Meadow tilts her head. “What’s edging?”
Jake chokes on his coffee while Charlie makes a sound like she’s swallowed a whistle. Zoe’s mouth snaps shut, her eyes lighting up with unhelpful glee.
“That’s—” Charlie starts, stops, then tries again. “That’s a… sports word.”
“It isnota sports word,” Tamara scoffs with a chuckle.
Logan opens his mouth, but Lulu slaps a hand over it.
“It’s when,” Jake splutters, “you—uh—youwait.”
“For what?” Meadow frowns, eyes darting between the adults.
“For… a bigsurprise!” Zoe jumps in.
“Like a gift,” Chase adds, grinning from ear to ear.
“Likepatience,” Charlie finishes, her eyes boring into Chase’s.
Meadow considers this. “Why does the cat need patience for the juice?”
I take a slow sip of coffee while everyone’s eyes trail to Gremlin, who sits on the corner of the counter, glaring back.
“Because if she’s a really good girl, she’ll—ow, what!?” Chase holds his arm where Jake just thumped it.
“This,” I mutter, “is why I don’t let Chase talk in my house.”
“Love you too, caveman,” Chase replies sweetly.
It’s at that moment that Theo grabs Logan’s pant leg, pulls himself up, and regurgitates a chewed-up mouthful of apple all over his thigh.
“Oh my god,” Logan breathes, staring down in horror.
“That’s what you get for stealing his teether,” Lulu says, entirely unsympathetic.
“I thought it was a chew toy for Dusty!”
“Itwasa chew toy,” Tamara says dryly, passing him a paper towel. “For thebaby.”
Eli’s hovering behind them, eyeing Logan and Lulu as though he’s trying to decide whether to throw a blanket over them or just remove them from the premises entirely. Every time Logan so much as touches Lulu’s back, Eli’s eye twitches.
Tamara catches him glaring and smacks his arm.
“They’re adults,” she whispers.
“He had his hand on her ass before.”
“They’readults,” she repeats, through gritted teeth.
Somehow, Gremlin has made her way onto the high windowsill, where she now sits in judgment of us all. Especially Chase. Whenever he moves, her eyes follow him. And if it were me, I’d be mildly terrified.
“She hates you,” Zoe says, gleefully grinning over at Gremlin.
“I think she’s allergic to me,” Chase mutters. “Or cursed.”
“She knows you’re loud and annoying,” I say.
“Fuck you.”
