Waiting for Willa

by Kristen Proby

O’Donnel’s Pizza is our favorite place. They’ve been here for about fifty years, family-owned all that time, and their crust is the best in the world. The restaurant’s busy, even for a Tuesday evening, but we get a table right away.

  Max and Alex decide on an extra large supreme, and I agree. I am hungry.

  “Are you okay?” Max asks after he gives Alex five dollars for video games.

  “You didn’t have to do that,” I say.

  “The kid’s happy and occupied with Pac-Man—which I can’t believe they still have—and I can chat with his mom. It’s a win-win.”

  I sigh and nod. Max has a valid point.

  “I’m okay. It was a rough day.”

  “What’s up?”

  “Besides my car dying on the highway?”

  He nods and sips his Coke.

  “My employee quit today. Alex’s homework is of the devil, and he’s only in the third grade, and I’ve had a headache all day.”

  “You need food,” he says.

  “I need a part-time employee,” I answer.

  “I’m surprised you don’t have more help.”

  “I do during the holidays,” I reply. “And in the summer, I’ll hire a couple of high school girls. But it’s the off-season, and one person has been enough. I’ll have my mom come take care of things when I take Alex on vacation.”

  He just nods, his wheels clearly turning. Max’s business is on a much grander scale than mine. He probably has ten employees who manage his money alone.

  “I’m a small business,” I remind him.

  “I totally get it,” he says. “I was just trying to think if I know anyone who might need some part-time work.”

  “Well, if you do, send them my way.”

  “Mom! I got the high score!”

  “What?” I frown and glance over at the game to see HIGH SCORE flashing on the screen. “How is that even possible?”

  “I’m brilliant,” he says as he sits in the booth next to me. The waitress arrives with our pizza, and we dig in, all of us sighing in happiness after the first bite. “This is so good.”

  “So good,” I agree and move Alex’s glass away from his elbow, where I have visions of him spilling it all over the table. “Here’s a napkin. Don’t wipe your mouth on your sleeve.”

  “’Kay,” he says happily.

  It doesn’t take us long to fill up on the delicious pizza, then we load up to leave.

  “I’ll take you home,” Max offers.

  “Thanks.”

  He makes sure Alex and I are both buckled in before he pulls off, headed toward my house.

  “It’s snowed a ton in the hour we were in there,” I say, surprised that the roads are completely covered.

  “They were calling for it,” Max says with a nod. “When will you find out about your car?”

  “Not until tomorrow afternoon.” I blow out a breath. “I’ll call my mom and ask her if I can borrow her vehicle.”

  “No need,” Max says. “I have an extra car you can have until this is resolved.”

  “Absolutely not,” I reply, shaking my head.

  “So, your mom can be without her vehicle indefinitely?” he asks, and I glare at him, making his lips twitch. “And we have a plethora of car rental places in Cunningham Falls.”

  “You’re a pain in the butt,” I say, making him chuckle.

  “The car will be at your place in the morning.”

  I sigh, thinking about everything I have to do tomorrow. Being carless isn’t an option.

  “I’ll pay you for it.”

  He glances over at me and cocks a brow, then glances back at Alex, who’s fallen asleep in the backseat.

  “Are you trying to piss me off?”

  “I would pay for a rental.”

  “Willa, I’m not using the fucking car,” he says quietly. “Just don’t kill it, and I’ll be happy. I don’t want or need your money.”

  “Thank you,” I say as he pulls into my circular driveway. “And thanks for rescuing us. And for the pizza.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  He hops out when I do and helps me pull a sleepy Alex from the backseat.

  “Where is your shovel?” Max asks.

  I turn to him to tell him not to worry about it, but he just narrows his eyes at me.

  “In the garage. I’ll open the door for you.”

  He nods, and I walk inside, set Alex on his bed, then hurry over to open the garage door. When I return to Alex, he’s stripped out of his clothes, but he’s sitting on the side of the bed, falling asleep.

  “It was a busy day,” I say as I tug his pajama top over his head. “Step into the pants, and you can go to sleep.”

  “I’m not tired,” he insists, the way he does every night. But once his pants are pulled on, and he’s gone to the bathroom, he hops into bed, and his eyes close immediately.

  “Goodnight, Bubba.”

  “’Night,” he says. I shut off his light, but make sure the nightlight comes on before leaving his door open just a crack. I walk out to find that Max has cleared the snow off of my porch and the walkway to the driveway.

  “You are my hero this evening.”

  He smiles at me as he leans the shovel against the wall of the porch.

  “Would you like to come in and warm up?” I ask.

  His nose is rosy from the cold, and his brown eyes hold mine as he nods his head.

  “I’ll make you some coffee,” I offer.

  “I’d better not,” he says with a sigh. He reaches out to tuck a piece of my hair behind my ear, sending a shiver down my arms. He smiles softly. “But I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Okay.” I swallow hard, not sure what else to say. I haven’t done this in years. I’m not even sure what this is. Flirting?

  Probably.

  “What are you thinking so hard about?” he asks.

  “I don’t even know,” I reply honestly. “Thanks again for everything.”

  “You’re welcome.” He smiles and turns to jog down the freshly shoveled steps to his sexy SUV. “Sleep well, Wills.”

  “You, too.”

  I watch him drive away, then go inside and lean against the closed door.

  Oh, my.

  Chapter Four

  ~Willa~

  “MAX IS HERE!” Alex exclaims, holding his Eggo waffle and dripping syrup on his hand while he presses his nose against the glass of the window in the front door. “He’s shoveling.”

  “Get over here and finish your breakfast,” I reply, craning my neck to look outside. Sure enough, Max is out there, shoveling away. It snowed about eight inches last night.

  “Alex, sit down and eat, then get your socks and shoes on,” I say and grab my jacket. “I’m going to say hello to Max.”

  “I want to say hello.”

  “After you finish getting ready,” I insist, then give him the stern Mom look.

  “Yes, ma’am,” he mumbles, nibbling on his waffle.

  “Thank you.” I walk onto the front porch and grin when Max glances over his shoulder at me. “Good morning.”

  “Yes, it is,” he says with a grin. Good God, that expression can still stop me at fifty paces.

  “Hi, Noah,” I call out to Noah King, who I’ve also known most of my life. “You guys don’t have to shovel.”

  “I’ll bring a snowblower next time,” Max says.

  “It’s not a problem,” Noah assures me. “Sorry to hear about your car.”

  “Thanks. Hopefully, it’ll be a quick fix.”

  Noah nods, then tosses his shovel in the back of his truck after he finishes the last pass down my walkway.

  “I’ll be right there,” Max says to him, then turns to me. “Here is the key fob. You can toss it into your purse and forget about it. You don’t need it out to drive the car.”

  “That’s a Range Rover,” I inform him with a frown.

  “Would you prefer the Mercedes?” he asks. “I can switch them out today if so.”

  “No. No,
that’s not it at all.” Good God, I’d be even more nervous to drive that car. “This is a Range Rover SUV, Max.”

  He glances at the vehicle, then back at me with a frown. “Yeah?”

  “Never mind,” I reply, shaking my head.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. Thank you for loaning it to me.”

  I’m not about to admit to him that driving a car that cost him six figures intimidates the hell out of me. I silently hope and pray that my SUV will be ready quickly.

  “Anytime,” he says with that charming smile. “Keep it as long as you need it. Do you want me to go over anything with you?”

  “I’ve been driving for a long time,” I remind him, making him laugh.

  “Yeah, but every vehicle is different. I can show you some things.”

  “I’ll be fine,” I insist and see Noah glance at us from inside his truck. “Besides, it looks like Noah needs to get a move on.”

  “Just call if you need anything,” Max says before leaning in to kiss my cheek, setting my body on fire.

  Holy Moses, that hasn’t happened in a long time.

  “Wait!” Alex yells as he runs outside, two different boots on his feet, and no coat on. “I didn’t get to say hi yet.”

  “Well, good morning to you,” Max says and ruffles Alex’s hair. “Did you sleep well?”

  “Oh, yeah,” he says with a nod. “I could help shovel.”

  I smile at my sweet son. He’s always been so ready to jump in and help. He’s kind and gracious.

  “Noah and I had it covered this time,” Max replies with a nod. “But I’ll take you up on that next time.”

  “Cool,” Alex says with a smile. “I even have my own shovel.”

  “It’s cold out here,” I remind my son, but lean in and kiss his head, breathing in his clean scent. “And we have to get going soon. Did you finish your breakfast?”

  “Yeah,” he says with a nod. “I’m ready to go.”

  “We need to fix your boot situation, and you need a coat,” I inform him with a laugh. “Thanks again, Max. I’ll let you know when I hear from the garage.”

  “No problem. See you later, Alex.”

  “Bye!” Alex waves and hurries back inside, slamming the door behind him.

  “See you, Wills,” Max says with a wink.

  “Bye, Max.” I wave and follow my son into the house to find that while he did finish his breakfast, he also dumped his backpack on the floor. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m just reorganizing things really quick.”

  “Alex, we don’t have time for this. Get everything back into your bag and find your matching boot.”

  “Which one?”

  “Either one.” I take a deep breath and remind myself that I’ll look back on these moments one day and miss them.

  Why are mornings always such a battle?

  “You have four minutes,” I inform Alex as I tidy up the last of the breakfast mess, pull on my own boots, and fill my favorite travel mug with fresh coffee.

  It says Girl Boss on the side and was a gift from Jenna, who has a thing for fun mugs.

  “Can I have a drink on the way?” Alex asks, watching me put the lid on my mug.

  “Sure,” I reply. “If you can get yourself together in two minutes.”

  “I can!” He rushes off, and I pull a disposable cup out of the pantry, brew a cup of hot chocolate in the Keurig, and add some marshmallows to the top before securing the lid. I set it aside to let it cool.

  “I do believe we’re on time for once,” I inform Alex with a smile as we walk out into the snow. I lock the door behind us, and we climb into Max’s fancy car.

  “Wow, this is super rad,” Alex says with a grin. “Max has cool cars.”

  “Yes, he does,” I mutter as I search for the ignition. Max mentioned it’s a push-button start, and I find the ignition switch by the steering wheel.

  The car roars to life, and I smile back at my kiddo. “It has vroom.”

  Alex is playing with his eyetooth.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s loose,” he says.

  Good. That one has been stubborn. “Don’t mess with it too much. I don’t want it to fall out and have you bleed all over Max’s car.”

  Alex giggles, and I reach over to adjust the mirrors, but the side ones are folded in.

  “Hmm, how do I get the mirrors out?” I frown, but can’t find the button. It’s not in the place it should be. So, I abandon the mirrors and plan to just use the rear-view and be extra cautious.

  But then I go to put the car in gear, and there is no gear shift.

  None.

  Nada.

  “Well, crap.”

  “What’s wrong, Mom?”

  “I don’t know how to put the car in gear,” I mutter, getting frustrated. Maybe I should have had Max show me how to drive this damn thing, after all. I had no idea that newer cars were so high-tech. I’ve ridden in plenty of them, but I’ve never had to pay attention because I wasn’t the driver.

  Besides, my car is only five years old. It’s not ancient.

  “You’re going to be so late if I can’t figure this out,” I mutter as Alex whips his seatbelt off and leans forward, helping me search.

  “Here are the letters,” he says, pointing to the console to my right. “Push on that circle.”

  Sure enough, it pops up, and when I turn it to the right, it shifts into Drive.

  I just had to have an eight-year-old show me how to drive a car.

  Is it too early for wine?

  “Thanks, Bubba. Get in your belt.”

  He grins proudly and buckles up, and we’re off. The ride into town is interesting as the car beeps and pulls me away from the lines, trying to drive for me.

  I’m definitely having my own car fixed. I’m not ready for this technology.

  “My seat heats up,” Alex says with excitement. I have to admit, it is comfortable. And when it’s not beeping, it drives smoothly.

  I suppose I could learn to drive it if I had to.

  I pull up to Alex’s school, and he leans over to kiss my cheek before he jumps out of the car and runs toward the teacher at the door. She smiles and waves at me before I pull away and drive the short distance to my shop.

  I climb out of the Range Rover and scowl at it as I gather my things and hurry inside. The snow has picked up again, falling in huge flakes the size of quarters.

  It’s pretty, but it’ll be slick to drive in later.

  Once inside, I go about my usual routine of flipping on lights and pulling the cash drawer out of the safe and getting it set up. I lay out more coffee pods and make sure the water reservoir is full, then I rearrange a few of the displays to freshen the place up a bit.

  Before it’s time to open, I check my email to see if anyone has responded to my ad for part-time help and smile when I see three messages from potential employees.

  After calling all three and setting up times for interviews, I flip on the Open sign and get ready for another day in paradise.

  ***

  “But I only wore it three times.” I’m holding a sweater that a customer is trying to return, staring at the burn hole in the hem. “It wasn’t my fault that my boyfriend’s fire sparked and it landed on me.”

  But it was my fault?

  “Well, I’m glad that you weren’t burned,” I begin, keeping my temper in check. Alex comes running in the front door. He hurries over to me and drops his book bag behind the counter, then leans in and hugs me.

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “Hi, buddy. Go get your snack and then get started on your homework.”

  “Okay. I need help with the math.” He hurries away, and I sigh. Today has been another rough one. I’ve been busy in the shop, which is good, but the customers have been moody and demanding, much like the one standing before me now. And, of course, the garage called to tell me that my car won’t be ready for two weeks.

  “What are you going to do about this?”
the customer asks impatiently.

  “Honestly? I’m not going to do anything about it except say I’m sorry that it happened to you. There’s no defect in the sweater.”

  “I only wore it three times, and this sweater was more than a hundred dollars.”

  “It sucks,” I agree with a nod.

  “I won’t shop here again.” She glares at me, rips the sweater from my hands, and stomps out of my store.

  I breathe a sigh of relief.

  “I don’t think you’ll miss her,” Cara King says with a kind smile as she sets a pair of jeans on the counter. Cara is married to Josh King, an older cousin of Noah and Gray King.

  The King family is big and has deep roots in Cunningham Falls.

  Cara is a teacher in town and a kind woman. She’s been a great customer.

  “I think you’re right.”

  Once I have the jeans folded and in the bag, I add a pretty pink bow and wish Cara a good day.

  “Mom, I need help.”

  “I know, buddy. Let me just finish with these customers.”

  Alex sighs and takes a bite of his apple. He’s always patient about sharing me with the shop. It was an adjustment for both of us.

  The bell above the door dings, and I shrug. “I’m sorry, buddy, it’s busy today.”

  “Hey, Max,” Alex says with a smile. “Can you help me with my math?”

  “Alex,” I admonish and shake my head at Max. “Sorry about that.”

  “Does he need help with his math?” Max asks.

  “Yes,” Alex says.

  “No,” I say at the same time, and Max cocks an eyebrow.

  “I do too,” Alex insists. “But Mom’s too busy with customers.”

  I shrug a shoulder. “I’ll get to it in just a few. Don’t worry about it.”

  “Alex, you go get ready, and I’ll be right there,” Max says without looking away from me.

  “Awesome,” Alex says and hurries away to his little desk in my office.

  “How are you?” Max asks, watching me closely.

  “I’m totally fine,” I lie easily and smile at Maisey Henderson, who just walked in with her sister, Brooke.

  Max cocks his head to the side, then walks around to stand next to me.

  “What’s going on?” he asks.

  “Just working.”

  He brushes his knuckles down my cheek, and I swallow hard.