“So, what did you do for childcare with the power outage today?”she asked after pulling out a can of sparkling water.
Someone fell on the field, so there was a pause till she got up again.No tears.
“I took him to work with me.”
“That’s allowed?”
“In this case, yes.”Tonya was as good a friend as I had right now, and I needed to tell someone.“The client is the guy I dated in high school, and he’s willing to let Arne come if needed.It’s not a difficult assignment.”
“That’s nice of him… Wait, didn’t you go out with a hockey player?”
My claim to fame in PoCo.“Yep.”
Her eyes rounded.“JJ?The guy from the Blaze?”
I nodded.
“Get out of— Seriously?Is it okay to work for people you know?”
“There was extra paperwork because of that.He had a couple of other PSWs and there were problems, because of who he is.He wanted someone he could trust to protect his privacy.”
Tonya shook her head.“Well, you’re certainly that.You’ve never mentioned him.”
“It was a long time ago.”
“Any regrets?”
I shrugged.
Tonya huffed.“I imagined most of your clients as old and cranky.”
I pictured Justin on the treadmill and hoped I wasn’t blushing.“That does describe some of them.”
“Next time, if you need childcare and don’t have a client that obliging, call me.Barney loves playing with Arne, so in a lot of ways it’s easier to have him around.”
Was she serious?She was.But there was no way I could add to the debt I owed her.“Thank you.That’s very kind.”
She waved a hand.“I’ll get you back.Drop Barney on you when Brody and I want to have a date.”
“Absolutely,” I agreed, but I hoped it didn’t come to that.I shared a room and a pair of twin beds with Arne.There wasn’t much space for a sleepover.
“Arne’s going to be even more interested in playing hockey, I bet.I asked, and one of the kids in Barney’s hockey camp had to cancel.Do you want the information?”
Oh hell.“I…I don’t know.”
“The offer stands, to borrow our equipment.Barney would be thrilled.I can even pick Arne up if you want—it’s not a problem.I won’t say anything more, but I had to let you know.”
“How much is it?”Whatever this would cost would just be a drop in the bucket of what it would be if we did more than this camp.
“I’ll send you the brochure.”
“I’ll think about it, okay?”
Tonya gave me a smile.“It’s tough, doing the single mom thing with a family to take care of too.I’m fortunate to be where I am right now, so I’m happy to help when I can.But your call.”
I would love to be able to give Arne something he was this excited about.But depending on what the car cost, it was probably totally impossible.
I was quiet on the way home, thanking Tonya again as she waved my gratitude away.Arne and I headed up the driveway to the door.