I’d expected the move to be hard, but this was tearing me apart.“Winston and Orange will be coming with us, of course.They’re part of the family.”
It would be tight, but there was no way I’d be leaving them behind.
Addy joined our huddle, face scrunched up in anger.“I want to take my desk.Where will I do my homework?”
“We can use the kitchen table.It’s nice and big for us all to fit on.”
If we managed to pull out the chairs since the space was so small.
I knew my girls were gearing up for an epic meltdown, but then the doorbell went off.They sprinted away to be the first to open the front door.
Following behind at a more sedate pace, I made sure Winston was locked in the living room before I joined them in the hallway.“Check who it is first.”
Instead of listening to me, Addy pushed Elana to the side and ripped the door open.“It’s Vance.”
Orange joined us as well, wagging his tail in excitement.Vance high-fived the girls, then gave my dog a scratch before he straightened, his attention now focused on me.“Are you guys hungry?”
The girls yelled, “Yes,” staring at the pizza boxes balanced on Vance’s hand.
Then Addy narrowed her eyes at our guest, arms crossed.“Is there pineapple on it?”
Vance’s eyes widened, and I almost laughed at the fear I saw.“I’m not sure I want to answer that question.”He turned to Addy.“Do you like pineapple?”
“I love pineapple.And if there’s none on it, I’m not eating it.”
“Lucky for you, I got a Hawaiian.My nieces and nephews love it, so I figured it was a promising choice.But just in case, I also have a salami pizza, one with everything, and one vegetarian.”
I took the boxes off him, a smile stealing over my face.“Sounds like you’re planning on inviting a few more people over.”
He took his shoes off, looking sheepish.“I forgot to ask what you guys wanted, and you didn’t answer your phone, so I wanted to make sure I got something the girls would eat.”
“Sorry, I didn’t hear it ring.But they love Hawaiian pizza, so good choice.”I walked to the dining room and set the large cardboard boxes on the table.“Can I get you anything to drink?”
He followed me into the kitchen.“Water is fine.I have a conference call at ten.”
I filled a glass with water and handed it to him.“That’s late.”
“My client is traveling and in a different time zone.I don’t mind doing the call late since I’m used to working late.”
I pulled out plates, and he took them from me and put them around the table.When I joined him, Elana and Addy were already sitting in their seats, a slice of pizza in front of them.
Addy took a bite of her slice, looking at Vance.“Can I have salami next?”
Salami?She didn’t like salami.
Vance waited for me to sit down before he pulled out the chair next to me.“Of course you can.There’s plenty there.”
I studied Vance, who held out an open pizza box to me.“Did you put the pizza on their plates?”
He visibly swallowed, then nodded.“I did.Was I not supposed to?”
Taking the offered food, I shook my head.“No, no, that’s totally fine.I was just wondering.”
Addy and Elana tried salami next but took all the salami off before they ate it.And before I could stop them, they’d slapped it all on Vance’s plate.
“Girls, you can’t put your food on other people’s plates.”
Elana frowned.“But we giveyouthe food we don’t like all the time.”
