Sage's ears twitched, clearly catching their conversation. The mother jackalope's nose twitched with what Beth could have sworn was indignation, but she maintained her aloof position by the door.
"Aww, who can blame her?" Beth gathered a few pieces of watermelon rind from her fruit bowl. "Every mom needs a break sometimes."
She crossed the yard, her sandals whispering through the grass. Sage's ears pivoted toward the sound of her approach,though the jackalope maintained her dignified pose facing the sliding glass doors.
"I brought you something special." Beth crouched beside Sage, holding out the pale green rind. The jackalope's nose twitched, whiskers quivering as she caught the sweet scent.
Sage finally turned her head, large dark eyes assessing Beth for a moment before delicately accepting the offering. Her teeth made soft crunching sounds as she nibbled the juicy rind. Beth smiled, reaching out to stroke the thick fur between Sage's impressive antlers. The jackalope's coat felt like velvet beneath her fingers, softer than she'd expected.
"You're such a good mama," Beth murmured, scratching gently behind Sage's ears. Sage's eyes half-closed in pleasure as she continued munching her treat.
After a few more moments of petting, Beth rose and made her way back to where Jacinth and Layla lounged on the patchwork quilt. She settled onto a sunny patch of blanket, crossing her legs beneath her as children's laughter rang out from the play structure behind them.
Beth settled more comfortably on the blanket as she watched Jacinth unpack containers from a wicker basket. The rich scent of garlic and lemon wafted from an enormous bowl of creamy hummus, making her mouth water.
"This smells amazing," Beth said, reaching for a piece of warm pita bread. She dragged it through the hummus, scooping up a generous portion. The first bite melted on her tongue, drawing an appreciative moan. "Oh my god, Jacinth. What do you put in this?"
Layla pulled out a stack of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches wrapped in wax paper, along with two bags of potato chips. "I brought these for the children," she said, arranging the food on paper plates. "And of course they'll want some of the fruit. Oh! And I made deviled eggs."
"Speaking of hungry..." Jacinth's eyes sparkled with mischief as she produced a bottle of champagne from her basket. With practiced ease, she poured the champagne into three plastic cups, the bubbles fizzing merrily in the sunlight, then pulled out a bottle of orange juice and tipped some into each cup.
"Mimosas? At a playdate?" Beth accepted her cup with a laugh, the cool plastic smooth against her fingers.
"It's never too early for a little celebration," Jacinth declared, passing the second cup to Layla. "Here's to your first week at your new jobs!"
"Here, here!" Layla raised her cup, the bubbles catching the sunlight.
Beth echoed the toast, taking a sip of the crisp, citrusy drink. The fizz tickled her nose as the sweet-tart flavor spread across her tongue.
"So how is it going?" Jacinth leaned back on one elbow, her long dark hair spilling over her shoulder. "The new jobs, I mean."
"Wonderfully!" Layla's face lit up. "I'll be starting working the evening shift with Beth on Monday. They've been so accommodating about my schedule with Yousuf. I'll work from four until eight, so I can get home in time for his bedtime. The other staff will stay later to close up."
Beth nodded, watching the children chase each other around the play structure. "I'm doing five to five. After the clinic closes at eight, I'll stay on to get everything set up for morning, and take care of the overnight patients."
Molly and Yousuf came racing across the grass, their faces flushed from playing.
"I'm starving!" Molly flopped onto the blanket beside Jacinth. "Can we have lunch now?"
"Me too!" Yousuf settled next to Layla, his dark eyes bright with excitement.
Jill hopped closer, her nose twitching at the scent of food. Beth helped Layla distribute the sandwiches and chips while Jacinth poured cups of lemonade for the children.
Molly took a big bite of her peanut butter and jelly sandwich, then held out a piece toward Jill. "Here bunny, want some?"
"No, sweetie." Jacinth gently caught her daughter's hand. "Jill needs special food. Here..." She selected a plump raspberry from Beth's fruit salad. "You can give her this instead."
Molly beamed as she offered the berry to Jill. The baby jackalope's whiskers quivered as she eagerly accepted the treat, drawing giggles from both children.
"Mama!" Yousuf turned to Layla between bites of his sandwich. "Molly says kindergarten is so much fun! She gets to paint and sing songs and everything!" He bounced in place, scattering potato chip crumbs. "When can I go to kindergarten too?"
Beth saw Layla's face freeze, pain flashing through her eyes before she carefully smoothed her expression. "We'll talk about that later,habibi."
"Okay!" Yousuf stuffed the last bite of sandwich in his mouth and jumped to his feet. "Come on, Molly! Let's go back to the fort!"
Molly scrambled up, nearly tripping over her own feet in her haste to follow. Their excited chatter faded as they raced back to the play structure, leaving their paper plates scattered on the blanket.
An uncomfortable silence fell over the blanket as Beth gathered the scattered paper plates.
