Page 58 of A Simple Life

“And Mommy and me made treats!”

I stood. “In this heat?”

Quinn laughed. “We did it at the restaurant in the cool.”

“Is the house not cool?” I asked, worried.

“Not as nice as the restaurant. The air is cool, but not cold the past couple of days.”

“I’ll come look at it. Maybe it needs a top-up. You should have said something,” I scolded gently.

“You’re up to your eyeballs right now. We’re fine.”

“I’ll look tomorrow.”

“Thank you.” She paused. “Laura and company coming tonight?”

“No. Cody has soccer practice and a team barbecue.”

“So, I get you all to myself?” she asked with an exaggerated leer.

I bent close, brushing my lips over hers. “Every last inch.”

“Yay, me.”

I snickered. “Now, let’s get our swim stuff and head to the water.”

“We made submarine sandwiches and brought chips.”

“Plus treats!” Abby added.

“Sounds great.”

The water was refreshing, and I felt the lingering exhaustion the heat always brought lift off me. We ate the delicious sandwiches, and I smirked as I was offered a large square of Rice Krispies treat. I took the gooey treat eagerly. “Haven’t had one of these in years.” I bit down and chewed. “It tastes about a hundred times better than I remembered, and that was pretty damn tasty.”

“Momma has a secret in…ingrad.”

“Ingredient,” Quinn corrected her.

“Yeah. Ingredient.”

I took another bite, munching slowly. “It’s very chewy.”

“I add toffee to the marshmallows. Gives it more flavor.”

“Great addition.”

“I helped stir in the Krispies!” Abby informed me.

“I knew it had been stirred extra well,” I said with a nod. “Great job, Pumpkin.”

She beamed at me—one of her bright, sunny smiles. It took so little to make her happy. A kind word. A hug. A teddy bear.

“Can I swim again?”

“Yes, just make sure we can see you.”

We watched as she launched herself into the water, floating on one of the toys we had.