When they come back to the living room, Mila is sitting quietly on my lap playing with her mermaid. She eyes the two women warily.
“So, everything seems to be going okay then?” the older woman asks Rage.
“As good as can be expected,” he tells her honestly. “As you can see, Mila’s attached herself to Serenity. I have to give her all the credit for making my sister’s transition into our home so smooth. She even painted the room.” He tosses a thumb toward the hallway.
“You’re the one who bought the paint,” I say, trying to give him more credit than he’s giving himself.
The two women look at each other before the older one speaks. “I’m going to give you some advice. I’m not sure when your wedding is, but you might want to bump it up to before your court date for permanent guardianship.”
My heart clean fucking stops.Say what?
Rage places his hand on my shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze. “We’ll talk about it. Thank you for your advice. Really. All we want is what’s best for Mila.” Again, another squeeze. He’s talking to her, but really it’s directed toward me.
Everyone says a quick and formal goodbye, and Rage walks them out to their car.
I look at Mila. “Do you want to play outside?”
“Outside?”
“Yeah, let’s go get some fresh air.”
She rubs her fingers over her nose but gives me the cutest of little nods.
I walk her down the hallway, pausing in front of Rage’s now open room. My things are laid out on his dresser. This must have been what he and Cole were doing while I was brushing Mila’s hair.
The more I think about it, the angrier I become. This is impossible! I can’t stay here. What is he trying to do? I can’t believe he lied to CPS.
As I’m helping Mila put her shoes on, I think back to my own experiences as a kid. I wish someone would have done whatever it took to get me away from my bad situation, even if that meant lying.
Mila runs her fingers over her bright pink sneakers. “Mila’s shoes?”
I bite back tears. “Yes, these are Mila’s shoes,” I tell her, pulling her to her feet.
She holds her hands up for me to carry her. I don’t mind. She’s light as a feather, but I really need to be mindful of letting her walk as much as I can so that she builds up her strength.
We stop by the kitchen to gather a few things for us to snack on down by the lake. Rage steps into the room as I’m placing them in a bag.
“What are you doing?” he asks.
I don’t look at him. “I was wondering the same about you, but Mila and I are going for a walk.”
Mila peeks at him from between her fingers.
“I’ll come with you guys,” he tells me.
“Sorry, but this is a no boys allowed walk.”
His sister smiles and snuggles closer to me, waiting for his reaction.
He takes a deep breath. “I see. Well, I guess I’ll find something to do while you girls are out.”
“You do that,” I say, heading toward the back door.
Peanut follows me but turns back to see if Rage is coming with us.
“It’s okay, boy. Keep our girls safe.”
I bite my tongue because of the way Mila looks at me. He’s putting us together in the same sentence on purpose.