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“You like everything in here?”
She bit the corner of her lip like she didn’t want to admit she obviously did.
“Let’s go.” She opened her mouth to argue, but I waved her off. “You earned it. For the great job you’re doing with Finn and for conquering your fear.” Then I impulsively tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear.
Her answering pleased little smile did dangerous things to my already impaired self-control.
As we made our way back to the car, Finn in between us with a few butterfly clips in his hair, I had a feeling one hundred bucks in makeup was nothing compared to what I was willing to do to see her smile.
EIGHT
LIAM
Afew days had passed since I’d spent the afternoon driving around with Kennedy, and the more she settled in at home, the better I felt at work. I felt energetic during my classes, my lectures were informative—at least I hoped, but Mike in my US Political Thought class fell asleep this morning—and I was getting all my grades in on time. Not to mention, my publisher was really happy with my book, and advanced copies were being sent out to readers, mostly academics, librarians, and any media personalities interested in the history of America’s political landscape.
As I opened the front door to my home, the scent of something savory hit my nose, and I inhaled deeply. Whatever was cooking smelled amazing.
I shrugged off my jacket and made sure to hang it on the hook by the door, lest I miss out on my sticker. Yes, Kennedy had all three of us filling out chore charts with stickers. I hadn’t thought she was Mary Poppins when I’d met her, but these last two weeks had proven me wrong. She had Finn on a schedule, made me pick up after myself, and I was positive she was made of magic.
I followed the scent of the food and the sounds of music to the kitchen. I unbuttoned the cuffs of my shirt, rolling them up to my elbows as I paused in the doorway, taking in the scene before me.
Kennedy and Finn bopped around together, both of them wearing what looked like homemade hand puppets. Kennedy wore a raccoon, or maybe it was a skunk. And I was pretty sure Finn’s was some sort of dinosaur with its teeth and tail.
I released the top two buttons of my shirt and rubbed at my chest, loosening the sudden tightness there. Oblivious to my presence, they spun in a circle, Kennedy belting the chorus of some peppy Top 40 tune while Finn shrieked and occasionally shouted a few syllables here and there. He’d been making a lot of noise lately, not quite whole words, but more attempts at expressing himself, and it was because of Kennedy. She was working with him, following all of the advice and information from the speech therapist, and talking to him, singing to him every single day.
I had no idea Finn loved to sing and dance so much. But there he was, grinning wide and wonderful. Kennedy looked so carefree with her sparkling eyes, hair tumbling around her shoulders, skin flushed. She was breathtaking.
The song ended and morphed into something slower, and she swayed them side to side. That was when she spotted me leaning against the doorframe.
“Oh!” She straightened abruptly, her pink cheeks darkening to red. “Hi. I didn’t hear you come in.”
Finn leaped at me. “Addy!”
I caught him and kissed his head as I hugged him close. “Hiya, guy. Did you have a good day?”
He nodded, and I looked back to Kennedy. “Having your own private dance party, huh?”
She smoothed her hair back from her face. “I got tired ofCocomelon.”
“Yeah.”Cocomelonwas the absolute worst. “I get it.”
“I told him we’d make our own puppets and have a dance party with them if we could turn it off.”
Finn thrust his puppet in my face. “Rahh!”
I pretended to be scared, and he laughed happily. “Ti-tah!”
I quirked my brow at Kennedy for translation. “Triceratops.”
“Right.” I studied the puppet made out of a little brown paper bag, construction paper, and some googly eyes. “But triceratops have three horns on their heads,” I said to Finn, and Kennedy tossed her arms in the air, a silent reprimand. I immediately told him, “It’s really good, buddy!”
He kicked his legs, a sign for me to put him down, and as soon as I did, he snatched Kennedy’s…zebra?…and started attacking it with his triceratops.
“Welcome home,” she told me with a laugh, tying her hair up on her head before waving her hands on either side of her face in an attempt to cool off. “Or should I say, welcome back to the circus?”
“Depends. What role am I?”
“Juggler.”
