Woman Up (Port Ranch Book #2)

Chapter 6

WALKER

“Pizza’s here!” Norma hollered from the front room and that is all it took for Miles to go screaming into the house and up to the front door. I am right on his heels, thinking about the boy that I encountered at the ranch today who did the same thing as Miles. I get to the front door just as he is opening it, I gently move him to the side so I can talk to the pizza guy.

“Hi, how are you?” I greet the delivery driver.

“Doing good. Large pepperoni and small roasted red pepper?” 

“That’s us.”

“Eww, pepper pizza?” Miles pretends to gag.

I playfully shove him with my hip. “Shush, kiddo.”

The delivery guy smiles and hands me the pizzas. I set them down on the table in the foyer so I could sign the credit card slip and hand him a cash tip. “Thank you, sir, have a good evening.”

“Thank you, you too.”

“Miss Norma,” Miles yells as we move into the dining room, “Walker for a pizza with peppers on it, how gross is that?”

“Excuse me, that is my favorite kind of pizza.”

“It is?” his little face cringes.

“Have you ever tried it?” 

“No.” Miles shakes his head.

She taps him on the nose, “Then how can you talk bad about it, young man?”

“It sounds kind of gross.”

“Well, then I guess you won’t be stealing any of it. Go wash your hands while I set the table. Go on now.” She shoos him off with a wave of the hand and then grabs paper plates from the cupboard and starts to set the table. I put the boxes of pizza in the center of the table and grab some napkins.

“Do you want a beer, Walker?”

“Am I allowed to do that?” 

She shrugs, “I drink all the time and he lives here with me.”

I cock my eyebrow up at her, but she just laughs.

“Oh, that came out wrong. I just mean that I have a beer or a wine cooler a few times a week with dinner or at night and nobody thinks anything of it. I’m assuming you’re not going to do keg stands in my dining room, so would you like a beer with your pizza?”

“Sure, I’ll take one. Thank you, Norma. I’m just trying to do everything the right way, you know?”

Norma sets the beers on the table along with a juice box for Miles. She stands beside me, placing her hand on my shoulder even though my six foot three height towers over her petite body. “Walker Lee, you are one of the best men that I’ve ever met in my life. I’ve been working with child services for twenty years now and never have I had a parent or potential adopter put so much time in with the child who’s in my care. If they can’t see that you are the perfect choice for Miles, then they have their heads up their asses.”

“That means a lot coming from you. I just want what is best for him and I’m worried that they aren’t going to think I am. That they’ll be looking for anything to disqualify me.”

“Well if they ask my opinion, which I’m sure they will, there will be nothing but glowing praises for the man and caregiver that you are. Now you should probably wash up too.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

As usual, Miles has zero problems scarfing down the pizza in front of him. He is trying to talk about his day at the same time, which leads to Norma always correcting him about talking with his mouth full.