“Sissy! Sissy!” Joanie singsonged, her pudgy hands clapping together. She loved to clap and sing lately, and it’s pretty much what she did all day.
The next performance began, and the children shuffled onto the stage. I found Livvie right away and pointed to her for Joanie. The song started, and the children sang, and I kept my eyes trained on Livvie, though I desperately wanted to search forher.
Zemia.
Who was the hot little number? And why had I never seen her around before?
Her kind, brown eyes threw my heart into turbo mode, the beast pumping like it never had before. Long wavy brown hair with a hint of red to it fell over her shoulders, and her tight leggings and long top showed off her delectable curves.
With a shake of my head, I brought my attention back to the present moment. I couldn’t get carried away.
Not when I had my girls to think of.
They would always come first.
The performance ended, and the audience clapped, the Christmas show now over. Everyone got up and moved, reuniting with their children as they walked off the stage and down into the seats. I passed Joanie to my mother, and we made our way over to Livvie. I scooped her into my arms and twirled her around.
“What a great elf you were! Livvie, the princess elf!” I hugged her close as she laughed.
“Can we get ice cream now, like you promised?” Livvie asked, and I smiled.
“Of course we can. You did a great job.”
“Ice cream?” Joanie asked.
“Yes. Lots of ice cream.” Mom ruffled Joanie’s hair before admiring Livvie’s. “Your hair looks spiffy, Liv! Who did it?”
“Z!” Livvie announced proudly. “She’s a hair fixer!”
I chuckled. “I think you mean hairdresser, love.”
Livvie shrugged, her attention now taken by her friend walking by. We made small talk with a few families, and on the way out, Livvie’s teacher, Mrs. Howland, greeted us and said her goodbyes, praising Livvie for doing a good job.
We made it to the door when I realized Livvie didn’t have her jacket. “Do you mind waiting here for a second, Mom? I need to grab Liv’s jacket.”
“Sure love. Come over here, Liv, take Nonna’s hand.” My mother led the girls out of the crowd as I walked off in search of my daughter’s coat. I checked by the cubbies, and around the classroom, her coat nowhere in sight. Where did we take it off?
“Need help looking for something?” That voice…hervoice.
My head snapped up. There she was.
Standing only a few feet in front of me and looking as gorgeous as ever.
“Uh, yeah, sorry, my daughter’s jacket.”
“What’s it look like? Or I can ask my sister. I’m sure she’d know better than me.”
“It’s purple. Don’t worry about asking your sister. I’m sure she’s got plenty on her plate right now. I’ll find it, eventually.”
“Purple, hmm? Good taste.” Zemia smiled and, dare I say, it was a bit flirtatious, her eyes sparkling.
I forced myself to look away and instead look for my daughter’s jacket. Women didn’t make me feel anything, at least not lately, and I wanted to keep it that way. I had two young girls to worry about it. No one else.
A few minutes later, I spotted the purple fabric along with her hat and gloves. “Here it is. Phew, another crisis averted. Seems to happen a lot when you’re around.”
Zemia’s cheeks flushed. “Oh good! No need to call the jacket squad then.”
“Jacket squad?”
