She takes my hand, and Ladybird bounds behind us. Just inside the door, I see my sister Heather standing with her arms crossed and a smirk on her lips.
“Who knew you lived with a dog lady?” Her eyebrow arches.
I don’t even respond to that. Instead, I pull her in for a hug, cutting off any psychic delusions.
“Good to see you, sis. What made you decide to come early?”
She still has her arms crossed, but she’s full-on smiling now. “I got a text from Haddy Bradford saying you missed your little girl too much, and could we come out to LA now. Of course, I said yes. I figured you were just being sweet not telling me yourself.”
“That Haddy,” Mav shakes his head, chuckling. “She just had a baby a few months ago, and she’s been worried about Owen ever since she found out he’s a single dad.”
“That’s really sweet,” Heather says, giving him a smile.
“Are you the lady with all the dogs?” Maddie’s voice is loud in the foyer, and my neck tightens when I realize I completely left Gina behind in the truck.
We didn’t say much on the drive back from Hidden Creek. The radio played softly, and I rested my hand on the top of her thigh.
She traced her finger over my knuckles, her gaze drifting out the window, and I’m pretty sure we both were a little stunned and unsure what to do or say about what happened.
“Hi, there.” Her voice is kind. “Are you Maddie?”
My daughter nods her head in her signature, too-hard way. “I’m Madison Birgitte Stone, and I’m seven years old!”
“You’re almost in double digits!” Gina bends her knees, putting herself on my daughter’s level. “What do you do for fun, Madison?”
“It’s okay, you can call me Maddie.” She puts her hand on Gigi’s shoulder. “I like to swim and I like to ride my bike and I like to play with Ladybird and Zander and I like to jump on the trampoline at Grannie B’s house and I like to get facials where you put cucumbers on your eyes and I like to make pigs in blankets with Daddy…”
“Phew, that’s quite a list!” Gigi laughs, and her green eyes dance in a way that hits me unexpectedly hard. “I don’t think we can do all of those things, but we can do some of them.”
Maddie’s brown eyes widen, and she puts both hands on Gina’s shoulders, facing her. “Okay!”
“I’d better take my stuff up and shower.” I turn to Maverick, not my sister, who is boring holes in me with her eyes.
I don’t need psychic powers to know what she’s thinking.
“I put the girls in Haddy’s old room.” Maverick slaps the top of my shoulder. “It’s a little tight, but they should be fine for a little while. Haddy offered her guest room if it’s too crowded, but I figured that would sort-of defeat the purpose of getting them here.”
“You guys are really great.” I can’t find the words to say how much I mean it.
“How long have you had Zander?” Gina is still chatting with my daughter like they’ve known each other forever. “He looks like a wise old zebra.”
“Oh, he is.” Maddie’s eyes are wide. “He was my daddy’s zebra! Did you know if a horse and a zebra have a baby, it’s called azorse?”
“I did not know that.” Gina laughs.
“It’s true, and a group of zebras is called a dazzle.”Maddie barely takes a breath. “Daddy said he thought they should be called azazzleand Pop said Daddy should’ve been a zebrologist, but Aunt Cass said that’s not a real word.”
I pull Heather close before heading upstairs. “Don’t let Maddie talk Gina’s ear off.”
“Looks like they’re both right where they want to be.” My sister slants her blue eyes up at me, but I’m not getting caught in her dream web.
“I’ll be right back.”
I’m moving fast as I jog upstairs. I drop my bag in my bedroom, fish out my dirty clothes, and dig around before remembering I gave my backup boxer briefs to Gina last night. Before I yanked them off…
Everything we did last night presses against my temples, but I have to honor our “just one night” agreement, now more than ever.
It was only a few nights ago I was wishing Maddie was here to help me refocus my thinking. Now sheishere, and I have to start behaving like her father again, not like a single guy.
