Free It's Never Enough: Book 1 in the Never Series by Susan Soares Page B

days with his uncle, who was a contractor, doing sheet rock work on some houses his uncle was renovating to rent out. In the fall, Devin had a full-time job lined up at some big electronics company in the IT department. But for the summer, he was just doing odds and ends when his uncle needed help.
    I scanned Perked for another place to sit, but all I could find were some open tables. “We might have to be fish in an aquarium today.”
    Devin shifted his weight from side to side as his eyes darted around the room. It seemed like he was just scoping out the place, only his face looked serious and intense.
    “Or we could just hover near a booth if that’d make you more comfortable,” I said, noticing his shoulders were raised and tense.
    “What? No, ah, how about we just go for a walk or something.” He placed his hand on my lower back and guided me out the front door before I had a chance to answer. “The open air feels good doesn’t it?” he said once we were walking.
    “Yeah, it’s not too hot this afternoon.” Unsure what spooked him back at Perked, I became self-conscious of what to say or what to do, so I just quietly sipped my coffee as we walked hand in hand.
    We came to a park, and I let Devin guide me to a large tree. When we sat down and leaned our backs against it, we could see almost all around us. We sipped our coffee, and my hand rested in his as we sat quietly together. It was nice. He traced tiny shapes with his thumb along the back of my hand. Circles, squares, hearts. Even though the moment was quiet, I could still feel some tense energy coming off of him, and I wasn’t sure what it was, but it made my stomach curl into itself hoping it wasn’t me.
    There were quite a few people in the park. I loved the older couples who sat on a bench and fed the birds or just sat holding hands and staring out into the world. There were some families with young children. A few moms were over by the playground area with their little ones. The toddlers rejoiced in the sandbox, flicking and throwing sand, while their moms caught up with each other, most likely the only other adult contact they’d have all day until their husbands came home. There was one dad pushing his little one on the baby swing. The little boy giggled with delight as he was pushed up a little bit higher each time. It made me think about my dad. Would he be at the park with my little half-brother or half-sister? Would Janet become part of a mom’s club and meet up with the other local moms at the park? I couldn’t picture it. First off, they’d both be the oldest parents around. Not that they were ancient, but they weren’t in their early thirties either. Janet had a good job working as a physical therapist. There was no way she was going to leave that to stay home full-time. She didn’t even stay home full-time when Fiona was growing up. So my little brother or sister was bound to be stuck in daycare from the age of three months on until the kid was old enough to go to school. Then they’d have to set up some before- and after-school program so the kid could be taken care of while my dad and Janet worked all day. Maybe I could take care of him or her. Kind of like a nanny. Before I found the job working for Casper, I had seen lots of ads online of people looking for full-time nannies. I wonder how much they’d pay me? I mean, they’d have to pay me. I’d be doing it as my full-time job, not as a favor or anything. Then maybe my dad would lay off me about college. It was a possibility. I could always look into going to school online, or part-time at night, to appease him. The security of me staying with the baby was sure to be a positive that would make them consider it. I made a mental note to talk to them about it the next time we had dinner together. The plan just might give me the breathing room I needed. If only they’d go along with it.
    Devin and I left the park and browsed around the bookstore. Been There Read That was the one