“Ace! My best friend!” Remi cuts in.
“—and Connor brought Ace, his French bulldog, with him,” I finish. “Remi’s completely obsessed.”
Sarah sighs, rolling her eyes dramatically. “He’s been begging for a puppy ever since we went to the playground and he got to pet one. He asked for three days straight if I could buythat exact one.”
“There’s already a bit of a custody battle going on between Halle and Asher over Ace. Now they’ll have to fight this one for him too,” I tease, tickling Remi’s side until he squeals.
Remi squirms in my arms, his laughter filling the room in infectious waves. I can’t help but grin as I grab his coloring book from the stack at the end of the kitchen table, along with a handful of his favorite crayons. I set him up with a soft ruffle to his hair. Sarah shuffles in behind me, pulling out a stool and falling onto it, elbows braced on the counter, watching me as I rummage through the cupboards for the Lucky Charms I know I have somewhere.
“I’m glad Remi had a fun night with you and your friends,” she says, her voice still rough with sleep.
“He and Con actually hit it off really well. They were playing pranks on Asher all night; it was hilarious.” I chuckle, pouring Lucky Charms into a bowl for Remi. “I probably should have checked with you first before the guys came over, though. I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, you should have,” she says, but there’s no edge inher tone. She watches me for a beat, then adds, “But I also know you. And I know Halle. We may have lost a few years, but I still trust my gut. You wouldn’t let Remi be around anyone who’d hurt him.”
She stands, taking the bowl from me and placing it in front of Remi, leaning down to kiss him on the forehead.
“I trust you with him,” she murmurs, glancing around the kitchen. Her gaze falls on the mess of crayons, the sound of Remi’s spoon clinking against the bowl. “This place…” She trails off, a soft smile pulling at her mouth. “It kind of feels like it could be home.”
“Yeah?” I grin, my chest filling with a little pride. “I’ll make sure you get to meet Asher and Connor today before we head into work. That way, if there is ever a next time, you know who Remi will be around.”
A flicker of emotion passes through her eyes, there and gone too quickly before I can make sense of it.
“Thank you,” she says softly as if she can’t quite seem to get a hold of the emotions running through her.
I clear my throat, suddenly feeling the air shift. “So… I called last night, just to let you know Remi was asleep and was okay.” I spin the cereal in my bowl. “Madi answered.”
Her eyes narrow on me as she snatches the bowl of Lucky Charms right out of my hands and points the spoon at me. “You need to fix that.”
“I know.”
“She’s your sister’s best friend,” she says firmly. “Ireallylike her. Fix it.”
Oh shit. She’s kinda scary when she goes all momma bear.
“That’s the plan.” I yank the bowl back, scoop a spoonful, and shove it in my mouth. “I’m gonna win her back.”
“And if you can’t?” she asks, eyes boring into mine.
I swallow, and the spoon clinks against the bowl. “ThenI’ll win her back as my best friend. I refuse to lose her again.” The certainty in my voice surprises me more than it does her.
Losing Madison isn’t an option. Ineedher in my life.
Sarah’s smirk grows. “Good. Because after last night, I’m officially Team Madison.”
I laugh, trading a look with her. “You and everyone else, Sar Bear.”
“Don’t you dare scare her off. Don’t come on too hard. Don’t rush her.”
“I won’t, I swear. We’ll both be at work tonight, but I won’t force anything. If it feels right to talk, I will. If not… I’ll be patient.”
“I’ll kick your ass, Hunter, if you do anything to hurt her any further.”
I hold my hands up in surrender just as a loud bark cuts through the air. Remi gasps, spinning in his chair, forgetting the spoon still in his cereal. It happens in slow motion. The bowl moves with him, toppling over, milk and Lucky Charms spilling across the table and splattering onto the floor. Remi laughs as he scrambles off the chair, his bare feet slapping against the floor just as Ace runs toward him, snorting and barking. The dog jumps at his legs, licking him as his little butt moves side to side in a happy dance.
“Shit, shit, shit, Ace. Down, boy.” Connor’s voice cuts through the chaos, but Ace is too busy smothering Remi in kisses to listen.
Connor lunges for Ace as Sarah rushes for Remi, the two of them bending down at the same time, heads colliding along the way. Connor falls back on his ass, groaning and clutching his forehead while Sarah straightens, rubbing hers.
