“Of course,” Allie told her, letting go of Tripp’s hand to take Maya’s. “And so is my brother.”
“Absolutely, I am,” Tripp said. “Dessert is my favorite meal.”
“Dessert isn’t a meal,” Maya said, laughing in delight.
“Tell that to my belly,” Tripp said.
Maya’s laughter filled the hall as they headed back to the happy sounds and delicious smells in the bright kitchen.
The next fewhours passed peacefully. Tripp’s worries began to fade from Allie’s mind, and she enjoyed sipping her tea and listening to her parents get to know Maya and Ash.
The rest of the family had gone already except for Tripp, who lived at home like Allie. But Ash and her dad hadn’t even slowed their conversation.
While their engagement might be pretend, it really seemed like Ash was enjoying spending time with all of them, and she believed he was telling her parents the truth when he talked about his own family.
Before long, Maya was yawning and curling up on the kitchen loveseat.
“I think we’d better get going before Maya turns this into a sleepover,” Ash said with a smile. “Thank you so much for having us.”
“I want to stay,” Maya sighed half-heartedly.
“You’ll come back again soon, I bet,” Allie’s mom said with a big smile. “We all have to get to sleep now too. The animals need us to be ready to help them before the sun comes up.”
“Beforethe sun comes up?” Maya asked, popping up from the loveseat with great interest.
“Yes,” Tripp told her. “We head out to the barn so early, we have to use a flashlight.”
“Wow,” Maya whispered.
“I’ll bet he doesn’t mean a little phone flashlight either,” Ash said.
“Nope,” Tripp agreed. “We’ve got a great big one. Want to see it?”
“Yes,” Maya said.
“Well, it’s by the door, so let’s go find your shoes and coat,” Tripp said.
“Okay,” Maya said happily, hopping up and scampering down the hall after him.
Allie watched the two of them in wonder. Tripp was great with all the kids, but he and Maya were especially sweet together.
“I’ll walk you out,” she told Ash.
“Sounds good,” he said.
When they passed the living room, Allie saw that Tripp and Maya hadn’t made it outside yet. Instead, Maya was aiming the flashlight while Tripp made animal shapes with his hands in front of it, casting a sort of puppet show on the wall.
“Oh, Maya,” Allie’s mom said warmly. “That’s so much fun, isn’t it?”
Ash pulled on his boots as Allie slid her feet into her own, figuring she would walk them out to the porch.
“Step outside with me?” Ash asked her quietly.
Both her parents and Tripp were making shadow animals with Maya now, so she nodded and followed him out to the porch.
It was cold and clear outside. The clouds had moved on for now, and a million stars twinkled overhead. But she only had eyes for Ash.
“This was really wonderful,” he said, his deep voice low and gentle.
