They entered the nail salon and were guided toward the colors on the wall, where they took a few minutes choosing what they wanted.
“Can I have blue?”asked Riley.
“I don’t see why not,” said Sarah watching them discussing the options.
“I’d like yellow,” said Sally.“Do you think that would be okay?”
“I think you should pick the color you want.You wear a lot of yellow, so it should go with your clothes.”
“And it’s only going to stay on for a few days anyway, right, Mom?”
“Yes, we’re getting the type of polish that is easy to remove ourselves, so it likely won’t last more than a few days.It’s a bit of fun.”
Once they finished choosing their colors, they sat in the chairs, one girl on each side of Sarah, and put their feet into the basin to soak.Three women came forward to work on their feet first, massaging them, cutting nails, and showing the girls how to operate the massage features of the chair.
“Ooh, I like this,” said Sally, when the chair began to vibrate.“It feels nice.”
“How high can we make it go?”asked Riley pressing the buttons.
“Just because you can make it go higher doesn’t mean you should,” said Sarah, laughing when Riley frowned and hurried to turn down the intensity of the massage.
“I like it at level two,” said Sally, who was now sitting back, her eyes closed, relaxing into the experience.Sarah took her cue from Sally and closed her eyes, peeking to see how Riley would react.Riley sighed deeply, set the massage at two, and closed her eyes as well.
They sat that way until their pedicures were done and then presented their hands for polishing.For Sarah it was French tips.She had always wanted to try them.
An hour after they arrived, Sarah paid the bill, drove to pick up their dinner order, and headed to Simon’s place.
“Daddy, look!”said Sally when they entered the townhouse.She held out her hands for him to inspect.
“Mellow yellow, huh?”he said.“Your favorite color.”He smiled up at Sarah.“Thanks for taking her.She’s been looking forward to this for days.”
Her gaze swept over to Sally, who was now showing Dot her manicure, and then back to Simon.
“It was fun.I’m not sure Riley enjoyed it quite as much.Sitting still for that long is difficult for her.”
“I can see that,” said Simon, looking at Riley, who was now bouncing up and down as she talked to Sally.“Have you ever considered gymnastics?”
“She’s more interested in joining the volleyball team,” said Sarah.“And soccer.She loves soccer—it’s her father’s favorite sport.”
“Ah.”He turned back to look at her.“Thanks for bringing dinner.”He took the bags from her.
“Girls, wash your hands for dinner before it gets cold,” said Sarah.
“Okay,” Riley said, louder than necessary.The girl was a bundle of energy, as though the massage chair had somehow recharged her.That was all Sarah needed today.A recharged Riley.
The girls rushed to wash up and were soon sliding into what had become their usual spots at the table.
A sameness that Sarah was quickly becoming comfortable with.
ChapterTwenty-Four
On Saturday, Sarah and Riley arrived at Simon’s place right on time.
“Simon, guess what,” said Riley, when he opened the door.
“What?”
“I have two new cousins.One boy and one girl.”
