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“You and Scotty can go,” Colt said. “You don’t need me tagging along. Besides, my presence will only get Daryl riled up all over again. He needs some time to cool down and let Donna work her magic. She has a way of getting him right-minded when nothing else will. I’ll stay here and get things ready for you and your little one. Will you be moving in tonight?”
“Yes. If that’s all right?” I asked him.
“That’s perfect,” he said, with a grin and a snigger. I got the feeling he was happy about his new living situation.
“I start working tomorrow night, and I want to know where I’m headed after my shift. I’m hoping Auntie Donna will keep Darci overnight on my work nights, and I’ll pick her up in the morning. That way, I won’t have to wake anybody up in the middle of the night. But tonight, she’ll stay here, with me, in my room… just until my days off. I don’t want to rush her into anything, and sleeping alone, in her own room might be tough for her to get used to. But I should warn you, she’s a light sleeper and cries when she first wakes up. That’s why I was out on the porch with her last night. She couldn’t sleep.”
“That’s okay. I have earplugs. You do whatever you have to do with her. Consider this your home, CindyLou.”
“Thanks,” I told him and thought about kissing him when Scotty interrupted.
“Okay then. Let’s do this,” Scotty said, and we took off to start my independence.
SPENDING THE DAY with Scotty Belmont proved to be more interesting than I had anticipated. His sense of humor charmed me right from the beginning when I was trying to decide on which crib.
“When do kids move into a real bed?” Scotty wanted to know as we stood in the middle of an aisle loaded down with an assortment of cribs.
“I don’t know. Maybe when they’re two or two and a half.”
“And how old is Darci now?”
“Eleven months.”
“And how long do you plan on staying in Sweet Whiskey?”
“It’s my new home, Scotty.”
“I’m taking that to mean you’ll be here for Darci’s second birthday.”
“That’s the plan.”
“Then shouldn’t we be looking at these beds? The ones that convert into something called a toddler bed? Isn’t that for a two-year-old?”
I went over to him and sure enough, they were perfect but double the price. “I can’t afford any of these.”
“Maybe not now, but do you have any idea how much a bartender makes at Dirty Coyote on the weekends?”
I shook my head.
“A lot. Enough so you won’t have to worry about the price of a bed for Darci.”
I had a hard time believing that. I barely made enough at my last job to cover all my expenses, and that was the best bar job I’d ever had.
“That can’t be true. There’s a bed here for six hundred dollars. I didn’t think Walmart carried anything, other than maybe some electronics, worth six hundred dollars.”
From the picture, the bed would be perfect for Darci for several years to come, so it was a great investment… if I had that kind of money… which I didn’t.
“They’ve upgraded.”
It killed me, but I wanted to tell him the truth. “Wow! I can’t even afford Walmart anymore.”
He grinned like he knew something I didn’t. I had to admit, I was attracted to this man. Always had been. Not quite as much as the Colt attraction, but enough so that I knew I’d have a hard time choosing between them, if it ever came down to it… which it never would, so I had to stop thinking about how adorable he was.
“Yes, you can. You can buy several of these beds in just one long weekend after working at the Coyote. So, which one do you want? I’ll front you the money for a couple of days.”
He couldn’t be telling the truth. If he were, I’d just landed a dream job, and I should be taking it much more seriously.
“Please don’t bullshit me, Scotty. This is too important. Are you telling me that I’m going to make about twenty-five hundred dollars in just three days?”
