“Sasha?” Mallory nodded. “Yeah, I think she and the baby are hiding out in my—her bedroom. Something kinda weird happened this morning and now I think she might be feeling embarrassed.”
Ariel’s eyes widened. “What happened?”
“That’s what I’d like to know.” Mallory shrugged.
“Huh?” Ariel furrowed her brow in a confused expression.
“It’s an odd situation. Mom says one thing about it, but I’m not sure I believe her.”
Ariel tilted her head, searching Mallory’s gaze for a more definitive answer.
“I’ll tell you the story later,” Mallory replied and shook her head, “but right now, I need to get a clean shirt for Micah before Becca and him start fighting again.”
“Right, okay.” Ariel sighed. “Thanks. If it’s okay with everyone else, I might leave the kids with you guys for a half hour or something?” She rubbed her forehead. “I could really use a shower and twenty minutes to decompress.”
Mallory beamed and placed an affirming hand on her sister’s shoulder. “Take all the time you need.”
Chapter 2
An hour later, the kids were engrossed in a game of hide and seek inside the house, while David made dinner and kept an eye on them. All the other adults, including Sasha, sat on the porch chatting. Ariel held baby Dot in her arms, having fallen in love with the child’s adorable face.
“I can’t get over how comfortable she is with me,” Ariel said, bouncing the smiling baby on her knee. “If this were one of mine, they’d be freaking out.”
“It’s true,” Mallory said. “The first time I tried to hold my nephew; he screamed like I was gonna toss him out a window. It was a little insulting honestly…”
“Micah’s always been sensitive,” Ariel admitted. “But he’s gotten a lot less shy over time.” She grinned at Dot. “You, on the other hand, are not shy at all. You’ll grow up to be one of those kids that make friends with everyone.”
“For sure. Dot knows no strangers,” Callie confirmed. “It’s one of themanywonderful things about her.”
Sasha smiled but stayed quiet. She hadn’t uttered a word the entire time they’d been sitting outside, and Mallory wondered what was going through her mind. What wasSasha’sside of the story about what had happened in the master bathroom?
Ariel tickled Dot’s chin, and the baby let out a squeal of laughter, making everyone smile.
“So, how are things going at the bookstore, Sasha?” Mallory asked. “Has the training been difficult or…?”
“Not really.” Sasha shook her head. “There’s a lot to learn, but it’s pretty self-explanatory. I’m worried about Friday and this weekend though. Kate said it’ll be crazy those days. I hope I won’t mess anything up.”
“You’ll be fine,” Callie reassured her. “Kate wouldn’t have given you the job if she thought you couldn’t handle it. Plus, she needs all the help she can get this weekend, so she’ll be grateful to have you.”
“Yeah, maybe...” Sasha nodded and then snapped her fingers. “Oh, that reminds me. I told her I could come Thanksgiving morning to get a few more hours under my belt before the madness.” She paused and gave an apologetic look. “But that means I won’t be able to help much with getting ready for dinner. I’m sorry.”
Callie chuckled and shook her head. “I wasn’t going to let you help anyway!”
Mallory and Ariel both laughed. “It’s true,” Ariel said. “Mom hardly lets us help and we’re her own kids!”
“Still, I wish I could’ve donesomething...like set the table, or...” Sasha said.
“That’s kind of you to offer, but it’s good that you’ll be getting extra hours at the store.”
“Alright.” Sasha nodded. “Oh, and I’m taking Dot with me, so you won’t have to worry about her.”
“She’s not a worry,” Callie insisted. “And if you’d rather leave her here with us that morning, we’ll have plenty of adults to look after her. Honestly, it’s no trouble at all for us.”
“Yeah, I’ve already fallen in love with this baby girl.” Ariel pressed Dot to her chest, gently kissing her head. “It’d make my day to if you’d let me watch her that morning.”
Sasha blushed and said a quiet thank you. However, Mallory wasn’t sure what to make of this whole situation. It wasn’t that she’d expected Ariel to come in with a list of probing questions for the young mother, but she also thought her sister would’ve been at leasta littlemore curious about Sasha. Ariel had seemed uneasy when she’d first arrived and asked if Sasha was inside. Where did that natural suspicion go?
Instead, Ariel seemed content to take everything their mother said about Sasha at face value. Was she just being polite?
