I lumbered up the stairs to the cottage, the box of gifts balanced on my hip rattling with each step.Calm down. I paused before I got to the door. With a flick of my hand, I neatened up my hair—kind of.This visit isn’t a big deal. Erin wouldn’t realizehow much time I’d wasted choosing what to wear after washing up. She probably wouldn’t notice I’d scrubbed my boots, either. I wasn’t on her radar like that. Never had been.
The door was open.
Erin stood hunched over the kitchen counter, chopping vegetables, her dark hair spilling over tense shoulders. The frustrated “Shit” she murmured was barely audible over the metal clunk of the knife against the board.
My nerves vanished. Worry took over. Something wasn’t right.
I knocked on the wall beside the door to let her know I was there.
Erin whipped around, her puffy red eyes wide. “Cal! Hey!” She covered her surprise with a smile. “That was quick!”
With a sheepish grin, I admitted, “Imayhave sent that text when I was already here.”
“Oh, did you just? What if I’d said no?”
I patted the cardboard box balanced on my hip. “I would’ve left my goodies on the porch and disappeared like the good pirate I am.”
Scurrying footsteps behind me tugged my attention from Erin. One of Matilda’s dark eyes peeked out around the door. My heart dipped in my chest. Was she scared of me again? I thought I’d finally won her over at the playground.
“Hey there, little buccaneer,” I said.
Her ginger bear peeked out from behind the frame. “Pirate.” Her giggle coaxed a smile out of me.
“Til.” Erin sighed. “Remember how we talked about Cal? He’s a farmer.”
“He not,” Matilda said with conviction.
I chuckled. “You know, maybe Iama pirate, huh? Do you want to see all the treasure I’ve got here?” I jiggled the box in my arms. “I knocked off work early today so I could sneak off on a secret mission to the city.”
Matilda popped out from the doorway. “What that? Presents?” She clapped her hands to her cheeks. “For Matilda?”
“For Matildaandher mum.”
“Cal, you’re spoiling us,” Erin said.
I grinned. I sure was. It was fun having someone to spend my money on. “Since you’re staying on a farm, there are a few things you’re going to need,” I said. “Starting with… gumboots!”
Matilda’s face drooped when I pulled out the sensible pair of black rubber boots I’d chosen for Erin, but my smile only got bigger. I was about to knock that kid’s tiny socks off.
“And for pirate princesses in training…” With a grand flourish, I presented Matilda the sparkly pink boots.
Her foot shot out. “Put on!” Impatient, she wiggled her toes, but after stealing a glance at her mother, she charmed me with a sweet, “Please!”
“Come on over,” I said. “Let’s get these on you.” I crouched in front of Matilda and helped her tug on the boots. “These are just what you need for stomping around in the mud.”
“Stomping” was the wrong word to use.
Matilda decided then and there to test out her new boots. “Stomp! Stomp! Stomp!” Her pigtails bopped up and down as the ancient wood groaned under her feet. “Matilda stomping!”
“You don’t say.” I shot Erin an apologetic smile. “What about if we save our stomping for the mud?”
“Okay!” Matilda arched on her tiptoes, peeping in the box. “What next?”
“Til,” Erin said, “that’s not very nice manners.”
Big brown eyes blinked up at me. “Sorry.”
“That’s okay,” I said. “What elsedoI have in here? Hmm… Hats!” When Matilda gave an excited nod, I unpacked more of the goodies on the table. “In case your mum needs some quiet time after too much stomping, we’ve got a few jigsaw puzzles, anewSpotbook, and crayons and paper… But this last one is extra special. Promise you’ll share it with your mum, okay?”
