“Do I?” Riley smiled and kissed her cheek. “Well, it’s been a while. You look different too. You’re a big girl now.”
“You do look different,” Jane agreed, closing the car door. “Wow. This is quite the house.” She shielded her eyes from the sun as she looked up at Aster House. “I remember you used the word ‘estate,’ but you never mentioned it was the size of a small castle. And the yard… It’s never-ending.”
“It’s crazy what you can get for your money once you move out of New York.” Riley put Mindy down and hugged her sister, closing her eyes as she squeezed her tightly. It felt like a pivotal moment, like this was a chance to start over and she was on parole somehow. She was going to get through her parole, no matter what. From the corner of her eye, she saw Mindy running around the house.
“There’s a sea!” the little girl yelled.
“Don’t go there, honey, the river is dangerous.” Riley ran after her niece and caught her, and Mindy screeched when she tickled her. “We can go feed the ducks together later, but let’s put your things inside first.”
“Jane stared at her and frowned. “You’re not wearing heels,” she said. “No, strike that. You’re barefoot. What’s with the new look?”
“I’m comfortable barefoot.”
“I can see that. Do you live here all by yourself?” Jane asked.
“No, not anymore.” Riley’s lips stretched into a wide smile as Quinn came out of the house. They’d been adding last-minute touches to the bedrooms, and Quinn had stayed behind to fluff up the pillows and put some toys in Mindy’s room, as Jane and Mindy had arrived earlier than expected. “This is Quinn. She moved in with me last week.” She took Quinn’s hand when she joined them and leaned into her. “Quinn, this is Jane, my sister, and this little chipmunk is Mindy.”
“Hi, Quinn. It’s so nice to meet you.” Although Jane seemed full of enthusiasm, there was also a hint of confusion in her expression as she glanced from Riley to Quinn and back. “Riley’s never introduced me to any of her friends. You must be close if you’re living together.”
“Actually, Quinn and Iaretogether,” Riley said, and she noted it rolled off her tongue easily. She’d had no trouble being open about them so far, and now, even with her own sister, it seemed so straightforward. “She’s my partner,” she clarified when Jane gave her another puzzled glance while stroking Mindy, who was clinging to her leg at the sight of the stranger.
Jane let out an uncomfortable chuckle, then slammed a hand in front of her mouth when she realized Riley was serious. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh. I just thought you were…”
“Joking? No, I’m not.” Riley shot her sister a sweet smile to put her at ease. “I’m with Quinn and I’ve never been happier.”
“So you’re…gay?” Jane whispered.
“Yeah, I am.”
“Okay…well, I’m super happy for you. For you both. I mean, if this is what you want, then…”
Quinn, who clearly felt the tension in the air, kneeled in front of Mindy. “Hi, there. I heard we had a big girl coming to visit, so we made you a big-girl room.” She winked. “The bed is so big, I bet you can’t get onto it.”
“Sure, I can.” Deciding she trusted Quinn, Mindy inched away from her mother and gave her a toothless grin. “How big is my bed? This big?” She spread her little arms wide.
“Oh, it’s much bigger than that. It’s a giant’s bed,” Quinn joked.
“She’s right. There’s a huge four-poster in there,” Riley said. “We thought she might enjoy sleeping in it.”
“She’ll love that.” Jane stared at Riley and Quinn again, then shook her head and laughed. “Forgive me if I’m a little short of words. You kind of dropped a cannonball on me. Besides that, you look totally different, so I might need to process this before I’ll be able to have a normal conversation.”
Riley laughed too and put a hand on Jane’s back. “That’s okay. Why don’t I show you to your rooms so you can freshen up, and then we can have some food in the yard by the river?”
“If you take them upstairs, I’ll get dinner ready,” Quinn said. “Do you guys like pasta?”
“Thank you, we love pasta. And I promise I’ll be back to my normal self in a bit. I’m just surprised, that’s all.” Jane grinned sheepishly. “My stern and highly unromantic sister is suddenly gay and in love and lives in a castle. It’s a lot to process.”
“No worries,” Quinn said with a chuckle. “I totally understand. We’ll catch up later.”
“I want to see my room!” Mindy yelled. “Are we sleeping in the castle?”
“You sure are. Want to see your big-girl room?” Riley took her little hand as they headed inside. As much as she’d hated the house before, now she felt proud at hearing Jane’s gasps and comments about how grand and beautiful it was.
“This is amazing.” Jane stared up at the enormous chandelier. “How is it at night?” she asked, lowering her voice when Mindy ran up the stairs ahead of them.
“It was a bit scary in the beginning,” Riley whispered, “but I understand the house better now, and having Quinn here makes a big difference, of course.”
“She seems nice. How did this happen? Have you always been into women?”
