“Hey, kid.” I lower myself to sit beside her, joints protesting. “Aren’t you meant to be in bed?”
She shrugs, cuddling Mr. Flopsy close.
“Party too loud?”
She frowns, her mouth turning into a cute little pout. “Mr. Flopsy doesn’t like crowds. Too many people make him nervous.”
Sure, Mr. Flopsy doesn’t like it.
“Yeah? What helps him feel better?”
She thinks about it, her brow furrowing with the seriousness of the question. “Knowing where Bel is. And quiet. And...” She looks up at me with those big eyes. “Knowing the loud people aren’t mad-loud. Just happy-loud.”
Fuck, that hurts to hear.
“They’re happy-loud,” I tell her gently. “Everyone here is happy. And safe. No one’s going to hurt you or Mr. Flopsy. Not ever again.”
She stares at me, her little face pinched.
“I promise.”
She studies me for a long moment, weighing my words with a gravity no six-year-old should possess. Then, slowly, she leans against my arm—just slightly, just testing.
I don’t move away.
She settles in a little more.
We sit there together in silence, watching the party from our quiet corner. I think about what it means to make promises to a child like this. What it means to be the kind of man who can keep them.
“Is this our home now?” Lily asks quietly.
I look at her—this tiny, fierce survivor who’s been through more than any child should—and I know there’s only one answer.
“Yeah, Lily. For as long as you and Isabel need.”
She nods, satisfied, and goes back to watching the party. A few minutes later, Isabel skids out the door, looking frantic until she spots her sister.
“Lily! There you are!” She stalks over to us. “You’re meant to be in bed. You scared me.”
“Mr. Flopsy wanted to watch the party.”
Isabel meets my eyes over her sister’s head. An understanding passes between us. A shared recognition of what it means to protect the people you love.
“Thank you,” she says quietly.
“Anytime.”
She scoops up Lily and heads inside, and I’m left alone on the steps, thinking about family. About the ones you’re born into and the ones you build.
Josie finds me a few minutes later, dropping onto the step beside me.
“Andi cheats at poker,” she announces. “I’m almost certain of it.”
“Oh, she definitely cheats at poker. Hawk taught her.”
“And you didn’t warn me?”
“Thought you could handle it.” I pull her against my side. “Looks like I was right.”
