“Holy crap,” Xander muttered, running a hand over his jaw. “I bet Gabriel is beyond pissed.”
“I’d imagine so,” she said. “Especially after he’d sent outtwotexts to all the staff.”
“I take it that’s not standard procedure?”
She scoffed. “Uh, no. I’ve been at the resort for over a year, and all communication comes from the department heads. Even the resort’s GM. Butneverdirectly from Mr. Ortiz.”
Hazel had been at the resort even longer than her. She had no clue how the other woman could so blatantly disregard the request.
Xander let out a sigh. “Damn, what a fucking shit show.”
“Xandy,” Daisy said, shaking her head.
He winced. “I know, sweet girl. I just said all the bad words. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” she said, spooning the final bite of ice cream into her mouth. “Matty says bad words all the time, and Mama makes him put money in a jar. Maybe Mama can make a jar for you too.”
“That’s a great idea,” Freya said with a chuckle. “My nieces have a bad-word jar for all their uncles too.” She eyed the little girl’s empty cup, amazed she’d been able to eat it all.
“Do you like cupcakes, Faya?” Daisy asked, turning to her.
She blinked twice, her brain trying to keep up with the verbal whiplash. “I do. Do you?”
Daisy nodded. “My birthday party is on Saturday?—”
“Next Saturday,” Xander clarified.
Daisy continued as if Xander hadn’t spoken. “And I’m gonna be five.” She held up her hand, spreading her fingers wide. “I’m gonna have chocolate cupcakes with frosting and rainbow sprinkles, and there’s gonna be unicorns on them. And I’m gonna have ice cream too. Wanna come to my party?”
Freya’s heart squeezed. The little girl was adorable and made her miss her twin nieces fiercely. “Aww, thanks, Daisy. You know, I usually work on Saturdays, so I don’t know if I can make it, but that’s so sweet of you to invite me.”
The little girl’s smile grew. “If you come, it’ll make me and Mr. Slothy super happy. You can come with Xandy!” She turned to the man in question. “Xandy, I’m still hungry.”
His jaw opened slightly in wonder, and he laughed. “Yeah, peanut, we can get you some food.” Recalling Rebecca’s advice from earlier, he caught Daisy’s gaze. “Why don’t you go potty first, and don’t forget to wash your hands really good too. I’m sure they’re ice cream sticky.”
She pressed her hands together and giggled when they stuck together. After hopping out of her seat, Daisy turned to her. “Faya, did you know that they have a little kid potty and little kid sink here?”
Freya glanced at the far corner of the store, and sure enough, in between the men’s and women’s restroom was a small, standalone kids’ stall with a tiny sink beside it.
“Well, that’s super helpful, isn’t it?”
Daisy nodded. “The kid potty doesn’t make a scary noise like the big people one.”
“Alrighty, peanut, less yapping,” Xander said. “Get a move on it. And don’t forget to wash your hands.”
As Daisy skipped toward the bathroom, Freya smiled. “She sure is a sweet girl.”
He nodded, keeping his eye on Daisy until she entered the mini stall. “She is. And seriously, if you’d like to come to her party, I’d be more than happy to take you.”
“Oh, that’s kind of you, but I wouldn’t want to impose.”
Xander shook his head. “I don’t think you quite understand. Believe it or not, that little girl is actually really shy. Like still-doesn’t-make-eye-contact-with-adults-she’s-known-for-a-long-time kind of shy. Aside from her stepdad and me, I’ve never seen her warm up so fast to anyone. I mean, not to pat myself on the back or anything.”
She grinned. “Of course not.”
“I’m serious, though,” he said, rising from the table. He glanced over at Daisy, who was drying her hands. “She’d be thrilled if you came.”
Freya mulled the idea over in her mind for a moment. To have the chance to hang out with the sweet little girl again would be fun. Chocolate cupcakes just so happened to be her favorite, and who didn’t like rainbow sprinkles, unicorns, and ice cream? Daisy’s birthday party sounded more and more appealing...
