Thick Love (Thin Love, #2)(33)
“No,” Dad said, coming into the room carrying an armful of picture books and a half empty sippy cup of juice. “She always made me sneak into her dorm instead.” His smile was weak, but the ever-present wink told me he still perved over my mother. “I have fond memories of that dorm room.”
“You, hush.” She swatted at my father when he walked past her to slump into the sofa. He tossed the books and cup on the coffee table and Mom glared at him, then jerked her head at Aly who’d frozen at the piano, eyes avoiding my face.
“Oh, right. Sorry, sugar.” Dad nodded at an expressionless Aly and shuffled the books together before he disappeared with them into the play room.
“Wow. Never thought I’d see the day that Kona Hale would pick up his own mess.”
“He can’t be that bad,” Aly finally said, making my mom and I both move our gazes to her.
“Oh, sweetie, he is.” Mom wobbled back to the piano, leaning on the shiny, black top. “I should have warned you about him. He’s total slob and, well,” she paused to stand up and arch her back, “I just haven’t had the energy to pick up after him or Koa. That’s why the house was such a disaster when you got here last week.”
“Last week?” I asked, standing next to my mother. That surprised me, given that Aly had seemed so hell bent on dismissing me the first time I asked her take the job. But then, Leann had texted me a couple of times since the night Aly and I danced the Kizomba to ask when I could help her practice. It shouldn’t surprise me that she’d lived up to her side of the arrangement, even though I hadn’t yet.
“Yeah,” Aly said. She seemed distracted, picking up her backpack and stuffing sheet music inside it. “I told you I’d help your fanmi. Been here almost two weeks.”
“And she’s a godsend, honey.” My mother’s smile was wide and I realized I hadn’t seen her looking that relaxed, that content in months. “Really, she came in here like a hurricane and just took over everything—the cleaning, the cooking, getting Koa his bath and making sure he eats everything.” I heard the small creak of her jaw popping when she stopped to yawn. “Hell, she even organized all my cabinets and that disaster of a play room.”
“Keira, souple, it’s nothing.” Aly’s light umber skin looked flushed at my mother’s compliment.
“It’s not nothing, sweetheart. I really…God, you’re just such a help to us.” She turned back to Aly. “So, you have the sheet music. And I can send you some MP3s with the instrumentals. You’ll need that for the audition and…” she paused to stifle another yawn.
“What audition?” I asked Aly.
She finally looked at me, pushing her bag on the piano bench. “Oh, I’m thinking about auditioning for the Theater program at CPU. A dance and song audition will increase my chances of getting in.”
“Thinking?” Mom moved her head, her eyes narrowing. “You’re gonna do more than think about it. With your dance experience and a little fine tuning with your vocals, they’d be crazy not to take you on.”
Again that small flush moved over Aly’s face and it occurred to me that she may not have been frigid all this time. Maybe she was just shy, and her inability to hear anyone say good things about her just made her seem cold. “That’s awesome,” I told her, meaning it. “And Mom offered to help you out?”
“Well, yeah. I mean when she has time.” She nervously tucked an errant strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear, and looked at my mother again. “I don’t want you to think I’m taking advantage, Keira. This job is generous enough. It’ll, um, keep me from having to pick up shifts at the diner.”
“You work at a diner?” I had no clue about that, but then I was bad about not paying attention to details. Had always made the assumption that Aly worked full time at the studio, maybe was a student like me. I didn’t know many people our age that didn’t go to CPU. And none of the people I knew worked two jobs. Damn. I really needed to get outside of the private-college/rich-kid crew.
Aly did this little shrug thing where her shoulder jerked, and a casual dip of her head moved her chin down, like she meant to bypass anything remarkable or remotely favorable about herself. “Yeah. I mean, I love teaching for Leann, but instructors generally don’t make a lot of cash. So I pick up shifts at the diner, clean houses when I’m really strapped for cash, that kind of thing.” She smiled at Keira and that smile got bigger when my father returned to the room and kissed mom on the forehead. “And now this gig too.”
“Aly Cat’s a hard worker, that’s for sure,” Dad said, laughing when that flush warmed Aly’s cheeks.
Mom sent her elbow into my father’s stomach. “Stop teasing her.”
“Look at that blush, though.”
“Kona…stop.” But my mother’s fussing was half-hearted and came behind yet another stifled yawn.
My father nodded, rubbed my Mom’s shoulders as though her sleepy expression confirmed something he’d guessed at. He started to lead her out of the room before she stopped him. “Baby, why don’t you take a nap while Koa is down?”
“I told Aly I’d help her with the song.”
“Keira, non. It’s fine.” Aly seemed to have no problem with my parents. There was a softness in her eyes when she watched them, as though she’d do anything they’d ask of her and be eager to do it. I liked that about her. She seemed to understand that they were good people. “You get some rest and I’ll see what I can whip up for an early dinner.”