He blinks as if he didn’t consider I’d also be caring for his dog.
“No.”
“Anything else you want to get out of the way before Monday?”
“What happens if you have a problem with your blood sugar?”
How does he know about that?
It hits me a moment later. The flippant remark I made about my insulin pump while he was giving me the ole pat down on the side of the dusty highway.
“That’s not going to be a problem.”
“You can’t know that.”
“I can when I’ve been dealing with it since I was seven.”
“I’ve come upon more than one diabetic in bad shape who forgot to take their insulin or had to ration it. Accidents happen.”
“Sure, they do. I’m as likely to have an emergency as anybody else. Do you ask any babysitters over the age of fifty-five if their blood pressure is well controlled and their likelihood of having a stroke?”
Sutton digs his front teeth into his lower lip. “Course not,” he grinds out.
This is more than hostility flying between two people who started off on the wrong foot. His rigid posture is a dead giveaway for a protective dad not used to giving up control to someone outside his circle. I almost feel bad for him that his family pressured him into this.
Almost.
Luckily for him, I’m the exact opposite. I can go with the flow, even if thatflowis a whitewater rapid threatening to drown me.
“Let me see your phone.” I dig mine out and set it on the table in front of me.
“What for?” His eyes never leave mine as he deliberately drags his out of his back pocket.
“I’m giving you some peace of mind.”
He moves beside me and sets the device next to mine, and surprisingly keeps quiet as I navigate to the app store.
My body is acutely aware of him beside me. Of his attention directed over my shoulder as he watches. Of the warmth of his body nearly touching the side of mine.
At the prompt, he reaches over my shoulder and enters his password into the app store, and I stop breathing.
What is happening to me? I blink slowly. I must not be accustomed to the humidity in the air.
I swallow over the lump in my throat. “This is the companion app for my continuous glucose monitor.” I adjust a few settings and hand him back his phone. My neck nearly snaps with how far I have to tip it back to find his eyes.
His expression is unreadable.
“You’ll get notifications when I’m urgently low or high. Feel free to do with that information as you will.”
I power down my phone screen and shove it back into my pocket.
“You don’t have to do that.” Sutton stares at his cell as if he’s not sure what I did to it.
“It’s fine.” I wave him off and bring my fork to the sink. “It really doesn’t bother me. If it makes you more comfortable with me watching your daughter, then I’m happy to do it.”
Sutton’s shoulders sag slightly, and he pockets his phone. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”