I force my legs to move. “Hey, bug. What’ve you got?”
She shoves the paper at me. It’s a winged horse with a crown and absolutely no respect for anatomy.
“It’s a unicorn Pegasus princess,” she announces proudly. “Kia helped.”
I bite back a smile. “Is that right?”
Kia’s mouth curves. “We debated whether horns and wings could coexist before ultimately deciding they could.”
“Obviously,” I say. “Advanced genetics, if I had to guess.”
Elody giggles like I just said the funniest thing ever, and the tightness in my chest loosens another notch.
How could it not?
“She was very serious about perfecting the mane,” Kia adds.
“She gets that from her mom.” As soon as the comment is out of my mouth, I want to shove it back inside.
The mood shifts, and Kia stills for a beat, her gaze dropping to the counter before seeking mine out again. “I think she probably gets it from you too.”
Everything inside me expands until it feels like my skin is too tight for my body. I look away, suddenly fascinated by the pot simmering on the stove.
“It smells good,” I say gruffly, wanting to change the subject. “What’d you two make tonight?”
Kia wipes her hands on a towel before tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. She’s wearing jeans and a dark sweater. It’s simple yet stunning.
“Just something quick and easy,” she says. “Pasta with meat sauce, garlic bread, and salad.”
Elody points to the stove. “Daddy, she put cheese inside the bread.”
“Well,” I say, shrugging out of my coat and draping it over a chair tucked under the counter, “clearly, we’re keeping her.”
The words slip out before I can consider how they might come across. Kia’s wide gaze snaps to mine before darting away as color creeps into her cheeks.
I scrub a hand over the back of my neck, unsure how to proceed. This woman makes me feel so far out of my depth, it isn’t even funny. “Did you have a good day at school, bug?”
She nods. “Kennedy threw up at snack time.”
I blink. “She did?”
“Yeah, it was so gross. Then Max said he was gonna throw up.”
“Oh boy. Anything else?”
She thinks for a minute. “We painted reindeer. Mine had five heads.”
“That’s, um, actually terrifying.”
Kia’s lips tremble with a smile before she clears her throat. “Ms. Harding wanted to make sure I said hello to you. She seemed surprised to see me this morning,” she admits. “Especially after Elody told her I was living here.”
I can picture the look she gave Kia without much effort. That woman has been low-key hitting on me since September. Nothing overt, just enough to be obvious. I’ve never encouraged it or even given her a reason to think I might. I have zero interest in finding a warm body to slide into Sarah’s place. I’m barely managing life as it is without inviting further complications.
Unconsciously, my gaze drifts to Kia. I can’t help but notice the way she moves through our space, her ease with Elody, or how naturally she fits without even trying.
“Don’t worry, I’ll explain the situation to her,” I mutter, already irritated at the thought of Kia having to navigate someone else’s assumptions.
“It’s fine,” she says. “I wasn’t sure what you wanted me to tell her, so I didn’t say anything.”
