Page 21 of More Than Friends

“I’m your dad,” I tell her, letting my fingers drift underneath her.

She seems so fragile. I haven’t even picked her up yet, and I’m terrified I’m doing something wrong.

All she does is let out a little squeal. I think it’s an excited squeal. Or maybe she’s mad. I don’t know babies and their sounds enough to know the difference, but I do know she doesn’t look upset as I pull her out of the car seat and into my arms.

I cradle her head, not even knowing if it needs to be supported or not. I don’t know what I’m doing as I pull her into my chest. I’m probably already fucking this up, and she hasn’t even been in my care for five minutes.

Ava lets out another squeal, and I hope the sound is a happy one. I don’t want to already be messing this up.

The sound makes me smile as I bring my forehead to hers while cradling her gently. “Ava, I have no idea what I’m doing here, and I’m probably going to mess things up, but we’re going to figure this out. Okay, baby girl?”

I lean in and press my lips to her little forehead because it feels like the right thing to do.

“We’re going to figure this out,” I repeat, realizing the words are said more for my benefit than for hers.

ELEVEN

CHARLOTTE

“There’smy favorite bev cart girl!” Tony Baldwin cheers as I pull my cart up to him and the three men he’s golfing with.

I give them all a smile. “Need anything?” I ask, hoping they all say yes. It’s been a busy day here on the course, and I’ve welcomed it. At first, it sucked because I was still fighting a hangover, but there’s nothing that a little vitamin D and a yellow Gatorade won’t fix. Thirty minutes after my shift started, I forgot all about the hangover and have been raking in the tips. The only problem is, I’m almost done with my shift, and I haven’t heard from Jude once.

“We’d all love a Fireball shot,” Tony answers, walking up to the golf cart.

I nod and slide out of my seat. Tony was a regular when I worked at Pembroke Grill, and I know he’s a good tipper. Plus, he’s friendly without being creepy. “Anything else besides the shots?” I ask, opening the cabinet to pull out four shots.

“We’ll need four Transfusions as well.” I grimace, wondering if I still have enough grape juice to make the cocktail. Everybody on the course today has ordered one, and I’m trying to remember if I finished it off a couple of stops ago or not.

“I’ll have to check if I have enough juice for that,” I tell him, trying not to immediately jump and run to my phone the moment I hear it vibrate against the dash of my cart. I’ve been waiting for Jude to text me with some funny comment about the night before to break the ice.

“Popular day for Transfusions?” one of Tony’s companions asks as I hand out the shots. I know I should remember his name, but it’s slipped my mind.

I nod before stepping to the side to open the cooler and see if I have enough juice for their drinks. Luckily, I only have one more hole to drive by before I reach the pro shop, and then my shift is over.

I shift the ice around and look through the bottles in my cooler until I finally find one last grape juice bottle. I pull it out with a smile and look at Tony. “It looks like today’s your lucky day.”

He laughs. “Send that energy to my golfing as well. I can’t putt worth a damn today.”

I give him a sympathetic smile as I grab a bottle of vodka and a can of ginger ale. “Your day’s just starting though. You have time to get better.” I nod toward the shot he still holds in his hands. “Maybe that’ll make you putt better.”

He laughs before holding it up and waiting for his friends to do the same. They all clink their glasses together and sling the shots back as I finish making their drinks. I rip off the bottom of the straw wrappers and place them all in the lids before handing out each drink.

“Will this be charged to your member account?” I ask Tony, pulling out my work iPad.

Tony nods before setting his drink down on the counter of the bev cart and reaching into his back pocket. He pulls out a hundred-dollar bill and hands it over. “And this is for you, myfavoritebev cart girl.”

I give him a warm smile, thankful for his generous tip. “I’m totally going to tell Mia you said that.”

Tony’s mouth falls open. “You wouldn’t dare. She’s also my favorite.”

It’s my turn to feign that I’m upset. I’ve learned this job is a delicate balance of playful friendliness and banter. You want to skirt the edge of flirting without actually flirting. “Don’t go breaking my heart, Tony.” I take the money before putting it in the fanny pack around my waist. “And thank you for the tip.”

He swats at the air. “You deserve it. Just don’t tell Mia what I said.” He winks before grabbing his drink and stepping away.

I finish putting the transaction through before I make sure all my cabinets are closed and nothing’s loose. “You guys have a great rest of your day.” I walk around the cart and slide into my seat, anxious to pull my phone from the dashboard and check to see if it was Jude who texted me.

“Bye, Charlotte!” Tony calls as he follows his friends out to the green.