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  “It’ll be okay.” Maybe the more she said it, the more she would believe it. With a kiss to Leah’s lips, Briley sent her off for the day. Leah shut her door, and Evan shouted good luck out SUV the window as Leah backed out of the drive. Briley shoved her hands in her pockets and walked back into the house. Grif was sitting on the floor, staring at them with a frown on her face.

  “We’ve got this.” Briley and Kat looked at each other then at Grif, who was standing up with her tiny fists clinched by her sides.

  Kat took a step in Grif’s direction and she took a step backward. “You sure you’ve got this?”

  “No doubt about that. Leah and Evan will be gone for a few hours. I have the perfect game plan, but I do have to make a quick run to the store,” Briley said.

  “What?” Kat jerked around.

  Briley waved her hand in the air. “You’ll be fine. I’ll be gone twenty minutes tops.”

  “Fine. Go.”

  Briley kissed a frowning Griffin on the cheek, then hurried out the backdoor. Twenty-five-minutes later, she walked back into the kitchen. The house was quiet. Eerily quiet. After setting her bags on the table, she tiptoed into the living room and spied Kat and Griffin asleep on the couch. It was too cute not to capture and she took several photos with her phone.

  Kat opened her eyes, but Briley held her hand up, indicating she needed five minutes. Walking quickly into the kitchen, she cleared the table, laid a large piece of craft paper over the top of it, then lined up everything she’d bought on top of the craft paper.

  Instead of baking cookies, she’d bought four dozen pre-made sugar cookies, shaped like different animals. Some as meerkats. A dozen different sprinkle containers were lined up side by side, and a dozen different icing containers were set up on the other side of the table. She didn’t know much about kids, but she did know baking and decorating. Who wouldn’t enjoy decorating cookies and eating them?

  That should take up a couple of hours, then a bath and nap time. Briley nodded, proud of her decision.

  Briley swept into the living room, and stood by the couch as Griffin started to stir. Wide eyes looked at Kat then at Briley. Before the tears could start, Briley picked up a fussy Griffin, carried her down the hall, and changed her diaper.

  “Don’t you feel better?” She wiggled her fingers like claws as Griffin giggled, then tickled her belly. Griffin made grabby hands. “What?”

  Griffin grabbed Briley’s nose. “Nose.”

  “That is my nose. You’re such a smart girl.” Briley kissed her cheek, and scooped her up in her arms. “I have a treat for you.”

  “Juice.”

  “You want some juice?”

  Griffin bobbed her head and played with the collar of Briley’s shirt. Kat held her phone up and took several photos of Briley and Griffin then followed Briley into the kitchen. Griffin’s eyes widened when she took in the table.

  “Cookie.” She tried to jump out of Briley’s arms, but she kept a firm hold on her.

  “That’s right. We’re going to decorate them. Kat, can you get her a small cup of juice?”

  “Sure.”

  Briley sat down at the table and settled Griffin in her lap, keeping her hands away from the cookies. “Juice first, then cookies.”

  When the juice was consumed, Briley set Griffin in her booster seat, and let her loose on the icing and decorations. It was messy, but so much fun. Briley couldn’t remember a time where she’d laughed as much. She made sure to take tons of photos, and even managed a video or two.

  An hour and a half, and twenty-six decorated cookies later, Griffin had icing all over herself, as well as Briley and Kat. Neither one minded since the smile never left Griffin’s face. Most of the cookies weren’t edible, but Briley had made sure to save a few that she and Kat decorated for Leah and Evan to eat.

  Since not all the ones Griffin decorated could be eaten, Briley had set the majority aside to turn into ornaments. Surely, Leah would want to keep them; she knew she wanted a couple for her tree. Closer to Christmas, she would make some dough for the specific purpose of using them for ornaments, but for now these would do.

  “While you give her a bath, I’ll get this stuff put away,” Kat said.

  “Then lunch?”

  “What do you want?”

  “Let’s keep it simple.” Briley set Griffin on her feet. “Sandwiches, carrots sticks, milk. I think Leah had some blueberries left, also.”

  “I’ll make it.”

  “Thanks.” Briley pretended to be a giant lobster and chased a squealing Griffin down the hallway and into the hall bathroom. Before Briley could even ask, Griffin was undressing. “You like taking a bath?”

  “Yes.”

  When the temperature was to their liking, Briley lifted Griffin up and into the tub, and gave her a few toys to play with. While Griffin occupied herself, Briley looked in the mirror. Staring back at her was an icing dotted face. She lifted her phone, took a picture of herself then one of a smiling Griffin, and sent them both to Leah.

  It didn’t take them long to clean up, and to Briley’s surprise, Griffin didn’t make a fuss when bath time was over.

  They met Kat in the kitchen, where lunch was a quiet affair while they watched an episode of Sesame Street. Griffin seemed to be entranced with Big Bird and Briley made a mental note the next time she was in town to pick something up for her.

  Their pleasant time together ended after lunch when Griffin ran around the living room, evading both her and Kat. How could someone so small run so fast? At that point, she was ready to tear her hair out, but Kat saved the day with yoga.

  Watching both Kat and Griffin go through the poses was the cutest thing Briley had ever seen and she took a video and photos to show Leah. She’d already decided to start scrapbooking to preserve all the memories she was making. She knew it wouldn’t always be this easy, but for now, she would take it.

  Before bath time, Leah had sent her a text, informing her they would be later than expected, but Briley had assured her everything was fine. By the third rotation of the yoga poses, Griffin had decided she’d had enough and climbed into Briley’s lap on the couch, curled up, and fell asleep. Kat, who flopped down beside Briley, followed her, hiding a yawn behind her hand.

  “The little thing wore me out,” Kat said.

  “Me, too.”

  “It was nice, though.” Kat looked at Griffin with a dopey grin on her face.

  “Yes, it was.” Briley kissed the top of Griffin’s head and held her more securely.

  “It looks good on you.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Motherhood.”

  “I’m not a mom, Kat, but I will admit that while kids were never in the forefront for me, I don’t mind this.”

  “Mom is going to freak.”

  “Mom’s already decided she’s spending Christmas overseas.”

  “I know.” Kat rubbed her hands on her thighs. “The same as last year.”

  “This year’s going to be different for us. We’ll be with Leah, her kids, and grandkids.”

  “Different isn’t bad.”

  “No, it isn’t. It’s awesome.” Briley turned toward Kat to ask her a question, only to clamp her mouth shut when she noticed Kat was asleep.

  She’d just closed her eyes when the slamming of a door grabbed her attention. Leah and Evan’s voices carried into the house and she would have shot her a text message to keep it down, but her phone was in the kitchen.

  Leah walked in, saw them, then quietly shut the front door, set her bags down, and made her way to the couch. She kissed Griffin on the head and Briley on the lips. “Tough day?”

  “No, but as you can see, she wore us out.”

  “Thank you for the photos.” Leah ran her fingers through Griffin’s hair.

  “You and Evan have a good day?”

  “We did.” Leah took her phone, then brought up a picture of an icing covered Griffin. “Not as good as yours.”

  “Just different good
.”

  “Did you have anything in mind for dinner?” Leah asked.

  “Whatever you want is fine. I’ll be lucky if I don’t fall asleep in my food.”

  Leah chuckled. “Why don’t you and Griffin go take a nap in my bed? I’ll wake you when dinner’s ready.” Leah shook Kat’s shoulder. “You can go with them.”

  “Where?” Kat rubbed her eyes.

  “You can either take a nap with them in my bed or here on the couch.”

  “As long as you have an extra blanket, I’ll stay here.”

  Leah helped Briley and Griffin up off the couch then sent them to bed with a kiss. As soon as Briley’s head hit the pillow, she was fast asleep with a squirming two-year old curled into her chest.

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Three hours later, Briley and Leah sat down for dinner. Kat had taken Evan out for dinner under the guise to get to know him, but Evan had been quiet all afternoon and Kat knew he needed someone to talk to. They left with the promise to be back no earlier than eleven. Griffin was tucked in bed after two bedtime stories and several kisses.

  Leah lifted her glass of wine. “You were excellent with her today, as I knew you would be.”

  “Never doubted, huh?” Briley touched their glasses. “What was all the ‘she’s trouble’ talk?”

  “She’s not all sunshine and kisses, Briley. She had a complete meltdown when we were packing up Kathy’s house. I almost had a breakdown taking care of her breakdown.”

  “We had our moments, especially after the cookies, but Kat was wonderful and wore her out with yoga.”

  “I’ll have to remember that. The cookies were a nice touch, also.”

  Briley smiled. “It is what I do.”

  “It’s not the only thing you do.”

  Briley fanned her face. “I do declare. Miss, are you flirting with me?”

  “If you have to ask, I’m not doing it right,” Leah huffed, then drank the last of her wine.

  “Never fear, tiny. Your lines will always draw me in.” Briley made a heart shape with her hands. “Right in the feels.”

  “Dork.”

  “I’m your dork.”

  Leah sighed. “If you must.”

  “I must.”

  “So, does that make me yours?”

  Briley pushed away from the table and stood. Once she reached Leah, she extended her hand, which was quickly taken. Briley pulled a willing Leah into her arms. “Yes, it does make you mine, but not in a possessive, creepy, stalkerish way. In the healthy, compromising, partnership relationship way, then yes. Yes, it does.”

  “I can live with that.” She racked her fingers through the hair at Briley’s neck. “Evan and Kat will be back in less than an hour. Let’s curl up on the couch.”

  “That’s sounds like a fantastic idea.” Briley flopped down on the couch, resting against the arm, and pulled Leah into her arms.

  “Tell me something no one knows about you. Not even your sister.”

  After a moment, Briley answered. “That’s a tough one. Kat and I share almost everything. First, I should say I do not like horror movies and I have an active imagination. Brandon and I had just bought our third house to flip. I was apprehensive about it. There was just something about the house that creeped me out. Every time I entered, dread filled me. Even after the house was finished, I still had a creepy feeling. It was late the night before open house when Brandon and I both left. Brandon was headed straight home, but I stopped at the store. He called me and said he had left his notebook at the house and asked if I would go pick it up for him. Well, I didn’t want to, but I had never told him about my fears of the house. I sat in the driveway for fifteen minutes before I worked up the nerve to get out. I needed to feel grounded, so I called Kat and we talked while I went in the house and grabbed Brandon’s notebook.”

  “What happened?” Leah squeezed Briley’s thigh.

  “Nothing. I was still creeped out, but talking to Kat helped. I never saw anything or heard anything. It was just a feeling I got. Even years later, if I’m not comfortable about a house, I speak up. I don’t think I can go through that experience again.”

  “Did you ever find out why you felt like that about the house?”

  “Do you believe in ghosts?”

  “I can’t say that I do, but I do believe spirits still linger on earth. If we can see them, I don’t know. I never have, but that doesn’t mean someone else hasn’t.”

  “I still get an eerie feeling every time I drive by it. A family of five bought it a week after we put it on the market and are still there. It’s stupid.”

  “No, Briley, it’s not. Our feelings never are. My dad always told me to trust my gut. Your gut was telling you something was off. There is nothing stupid about that and nothing stupid about your feelings.”

  “Now your turn.”

  Leah was quiet for so long Briley thought she might had fallen asleep. “I caught my dad cheating on my mom one day on summer break. I was seventeen. I never told him or her. It changed the way I looked at him. I didn’t talk to him for weeks after that. He couldn’t figure out what was wrong and my mom tried to talk to me, but I blew her off. I never told either of them I knew. You’re the first person I’ve ever told.” She tracked her fingers down Briley’s chest.

  “Jesus, that must have been hard.” That blew her story out of the water.

  “It was. It knocked him off the pedestal I put him on. I eventually talked to him again, but things were changed. My trust in him for me was still there, but my trust in his trust for other people was skewed. If that makes sense.”

  “Perfect sense. He and your mother had issues, but he still loved you.”

  “I think the only reason my mom stayed with him was because of the money. I vowed to only marry or be in a relationship for love. Not money.”

  “Well, then we know this is going to last. Because I live a comfortable life, but I’m not rich.”

  “Do you know what I enjoy about being with you?” Leah gazed up at her.

  “I am all ears.”

  “Even when we’re not talking, just cuddling, I feel so comfortable and safe with you.”

  Briley gave a quick nod. “I concur.” She leaned forward and captured Leah’s lips, but the hand pushing her away stopped her from deepening it.

  “I’m not strong enough to say no to you tonight.”

  “You don’t have too. I can stay tonight.” Briley kissed her cheek, then drew Leah into her arms. “I love holding you just as much as I love kissing you. You always smell so good.”

  “Well, I’m glad my hygiene practices are working.”

  “Whatever you’re doing, keep doing it.”

  Leah raised up and threw one leg over Briley’s legs, straddling her and resting her hands around Briley’s neck. “I don’t know why anyone lucky enough to have you in their life would let you go.”

  “I feel the same way about you.” Briley slid her hands under Leah’s shirt and caressed the smooth skin.

  “I would like to take the kids fishing before school starts.” Leah pulled back to look in Briley’s eyes. “Is that something you’d be interested in?”

  “Fishing with you and your kids. Most definitely. Though, I should warn you. I was a four-time winner of Little Miss Bass in my hometown.”

  Leah smothered a smile. “Oh, I see. Competitive even then.”

  “What can I say? When you’ve got it, you’ve got it, and I do.”

  “Is this the point where I should swoon?”

  Briley gave a mock scandalized look. “Yes, yes, it is. I am an all-around go-getter and winner.”

  Leah leaned forward and whispered in Briley’s ear. “And if I was to say my dad and uncle were champion bass fishermen that took me with them all the time, what would you have to say to that?”

  “I would say…” Briley tightened her hold on Leah and reversed their position, depositing a giggling Leah on the couch before resting on top of her and peppering her face with kisses. “I would say
that we’ll have this fishing trip well in hand.” Briley kissed her again. “You make me happy.”

  Leah smiled and slid her hands up Briley’s sides. “You make me happy too.” She grabbed the front of Briley’s shirt and pulled her down for a kiss right when the front door opened and Evan and Kat walked in.

  “Told ya, Evan,” Kat said.

  Briley watched as Evan took his wallet out and handed Kat a ten-dollar bill.

  “Really, Kat,” Briley said, sitting up and helping Leah do the same. “You bet on us?”

  “Why not?”

  “Mom,” Evan said. “Happy looks good on you.”

  Leah jumped up and engulfed him in a tight hug. “Thank you, but in the future, we’ll try to be more careful.”

  “It’s all right as long as I don’t walk in on you two in a more delicate situation.”

  “I can guarantee that won’t be happening,” Briley said. “Considering the little feet running around.”

  “I’m going to bed. Night all,” Evan called out, then continued on downstairs.

  “I guess that’s my cue to leave, also.”

  “Kat, make sure this one stays out of trouble tomorrow.”

  “Leah, as much as I like you, that’s not a promise I can keep. Briley, we’re leaving early. You’re taking me out for breakfast.”

  “All right. Bright and early. I can do that.”

  Briley wrapped her arms around Leah from behind. “Ready for bed?”

  “Always.”

  Briley would make sure tomorrow she and Kat went someplace she could buy a new fishing pole on their self-imposed sister day. She may have been Little Miss Bass when she was a kid, but she hadn’t been fishing in almost twenty-five years. No time like the present to start back in.

  Chapter Thirty-two

  “So, tell me again why we’re at Bass Pro Shops?” Kat asked when Briley pulled into the parking lot.

  Briley put the truck in park and pulled the key out. “I told you I need to buy a fishing pole.”

  “For your fishing trip with Leah?” Kat looked skeptical.

  “And the kids,” Briley added.