“Miss Sprinkles,” Charlie said with a mouthful of spaghetti.
“Right. That’s Miss Sprinkles’ spot. You’ll have to sit over there.” She pointed to the other side of Olivia, who narrowed her eyes at her daughter but didn’t say anything, opting to clear the spot for me to sit next to her instead.
Careful not to trip and fall on the fifteen blankets piled everywhere, I carefully navigated my way around the coffee table to my designated seat and handed Olivia her plate. She took it with a polite nod.
For some reason, I suddenly felt nervous about her trying my food. It wasn’t like this was anything complicated. It was literally the easiest form of pasta I could make. But I still wanted her to like it.
I watched as she brought the fork up to her mouth. She closed her mouth around the tines, humming softly.
“Well, what do you think?” I asked.
“Honestly?”
“That’s why I asked. Don’t worry, you can’t hurt my feelings any more than this one can.” I nodded toward Harper. “When she doesn’t like something, she isn’t afraid to say it.”
Harper shrugged. “It’s true.”
“I’d have to say this is the best basic ass spaghetti I’ve ever eaten,” she said, chuckling.
“Really?”
“Oh, I don’t lie about food. Harper and I have that in common.” She reached over and gave my daughter a high-five.
I glanced between the two of them. “This feels dangerous.”
“Come on, Dad. We make a great team.”
“Yeah! Girl power,” Charlie chimed in. “You’re outnumbered three to one.”
I liked the sound of that. For the first time in years, it felt like having a family again. Which was alarming considering we weren’t anything close to that. We were playing house at best, being reckless at worst.
With each passing day, it was getting more and more difficult to remember that Olivia’s time here would come to a close. I’d have to settle for the occasional check-in when she stopped by to see Charlie, and that was even if she wanted to. She’dprobably rather spend time alone with her daughter than with me.
“What movie did you girls pick out?” Olivia asked, helping herself to another bite of food.
“Um, I think it’s called The Parent Trap? I don’t know. It’s, like, really old.”
Olivia placed her hand over her heart. “Jeez, kid. Way to hit me where it hurts. I remember when this movie came out.”
“That tracks,” Charlie muttered. A pillow flew over, smacking her gently on the head.
Thank god she’d put her plate down already. Lukas would have had a fucking fit if he’d found red stains on his cream colored couch.
“Hey! What was that for?”
“For calling me old, you brat. Your poor mom can’t take any more heartbreak right now,” Olivia said.
It was meant as a joke, but the sobering look on Charlie’s face tugged right at my heart. She leaned over, resting her head on Olivia’s shoulder, and draped her arm around her stomach. “Sorry, Mom.”
“Oh, Charlie…” Olivia wrapped her up in a hug. “I’m sorry, sunshine. I didn’t mean to make you sad. This right here? With you guys? This is the best I’ve felt in days.”
Charlie nodded, but didn’t let go of her mother. I grabbed the remote and pressed play, settling in beside them. The longer it went on, the closer everyone drifted to one another.
Charlie and Harper passed out first, their snores nearly drowning out the TV’s low volume. Olivia followed quickly after. Her body melted against my own. I tried to keep her upright, but it never lasted long. Eventually, I gave in, wrapping my arm around her shoulder and tucking her into my side.
We stayed like that until the credits rolled, and my own eyes drifted shut.
OLIVIA