over her ribcage, my thumbs brushing her nipples.

"I, uh… I don't usually shower before work since I'm gonna get dirty, anyway."

"That's fine," she murmurs. "This won't be the kind of shower where you get clean."

=.=.=

"You're late again," Jared says, climbing into my truck.

I pull away from the curb before his seatbelt is even buckled.

We aren't gonna be late, but we definitely won't be early.

"It's only 7:20. We'll make it on time."

"Whatever you say," he says with a laugh then adds, "Casanova."

"Ha fucking ha."

"You're screwing that brunette, right?"

"No," I lie.

"Then what was that whole spiel about 'shut your fucking mouths when she walks by' the other day?"

"She's a friend."

"Oh. 'A friend.'" He uses air quotes around that word. "Just tell me."

"And risk the chance of you running your big fat fucking mouth to everyone at work? Pass."

He snickers. "She must not be that good if there's nothin' to tell."

He's so fucking wrong.

I think about the shower this morning. Her hair piled on top of her head, so it wouldn't get wet as she dropped to her knees to take me into her mouth. And when it was my turn to return the favor, the way she hitched her leg over my shoulder and held onto the shower rod for leverage.

I smile to myself now. Her hair ended up getting wet anyway, but she said it was worth it.

"You daydreaming over there, bud?" Jared asks.

My smile doesn't fade, but I ignore him. He can push for details and make assumptions all he wants.

I'm not gonna tell him shit about Bella.