Archer wasn’t mine.
But I was starting to feel like they were.
ChapterTwenty
The Ranch
I flipped the screen of my cell phone around and said, “Say hi to my parents.”
“Hi parents!”Salem called with a smile and a wave.
I panned the cell around the kitchen.My friends and Muddy wished my parents a happy Thanksgiving.The back door slid open and Lenni came in holding Mildred.
“Ah, just in time,” I said with a smile.“Lenni, come meet my parents.”
“Hi Lenni!”my mom greeted with enthusiasm.
“Hi,” Lenni said, bashfully hiding her head against Mildred.
“Hi Lenni.Are you helping with all the food prep?”my dad asked.“Or are you going to do what I do and sneak away and hide?”
Lenni laughed.“I helped with the pie crusts earlier.”
“Don’t listen to him,” I said to Lenni.“He and my mom were the only reason we had a good Thanksgiving one year.They drove down to the city with a cooked turkey after we messed ours up.”
“Turkey is not as hard as everyone makes it out to be,” my dad informed her.“Meat thermometers will save your life.”
“Okay,” Lenni said.“Nice to meet you!”
She escaped to the living room where Mr.Powell and Grampy were watching football.
“I’m going to step outside for a second,” I informed the occupants of the kitchen.
“Take a coat,” Muddy insisted.“Snow’s in the air.”
Nodding, I grabbed my coat that hung on a kitchen table chair and slipped into it as I headed outside to the back porch.I didn’t want to stay too close to the house, so I went to the fire circle and took a seat in one of the camp chairs.
“She’s a cute kid,” Mom said.“How’s that going?”
“Okay, I think,” I said.“A lot of ups and downs.”
“That’s to be expected,” Dad said.
“Archer doesn’t really know how to handle the meltdowns yet,” I said.“Not that I blame him.It’s not like kids come with a manual.”
“How areyouholding up?”Mom asked.“You look tired.”
“Thanks,” I muttered.
“Am I wrong?Are you tired?Have you had a day off yet?”Mom demanded.
“It’s fine.I’m fine,” I insisted.“I wish you guys were here.”
“Maybe next year,” Mom said.
“You think I’ll still be out here next year?”I asked.
“Yes, I do,” Mom said.
