Jack was all amazing but not the reason for the light feeling of the day.
Something inside her had clicked into place again. That something that reminded her life didn’t always have to be so hard.
She’d just forgotten for a bit when life’s blinders knocked her down.
With what had to be a goofy smile on her face, she let herself in her house. The kids were with Kent for another hour, Jack had gone to Rachel’s to hang with Travis and their boys, and April had the entire house to herself.
Bliss.
She’d planned a bubble bath the entire drive home. Update her stats. Share her enthusiasm for all things charitable—and then…warm bubbles.
The last time she’d had a bubble bath? She couldn’t quite remember.
With the promise of the rest of her night floating through her thoughts, she came up short at the sound of Kitty’s voice.
“Hello?” April called.
“In here, gumdrop,” Kitty called from the kitchen.
April sighed, mentally shelving her bubble bath to trudge to the kitchen. She refused to let a Kitty takeover ruin her vibe. There would be time for bubbles later.
Kitty, however, wasn’t alone. Simone and Yelena joined her at her kitchen table with what looked like glasses of margaritas.
“Are we having a party you forgot to invite me to?” April asked, breezing to the table.
Yelena had even made up a plate of crudités, so it was definitely a party.
“We missed you at yoga class, Kitty,” April said, since it was rare for Kitty to miss a session. “Thank you for your check, though.”
Kitty had given a nice fat contribution to the food bank.
“You’re welcome. I love food. I’m not sorry I missed this week, though—I had a coffee date.” Kitty lifted a pre-poured margarita, slipping it into April’s hand. “It was divine.”
“I can’t wait to hear all about it,” April said, dabbing her tongue to the salt rim. Yes, it was salt. Not sugar.
Really, with Kitty, you never knew.
“Tonight we are not discussing me or my phenomenally wonderful coffee talk with Mr. Perfect,” Kitty said dramatically. “We are discussingyou. And your day.”
April groaned out loud. “Can’t we just talk about you instead?”
Kitty shook her head in that Kitty way that brooked no questions. “Rachel would like to inform you she does not want any details of what we are about to discuss.”
Simone swirled her margarita like it was a fine wine. “She said, and I’m quoting, ‘Ew, that’s my brother.’”
“She mentioned something about how she supports you in all you do but reminds you that Jack holds a certification in heartbreaking.” Yelena nodded. “Just adding that to the conversation.”
April didn’t have plans to discuss with anyone all the things she’d done with Jack, but especially not with his sister. So there was no worry there. Her afternoon was officially in the vault. As for the other? The chains around her heart were locked tight.
Lifting her fingers, she mimed zipping her lips.
“You’re really not going to tell us?” Simone asked, looking appalled.
“Maybe we should just respect that April gets to have her privacy?” Yelena asked, even though they all knew that no one got privacy in this group.
Kitty balked. “We don’t keep secrets. What kind of neighborhood do you think this is?”
April took a sip of her drink and immediately spit it back into the glass. “What is wrong with this?”
