Just Like That (The Kings)

I lost the kid.

Four months into being his caretaker and I lost the damn kid.

I swallowed the panic that clawed at my throat as I scanned the bustling sidewalk of a town I had never been to before. Summer was waning, but apparently Western Michigan hadn’t gotten the memo. My armpits were sticky, and the thick strands of my hair were clinging to the back of my neck.

Think, think, think, think, think.

If you were a seven-year-old boy in a cutesy little town, where the hell would you go?

The town itself was picturesque. Off in the distance, about a half mile down the road, Lake Michigan sparkled, with the roadway cutting through the quaint little tourist town. Mom-and-pop shops dotted the sides, shoppers filtered in and out of the businesses, and storefronts had signs and sandwich boards enticing people to come inside to shop.

It would have been idyllic had it not been rapidly turning into the third-worst day of my life.

My eyes bounced across the storefronts that dotted the main drag in downtown Outtatowner, Michigan. I quickly dismissed the library, general store, and hardware store as I strode down the sidewalk with the sole purpose of finding my nephew. Crossing the street, I absently waved to a car that honked at me and continued peering through the bodies of people milling around each storefront.

“Teddy?” I called out. My heart rate ticked higher as I looked through each window in search of him.

A neon sign with a grinning skeleton and a beer in its hand gave me pause, but I doubted a lone child would go unnoticed in a local dive bar. I called out anyway and looked around the concrete planters along the sidewalk. “Teddy!”

A bit farther down was a small bakery, and I scanned the large picture window, hoping the sweet smell of cinnamon and sugar had enticed my nephew.

Beyond that, the tattoo parlor was an unlikely choice.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

Universe, please point me in the right direction.

When I opened my eyes, I squinted against the sun and looked down the sidewalk.

Oh, hello.

Outside the tattoo parlor were two men. One was laughing, heavily tattooed and seemingly lost in conversation, but the other . . .

The other was dressed in a bespoke navy suit. His watch glinted in the sunlight, and the dark sunglasses perched on his nose only highlighted his chiseled cheekbones. I swallowed hard and blinked rapidly.

What the hell, Universe? I need to find Teddy, not a midday orgasm.

I huffed and pushed the handsome stranger to the furthest recesses of my mind.

I looked beyond the downtown area toward Lake Michigan. Dread pooled in my stomach when, in the distance of the scenic town, my gaze landed on the lighthouse at the end of a pier.

He doesn’t know how to swim.

“TEDDY!” Fear laced with desperation as I screamed his name.

“Whoa, hey.” A woman stopped my forward progress. Her light-blond hair fell down her back, and her dark-brown eyes were kind, yet concerned. “Can I help you with something?”

Tears pricked at my eyes. “I lost him. I can’t believe I actually lost⁠—”

“Shh. Okay.” She held a hand up as she pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed. Looking at me, she continued, “Give me the details. Name and age. Any idea what he was wearing?” Her attention was drawn to the other end of the phone as I struggled to recall the information she needed. “Hey, Amy, it’s Sylvie. I have a tourist here who’s lost a kid. I’m getting the details.”

She looked at me as my brain scrambled. “Um, his name is Teddy. He’s seven. About this high.” I held out my hand. “Black hair, bluish-green eyes. He was, um, wearing a plaid shirt—blue plaid with a little black bow tie and jean shorts.”

The woman’s eyebrows raised slightly at my description, but I continued looking over her shoulder and through the bustling crowd for my nephew.

“Did you get that? Yeah. Bow tie should be easy to spot. We’ll start looking downtown and I’ll alert the Bluebirds. You got it. Thanks.” Sylvie hung up the phone and placed her hands on the outside of my arms. “It’s okay. We’re going to find him. I called the police and they’re on it. He’s not the first little guy to wander off in Outtatowner.”

From behind us, a huge man with an apron covered in flour walked out of the bakery and looked right at the woman next to me. “Lost kid,” she said to him and relayed my description.

“On it,” he called out as he put a phone to his ear.

“That’s the bakery owner, Huck. Looks like the phone tree’s been activated.” She smiled at another storefront owner, who gave her a knowing nod.

Beside me, Sylvie called out to someone walking past. “Excuse me. Hi. We’re looking for a seven-year-old boy named Teddy. Plaid shirt and a bow tie. Please look out for him.” She walked down the sidewalk, then stopped to look at me and gestured for me to follow as she loudly announced to anyone nearby that Teddy was missing. “We’re looking for a seven-year-old boy named Teddy. Plaid shirt and a bow tie.”

We hurried down the sidewalk, and I watched in awe as more and more people exited their storefronts, temporarily closing their shops and joining us on the sidewalk, walking in all directions and searching for Teddy. Murmurs of the lost boy rippled through the town as we made our way down the sidewalk and toward the lakeshore in the distance.

Sylvie patted my arm as if she understood the intrusive thoughts streaming through my head. “Don’t worry. One of the first things we do is call the lifeguards on the beach. They’ll be on high alert looking for him too.”

I swallowed hard. My throat tightened as I squeaked out an emotion clogged “Thank you.”

With confident strides, the pretty blonde beside me walked down the sidewalk, calling out to anyone who would listen and help. When her phone rang, my heart jumped. “Hey, Whip, what’s up?” Her face brightened and she looked at me. “They got him.”

My lungs collapsed and I bent over, bracing my hands on my knees and trying to catch my breath.

“Oh, that’s great news,” Sylvie continued. “I can bring her by. See you soon.” The woman looped her arm in mine and helped me up. “Okay, Mama. Looks like Teddy is at the fire station. Let’s go get him.”

My heart lurched at her calling me Mama. I swallowed hard. “I’m actually his aunt.”

“Okay.” She simply shrugged and smiled as we continued walking.

“Is he all right?” My lower lip trembled, and I nearly lost it again before swallowing back the emotions.

Sylvie smiled. “Sounds like he’s got the fire department wrapped around his little finger already.”

We turned a corner, and in the distance an adorable small-town fire station came into view. Bright-red trucks were lined up outside, and one of the large bay doors was open. Mature trees lined the sidewalks, and a slight breeze kicked up from the lake. I sucked in a lungful of coastal air and tried to rein in my frantic emotions.

“He’s a slippery little sucker, huh?” Sylvie asked. There was no judgment in her voice, only kindness and a motherly knowing.

I smirked and a wry laugh pushed through my nose. “You have no idea.”

I had always been a wanderer. I guess Teddy and I were kindred spirits in that regard. In fact, it had only been since my sister died that I had really gotten to know my nephew. My entire life I had yearned to travel—odd jobs, a new city. When I outstayed my welcome in one place, I packed up and picked another dot on the map without a single regret.

Well . . . maybe a single regret.

I had missed my sister. My thoughts flicked to the pretty urn that was shoved in the back of a cabinet of the skoolie where I lived. Olive always knew what to do in every situation, and I didn’t even know what to do with her ashes.

When Teddy was born, I made a trip back to Chicago to visit her, but then I was gone again. We chatted over video, but life as a single mom was hectic for her. I visited only a handful of times in the seven years since his birth. I was finding my own adventures while Teddy had become Olive’s whole world.

My chest pinched. How was I ever going to be good enough for him?

“Do you have other kids?” Sylvie asked as we walked.

I laughed at the idea. I liked kids, I just always assumed I’d be one. “Just him—but he’s actually my nephew. His mom, my sister, died a few months back.”

“Oh.” She placed a hand over her heart. “I am so sorry to hear that.”

I kicked a stone as we marched toward the fire station.

The woman beside me was a stranger, but I found myself opening up to her. She had a calm and welcoming nature that reminded me a bit of my sister.

Strong and resilient.

“We were both kind of free spirits. Olive was always scheming, always one step ahead of everyone. Once she entered our town’s baking competition with a store-bought pie because the prize was two thousand dollars. When she won, they put her name and picture on a plaque, and she laughed every time we walked past it.”

There was a time when I had found that story funny and endearing, but hearing myself recount it aloud, it fell a little flat and kind of made Olive sound like a jerk.

I swallowed hard and backtracked. “She could charm anyone and everyone.”

Sylvie hummed.

I found myself nervously chattering as we walked. “When Olive found out she was pregnant at twenty-one, she wasn’t even scared. She was thrilled. She always seemed to know that everything would work out. I envied that.”

“My little sister is kind of like that,” Sylvie said. “She’s always so sure of herself.”

I offered a polite smile, and we continued walking in companionable silence as thoughts of my sister flooded my brain.

As her younger sister, I had been terrified for Olive—convinced her life was practically over. She had a string of ex-boyfriends, but none that we had ever met. When my mother demanded to know who the father was, she simply said, “It doesn’t matter. I’m taken care of, and I can do this on my own.”

Olive powered through and started her life as a single mother. My heart ached, knowing I hadn’t taken the time to really stop and check in with her . . . to make sure she was okay. I had been too wrapped up in the clout of a blooming social media page full of sponsorships and an exciting paycheck. I called often, but rarely came home for holidays and birthdays. Teddy knew me as a face on a screen and a few bills slipped inside a birthday card.

Why on earth did she think I could take care of him?

As we approached the fire station, I watched Teddy walk out of the open bay door with a firefighter’s helmet bobbling on his head. It was too large and heavy for him, so his neck dipped and his little hand came up to steady it.

Behind him were a small group of firefighters, dressed in black boots, navy tactical pants, and T-shirts with OFD embroidered over the left chest pocket.

I ran straight toward Teddy and kneeled in front of him. “There you are!” I wrapped him in a hug as his head struggled with the weight of the helmet. “I looked up and you were gone! You scared the shit out of me!”

“You aren’t supposed to say that in front of me,” Teddy chided. I couldn’t help but laugh and pull him in for another quick hug.

“Sorry, kid. I’m working on that.” I peered up at his striking blue-green eyes, emotion swimming in mine as relief washed over me. “You really scared me.”

His features fell, and he looked away. “Sorry. I just really, really wanted to⁠—”

“This guy belong to you?” a voice called from over Teddy’s shoulder.

I looked up to see a firefighter with a wide grin and playful eyes.

I stood and held out my hand. “Yes, thank you so much. I looked away for one second and he was gone.”

“I’m Lee Sullivan. It’s no problem. Heard the alert over the radio, and we were all keeping our eyes peeled. Turns out this little dude was on a mission.” Lee tapped the top of Teddy’s helmet, and my nephew’s cheeks turned pink as he grinned.

Another firefighter approached Sylvie. I put my arm around Teddy and tucked him into my side. I didn’t trust he wouldn’t bolt again, and I was still reeling from worry.

Their voices were hushed, but Sylvie and the man were close enough to overhear.

“I think you’re gonna want to stick around for this,” he whispered. “I had to call JP, and he’s on his way over.”

Hearing his name aloud sent a chill down my spine.

JP King.

He was the man we had set out to find, but I hadn’t been prepared to face him yet—not after everything my sister had revealed in her letter.

My stomach bunched, hoping no one had discovered the real reason Teddy was asking for him.

“JP?” Sylvie scoffed as she looked at the firefighter. “Why in the world did you call him?”

The man leaned in, but I could still discern the disbelief and concern laced in his voice. “Get this—the kid said JP’s his dad.”

I blanched.

Oh, fuck.