“Hi, Sunny,” she murmurs, gently tapping the baby’s nose. Sunny giggles. It’s cute.
I like kids—a miracle considering how many were always running around when I was younger, thanks to my mom’s home daycare—but I was never particularly inclined toward parenthood, even before Georgie died. Some people are meant to be parents, and Rora is one of those people. I know her better than most people, since her parents own the cabin near mine, and I would never have guessed until I saw her with a baby how much it would suit her.
“When are you due?” Este asks as Sunny plays with the wooden bear around her neck. I should really make something for her and the new baby.
“Early October, but she’s already measuring ahead like Sunny did, and I had to be induced a few weeks early with her since she was so big and I’m me.”
“It’s sweet that they’ll be so close together age-wise,” Este says—Sunny isn’t even one yet. “Are you excited to bea big sister?” she asks, and Sunny babbles in response. “Being a big sister is my favorite thing in the whole world. You get a built-in best friend!”
Sunny smiles up at Este, before catching sight of me over beside her and blinking. “Sasa,” she babbles, and Rora groans.
“No, sweet girl. Not everyone with a beard is Santa. Sorry,” she tells me. “This is an ongoing issue. That’s Nico, baby. Nee-koh,” she sounds out.
“Sasa,” Sunny repeats.
Rora sighs. “We’re working on it.”
“I’ve been called worse,” I say with a laugh. Sunny tries to grab my beard, but I offer her a finger instead, and she holds on tightly.
“Good luck getting that back. She has quite the grip. So, Este. You’re a pilot.”
Este stiffens ever so slightly, but she nods. The second she got confirmation that she was no longer a Skylark employee, I saw the weight of the world lift from her shoulders. She hasn’t had any flying-related nightmares since, but I’ve seen her staring up at the sky a few times, almost wistfully.
“I’m not working right now, but yeah, I am.”
“I was telling someone I work with about you,” Rora says. “There’s a resort up on the mountain—Blue Moon Meadows—and I photograph weddings there sometimes. They offer plane rides over the mountains. Their pilot, Ari, is on the hunt for another pilot ahead of the busy season this Christmas. I guess they’re struggling to keep up with demand since it’s just them at the moment, and there aren’ta lot of trained pilots in the area. I know you’re not flying just now, but I can pass your number on if that changes. Just let me know.”
If Sunny wasn’t holding my only free hand like a tiny vise, I’d rub Este’s back. Instead, I watch the tension ripple up her spine and press my leg against hers under the table.
She takes a deep breath. “Thank you for thinking of me. I’ll definitely let you know.”
I don’t know what’s going on inside her beautiful mind, but she didn’t knock the idea back right away, and I know that’s an improvement on where she was a few weeks ago.
A moment later, Sunny starts fussing. She goes from zero to a hundred in the three seconds it takes Este to pass her back to Henry. He cuddles her to his chest, and he and Rora head upstairs with two words: “Nap time.”
“Are you okay?” I ask Este, squeezing her knee under the table as she drains her water glass. Her hand is shaking slightly.
“I’m fine. I mean, she’s so cute, but it’s nice to be able to hand them back when they cry, you know?”
“I do, but that’s not what I meant,” I answer with a laugh. Este places her hand over mine on top of her knee, and even though dinner is going well, a big part of me just wants to whisk her away home. Well, home for now. “I was talking about what Rora suggested.”
“Oh, that. I wasn’t expecting it, but I’ll think about it.”
And that’s not whatIwas expecting. “Yeah?”
She nods, her chocolate eyes reflecting the twinkly gold Christmas lights dotted all over the room. While I can’t get behind Christmas the way most of Wintermore does it, Ilove the way the lights turn her eyes into little constellations, and I will be hanging them in the cabin year-round when we get back.
Or when I get back. We still haven’t talked about Este’s plans.
“I’m not ruling anything out. I do want to fly again, and a small plane is probably exactly what I need. I just need to push myself to actually do it.”
If we weren’t sitting at a table with her dads, I’d kiss the hell out of her right now. I settle for squeezing her knee. “Proud of you, angel.”
The dogs, who ditched us for Kate the second they realized she was nearby, come sniffing around, and I recognize Earl’s “let us outside” whine. I don’t expect Este to recognize it, but I should know better at this point.
“You want to go outside, sweet boy?” She starts to get up, but I stop.
“I’ve got them. Need to stretch my legs anyway.” The backyard is fenced off, so I don’t need to leash the boys. Not that I think they’d ever run off; leashing them in town is just polite.
