SUTTON
A couple of weeks later,I sat at the kitchen island, laptop open in front of me, while Laurel ran around like a chicken with her head cut off.
What had once been a pristine space—beautiful, but not really lived-in—now had touches of chaos everywhere. Atlas was order and routines. Laurel and I were…not. Half a dozen scrunchies decorated several doorknobs around the house, a pair of fuzzy slippers lay haphazardly next to the couch, and one of Laurel’s textbooks was open on the island, her notebook and pencil next to it.
But he hadn’t said a word. Actually appeared toenjoyhow much we’d changed his space. He seemed almost too good to be true.
“I thought you said the party didn’t start till eight,” I called toward my daughter’s bedroom. “Why are you running around like there’s a bomb about to go off?”
“It doesn’t start till eight, but I wanted to get there early because Cami is freaking out that Jordan might be coming. Apparently, he and Madison broke up, which means he’s available.Finally. And she’s wondering if it’s too soon to make amove, or if she should take the signs that he’s been giving her at lunch that he’s actually intoherand has been for weeks.”
“Wow, that is a lot of high school drama.”
“That’s not even the most dramatic part—Madison broke up with him because he said Cami’s name when he fell asleep in class on Tuesday, and it was all over school by lunch. Madison wasmortified.”
“I have never been more glad to be out of high school than I am right now in this moment.”
“Yeah, it’s a real shitshow.”
“Same as it was when I was in high school. Romantic drama makes the world go round. Speaking of, anyone sparking your interest?“
“For the thousandth time, Mom, no,” Laurel said, storming into the kitchen with a bag slung over her shoulder. “Besides, wouldn’t it be pretty convenient for me to find someone when my class literally has seventy-two people in it?”
“I’m not saying you’re gonna find the person you’re going to marry. I just thought maybe you’d like to do some kissing.”
“I think you’re doing enough for both of us,” she said dryly with a roll of her eyes. “I know you think since you two are upstairs and clear across the house, it means you’re in some sort of soundproof booth, but you’re not. I had to put on my noise-canceling headphones last night just to fall asleep.”
I pressed my lips together to hide a smile. “I don’t know what to tell you, Lolo. We’ve had this talk before—when two people care about each other, they?—”
“Save your old-person sex speech.”
My mouth dropped open as I huffed out an incredulous breath. “Excuse you. I am not old.”
“Twice as old as me,” she said, not giving my feelings a single ounce of care.
“That was rude.”
She shrugged before darting into the family room, picking up and tossing the obscene number of blankets strewn across the couch, clearly looking for something. On her way back toward me, Laurel picked up the kitten and nuzzled her. “Have you seen my favorite hoodie?”
“You meanmyfavorite hoodie?”
Laurel groaned. “I don’t have time for this argument again. Have you seen it or not? There’s going to be a bonfire tonight, and I need it.”
“Check the dryer. I think Atlas threw it in last night.”
“Love that big grump,” she mumbled as she set the kitten on the island and headed toward the laundry room.
I reached out and scratched the sweet girl under her chin, smiling at her soft purr. “I really hate calling you ‘the kitten’ in my head. I wish your dad would just pick a name already. Personally, I thought Pawdrey Hepburn was a winner. But what do I know?”
Giving Not-Pawdrey one more scratch, I turned my attention back to my laptop. Laurel mentioned the photography club adviser had sent an email with an opportunity for her, and I wanted to look it over before I inevitably forgot.
Unfortunately, the kitten was a real attention whore and didn’t appreciate any time she was ignored. Clearly pissed that I’d taken my scratches away, she pounced on my hand, jumping on the keyboard as she did so.
“Oh my god,” I said with a laugh as I picked her up and held her in front of me. She was bigger now than the one-pound thing Atlas had found all those weeks ago, but not by much. The white fluff ball still fit in one of his giant hands, and she was damn adorable. Especially when she curled up on his chest and purred. Even more adorable was how he pretended to hate it but was clearly in love with her. “You are a menace.”
I set her down on the floor and turned back to my laptop, ready to search for what I needed when the email on the screen stopped me in my tracks. The kitten’s keyboard mischief must have pulled up an unread email, because I definitely hadn’t seen this before.
It was from the hospital I’d interviewed at in Boston. My gaze darted across the screen as several key phrases jumped out at me.
