"Puppies?" Faith asked after finishing off the last of her milk. "Please?"
"Oh, sweetie, we just got back from the park." Now that she was back in the house, Mina realized she was zonked. Considering all she'd done was sit on a bench in a park and then sit on a stool in the kitchen, she had nothing to complain about. But, honestly, childcare was hard, and her respect for Brent shot up a few more notches.
"Damnations," Faith protested, as Mina's eyes widened with surprise that bubbled into laughter.
"Dalmatians," she corrected. "And if you know where your dad keeps the DVD, we can put it on."
It turned out not to be a DVD, it was a digital movie, and Faith had the TV on and found the video in five seconds flat. Soon, she was happily ensconced on the couch, with Mina and Cam on either side of her. She wiggled and squirmed as she got sleepier, and eventually she was lying across them, her head in Mina's lap, and her legs sprawled across Cameron.
Since the one thing that Mina was certain of about childcare was that kids without naps could be grumpy little beasts, she feared moving Faith and waking her. So they stayed on the couch, their hands clasped on the little girl's back, as they finished watching the movie.
It was the last reprieve before Faith's bedtime. She woke from her nap completely invigorated. And between stories, baking cookies, playing chase in the backyard, and building a massive pillow fort, she ran both Mina and Cam ragged. So much so that when Brent got home at just before three in the morning, he found his daughter and her babysitters asleep on top of a pile of pillows that had only recently been a massive Scottish keep.
"Just stay," Brent said when Mina peeled her eyes open. "I'll fix breakfast in the morning."
And Mina, who was still half-asleep and too exhausted to argue, nodded, pressed one hand on Faith's back, took Cam's hand with her other, and fell back to sleep.
Chapter Nine
"I've barely seen you or my sister since Saturday," Darryl said on Wednesday when he slid into the booth opposite Cameron at Pizza Mambo, a new pizza by the slice place just a few blocks from the Federal Building.
"She wrangled me into babysitting with her. Although, technically, I think Brent wrangled her into babysitting a few more days than she'd originally planned."
"Brent. That's the security guy, right? The cute one?"
"Yes, and if you say so. And before you ask, I'm pretty sure he's straight. And I definitely know he has no time for anything but work and his kid."
Darryl took a sip of his Dr. Pepper. "Considering how busy the judge has me already, I'm pretty sure I won't be dating until after my clerkship."
"But you like it?"
"Yeah, it's great. The judge and the other clerks are terrific." He lifted a shoulder. "But even if they weren't, it would be worth it. A Federal Clerkship is resume gold."
Cam nodded, but he was thinking of Mina and her laser-like focus on getting to LA. As far as she was concerned, the Austin job she'd be starting soon was only a stepping-stone to bigger and better things, even though the small studio had a successful record and an impressive team.
Of course, Cam knew the twins' father, so he knew how important career was in the family. And he'd also seen the way father and brother doted on Mina. And, frankly, he understood the need to succeed. To live up to the bar set by a parent or, in his case, an older sibling.
Still, he couldn't help but think her career path was a road that led far, far away from him. He just didn't know how long it would be before she started walking it.
Christmas, a little voice in his head whispered. And even though he knew that they'd moved past that conversation--and even though she'd pulled the date out of a hat in the first place--he couldn't help but feel like the end was already barreling down on them even though they'd only barely gotten started.
"--you into it."
"Sorry," Cam said. "What?"
"I said thanks for letting her drag you into it. Even though I'm confident she could handle a five-year-old, I'm sure it's a lot easier with you along."
"It's been fun, too. Over the last couple of days, we took Faith ice-skating, to the Children's Museum, to the zoo, and we rented a paddleboat. Basically, we wore the poor kid out. But she loved it."
He'd loved it, too. Mostly because every day when they'd returned to Brent's house, Faith conked out. Which meant that he and Mina had plenty of time to talk on the couch or drink coffee on the back porch or just watch a movie while they recovered from dealing with a five-year-old.
They'd held hands and laughed together, and it had felt ridiculously domestic and wonderful. And while he had no desire for kids of his own yet, there was a sweetness to the situation that had bubbled inside him, like a shiny promise for the future that he could tuck away.
A promise that became more and more tarnished whenever he thought about Mina's stated goal to get to LA, and her plan to use her upcoming job in Austin as a stepping stone.
But that was a long way off. She didn't even start the job for another week, and the point was to get experience. She wouldn't even begin looking for LA-based jobs for at least a year, maybe two.
And who knew what could happen in a year? Hell, so much had already happened in only a week.