Perfect Grump (Bad Chicago Bosses)

“I want Quick Nick,” Millie sputters.

Yeah. No quiet time for me today.

“Hang on, Millie,” I say softly “I have to make a phone call.”

“Why?”

I hold up my hand so she’ll pipe down. I call Ward and get his voicemail, so I try Paige.

“Hey—do you know where Ward is?”

“I’d assume at the office? I’m at my studio. Is something wrong?”

“Nick’s gotten himself in...some kind of trouble. I’m not sure what. He basically just told me to stay out of it.” I don’t dare rattle off everything about the drugs or Carmen right now and invite more questions from little mouths.

Millie yanks at her car door, clearly frustrated. We’re still sitting in a parking garage. But it’s dark, and she’s tiny. No one would ever see her.

Thank God the child safety lock is on.

“Hang on, Paige.” I look into the back seat. “When you hear the car on, don’t touch the door, little lady.”

“Have to help Quick Nick. Save him from the bad hair lady,” she says.

“Millie, I’m working on it right now. Don’t you worry. Hang tight and let me help him.” I swallow a boulder in my throat.

Carmen Seraphina had better be upstairs for a damn good reason, because if not...this jackass didn’t just toy with me. He screwed with my niece’s head, and he’ll pay for that one.

“What happened, Reese? Is everything okay?” Paige’s voice is high-pitched and worried.

I lay my head on my hand. “I don’t know, honestly. He told me to call Ward and say he’d need bail.”

“Bail? Holy crap...are you okay?”

“I’m worried about Nick and—”

“Where are you?” she cuts in.

“The parking garage at Nick’s building. I tried to see him and haven’t left yet.” I hold in the rest of that story and it hurts.

“Why does Nick think he’s being arrested?” Paige demands.

“I don’t know. I have a few good guesses...but it’s not a good time or place.”

“Got it. We’ll get this squared away, whatever it is. Stay there, I’m coming to pick you up. I’ll call Ward. If he doesn’t answer, I’ll keep trying. He won’t ignore my calls twice,” she says, and I know she’s right.

I should just go home.

I’m sitting in a car with Millie already strapped to her car seat. I want to argue it makes no sense for Paige to come here.

But between the incident at the attorney’s office, the intensity of the scene with my sister, the shock of finding Nick and Carmen alone in his apartment covered in what looked like freaking cocaine...and the absolute terror that he’s in real trouble now, my focus is shot.

So I’ll let Paige come.

I’ll sit here in the driver’s seat with my head on the steering wheel and wait for an actual friend.

Ten minutes later, Paige pulls up behind Nick’s car. She honks the horn. I get out, take Millie with me, and then grab her car seat and get her situated in the back of Paige’s car.

“I’ve already called Ward,” she says as I settle into the passenger seat. “Nick hasn’t been booked yet, and we can’t post bail until that happens.”

“Okay.” I nod. “Thank you.”

“Also, um, I can’t help but notice you’re at Nick’s place in the middle of the evening after you took a sick day—”

“I wasn’t lying about not feeling well.”

Her eyes drift over to me, assessing.

“I can see that but you came to Nick’s with the kid for a reason, right?”

She sees right through me. There’s no point in holding back anything from her.

“We’ve...kinda been crashing at Nick’s place ever since a run-in with Abby’s ex. I thought it was safer if Millie and I stayed here.” If he wants to tell anyone more than that, let him.

I give Paige a quick summary of the custody worries with Will Frisk, and hint at how close he is to winding up in jail.

“What’s custy?” Millie asks.

Whoops. I wasn’t quiet enough. “To live with someone, Millie.”

“No! I only live with you or Mommy or Quick Nick now.”

Paige looks at me, smiles, and raises an eyebrow. “Quick Nick, huh? Looks like the nickname stuck.”

I blush.

While we drive, I tell her about the ruckus with Carmen in the sneakiest way I can with Millie’s little ears burning.

“Yikes. You’ve earned yourself a drink every night for the next year,” Paige says slowly, shaking her head. “Don’t worry, Reese, we’ll get this fixed.”

I try to force a smile. I want so badly to believe her, but there’s no easy way out of this.

I can’t even begin to process how close I almost came to losing Millie along with Nick.

And I have lost him, haven’t I?

“Where are we going?” I ask, hoping to change the subject.

“Our house on the lake. There’s plenty of room, and if Nick is worried about you and Millie being alone, you won’t be there.” She’s quiet for a minute. “I will say he’s gone out of his way to protect you and the kidlet, even if it was in his own ham-fisted Nick Brandt way. I’m not sure why that b—” She stops and glances at Millie in the back seat. “Beyotch showed up, but...I think he cares about you, Reese.”