“I forgot I still had your luggage,” he said, stacking her luggage inside the front door.
“Oh, I wish you hadn’t come back because of that,” she said, going to steady the smaller bag resting on the largest case.“I don’t need anything until later.”
“I might have waited but I realized I forgot my computer,” he said, looking at his daughters from the kitchen doorway.“Are you two behaving?”
“Like angels,” Cat teased, flashing a smile.
He arched a brow, dubious, still taking in his daughter’s faces.Jillian’s defiant expression didn’t help.Olivia looked uncertain.
Rhys turned to Cat and said under his breath, “Jilly has an attitude.”
Cat shrugged, unbothered.“We’re good.I promise.”
His expression held the faintest glimmer of apology in his eyes.“I did try to warn you.”
“And I did say I could handle it.”
“You did,” he said, and something almost like admiration flickered across his face before it was gone.“My things are on the dining room table.I’ll just grab them and go.Unless you want me to take your luggage up first?”
“No, I can manage, thank you.”
“The girls will show you your room.”He glanced at them, a black eyebrow lifting ever so slightly.“You will be helpful, yes?”
“Yes,” Olivia said loudly.
Jillian gave a halfhearted nod, but it was something, and something was progress.
Rhys disappeared into the dining room and emerged with a sturdy case and an armful of books.“If the girls get hungry, don’t wait for me.Mrs.Johnson brought us shepherd’s pie this morning.You just need to put it in the oven.She left instructions taped on the foil.”And then he was gone, the door closing firmly behind him.
When Cat turned back to the girls, Jillian was gone.Seeing Cat’s confusion, Olivia pointed up, indicating upstairs.So much for progress.
“Want me to show you your room?”Olivia asked.“I can help you carry your things up.”
“That is very nice of you, Olivia, but I have a better idea.What if we have one of those delicious jammie dodgers and see if there’s a show we can watch together?”
“I’d love a jammie dodger but we don’t have a TV here.It’s like the olden days where you had to make your own entertainment.”Olivia made a face.“I’m tired of making our own entertainment.”
“Maybe I can think of something.But first I need a cook—biscuit.”
Olivia giggled.“It’s okay if you say cookie.I don’t mind.”
Chapter Three
Rhys sent Cata text that he would be working at least until six or six thirty as he was making good progress for the first time in weeks.Cat answered by text that she was glad to hear this and for him not to worry about anything as they were doing well at the cottage.
Perhaps doing well was a slight exaggeration but no one was screaming or throwing things so Cat counted that as a win.But the girls were restless and frankly bored.Cat began going through closets and cupboards looking for something they could do.
In the sitting room, she crouched in front of the old pine cupboard, tugging open doors that groaned like they hadn’t been opened in months.A faint whiff of dust and wood polish puffed out.Inside, a jumble of boxes filled one long narrow shelf.Some of the boxes were relatively new, while others were faded with the corners battered by years of play.
“Let’s see what treasures we’ve got here,” Cat said, brushing off a fine film of dust as Olivia hovered nearby, curious about Cat’s find.
Jillian sat in one of the winged armchairs near the fire, scrolling through her phone as if completely disinterested in what Cat and Olivia were doing.
“Snakes and Ladders,” Cat murmured, drawing the box out and setting it aside.“Ludo… Guess Who…” She reached deeper, fingers closing around a box heavy enough to make her grunt.“Oh, look at this one.Monopoly.”
“Which version?”Jillian asked, glancing up.
Cat turned the box toward Jillian so she could see the lid.The colors were faded, the cardboard soft.“The London edition.”
