I shut the liquor cabinet. “You take this nanny business seriously.”
“Shouldn’t I? Isn’t that why you hired me? Because I would do a good job and treat Paige preciously?”
She sounds defensive, which makes me feel defensive because I put her in a bad spot. I try to rewind. “You’re right. I’m a dumbass, which is why you’re here. I don’t know nothing about raising a kid. Could barely tie Paige’s hair up in a ponytail. Got the answer wrong to a simple question. Picked out a depressing book. I used to think Johnny was a useless piece of shit, but parenting is hard. I got to hand it to him. He’s kept Paige alive for five years, and she’s not fucked up. He’s doing something right. How about some hot chocolate? My mom always drinks a cup before bed.”
“A cup of hot chocolate would be good.” She rubs her hands along her thighs. I wonder if she’s nervous, but what does she have to be nervous about? It’s not like I’m going to jump her even if I want to—which I do—but I have to wait three weeks. Waiting is okay. It’s not my favorite thing in the world, but sometimes you’ve got to put off what you want for a greater reward later. I go to the kitchen, and her voice follows me. “I think you’re doing fine with Paige. Her hair was cute this morning, and she likes the story you read her. She just said that because she wanted to prolong storytime. You are a softie when it comes to her.”
“Is that what she was doing? The little trickster.” I smile to myself as I plug in the kettle. “Paige is clever, right? And smart. I don’t know of another kid as smart as her. Johnny’s barely got two rocks rubbing together upstairs and even those are worn down from all the hits he’s taken. If Paige didn’t look like him, I’d have some doubts about her parentage.”
“She looks like him? Paige is so pretty.” Honey leans over the back of the sofa and watches me. I like having her eyes on me. I’d like her to watch me fight. I hear it’s a turn-on for a lot of women. That’s what the other fighters say. I wouldn’t know since I don’t pay them much attention.
“So is Johnny,” I reply dryly. I fill the kettle with water and find the hot chocolate packets my mom likes so much. As I wait for the water to boil, I ask, “Johnny never showed up at school, huh?” I guess I was right in that he never laid eyes on Honey. If he had, he would’ve made a move, and given how Johnny is with the ladies, she would’ve ended up in his bed.
“No. I don’t remember seeing him. Usually it was a woman who would pick Paige up. I thought it was her mother, to be honest.”
“Paige’s mom’s not around. She hooked up with some rich guy out in Cali who couldn’t be bothered with someone else’s kid. Johnny’s done the best he could with Paige, and since he’s Johnny, he’s had a lot of help.” A rotating bedroom of women kind of help, but after having Paige for a few days, I’m thinking maybe he wasn’t wrong for that.
“I only remember one woman. She was gorgeous. Long brown hair, really beautiful brown eyes. She looked like Paige.”
“That’s Johnny’s cousin—Marie.” I stop pouring the water to conjure up an image of Marie. It’s all sort of fuzzy, but I know a lot of the fighters think she’s hot.
“Why isn’t Marie taking care of Paige?”
I open my mouth to answer, but Honey holds up a hand. “Never mind. That’s none of my business.”
“It’s not a secret. Marie’s in Paris for Fashion Week. She’s a model.”
“Oh. That makes sense. How terrible for her, though, that her cousin is sick and she’s away.”
“No one’s telling her, so it’s no big deal.” I toss in a couple of marshmallows and carry the drink over to the sofa.
“No big deal? No one’s telling her?”
I shrug. “Yeah. Why would we? I’ve got custody of Paige anyway, and we’re all taking care of her so it doesn’t matter if Marie was here. Besides, even if she was here, the legal docs say that Paige stays with me. That’s what Johnny wants, and we’re not messing with that. Cheers.”
She slowly clinks the mug against mine. “I guess so.”
“You sound uncertain. Marie’s only eighteen. She doesn’t need to be saddled with a kid. Johnny’s going to get better anyway. His doc says he should be on his feet in a couple of weeks, and once he’s awake and can take care of Paige again, you and I can do what we want.”
She chokes on her drink. “W-what do you mean by that?”