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He swallowed, gave a small nod, and quietly said, “Okay.”

It wasn’t a speech or a grand thank you. For Noah, it was everything.

“I like the garage,” he said after a moment, clearing his throat. “Bash said I could start working there after school.”

“Great.” Lilah smiled as she reached for the serving plate.

“Take my car tomorrow. It needs an oil change.” The tension dissolved as she piled second helpings of pancakes onto our plates.

The house settled into an easy rhythm after Noah’s birthday. School resumed, and he spent most afternoons at the garage, coming home smelling of motor oil and grease with an excitement I’d never seen in him before. For the first time since he’d moved in, he looked less like someone waiting for the floor to disappear beneath him and more like a teenager planning a future.

And if I had anything to say about it, every kid who walked through our front door would leave knowing exactly where they belonged.

A few days later, the phone rang. Lilah answered with her usual cheerful greeting, but within seconds, her tone changed. Her smile faded, her expression turning serious.

“Yes. I understand.” A pause. “We’ll be there.” She hung up slowly and looked at me.

“Two little girls,” she said quietly. “No other family.”

We’d only been licensed as foster parents for a week, but it didn’t matter. No other words were needed. I grabbed my keys, and together, we headed out to bring our girls home.

Lilah

Waking up, I stretched in bed the blanket falling off of me. Eliot was asleep behind me, his arm thrown over my waist. I stayed where I was for a bit, listening to the sound of his steady breathing. We had a busy week, and he needed sleep.

Feeling antsy, I slid out from under his hold and managed to get out of bed without waking him. After brushing my teeth and grabbing my favorite fluffy robe, I headed downstairs, solely focused on the coffee machine.

Once I got the pot brewing, I went to check on the kids. Noah wasn’t really a kid anymore, his eighteenth birthday just a few weeks away. His door was ajar, and I peeked inside to see him sprawled on top of his bed, snoring away. Shaking my head, I shut the door. He’d sleep until dinner if we didn’t wake him up. It was Sunday morning, though, so everyone typically slept in.

Moving to the girls’ room next, I opened the door, only to find two empty beds. The princess room Eliot and Noah created for Maisie and Josie was missing its two royal highnesses. With a sigh, I headed downstairs.

Fortifying myself with a cup of coffee, I made my way toward the back of the house, fairly confident in their whereabouts. The door to my studio was open, and I leaned against the doorframe to observe what the two troublemakers were up to. Several drawers were pulled open, the cabinet of supplies I kept for the kids studiously avoided in favor of my especially messy pastels.

Maisie, with her dark hair and tanned skin, was streaked in blue and purples. Josie, her younger shadow, was covered in even more layers of color. Lying in the middle of the room on their bellies, they were scribbling away on one of the bigger canvases I kept around.

Their brows were furrowed, tongues sticking out as they focused on their project. The girls had been with us for just under a year. Now at four and six, they were finally getting comfortable around us. Seeing them like that made my heart happy, knowing they felt safe enough to do it.

“Morning, my doves.” I spoke, and they both looked up with matching chocolate brown eyes. Joining them on the floor, I pressed a kiss to each of their heads before looking at their project.

“Is this for Noah?” I asked, and they both nodded. Noah had been a gift; I couldn’t imagine our lives without him. I only wished we had found him sooner. When we took the girls in, I was nervous that he would feel left out or ignored. Instead, he dove in, was hands-on as soon as they came home with us. Josie crawled into my lap, resting her head on my shoulder as she gave me a morning snuggle.

“It’s a supwise. For big bwother,” she told me matter-of-factly. I smiled.

“He’s going to love it,” I told her, and she nodded confidently.

“How’d you sleep, Mase?” I asked, and she scrunched her nose.

“I had a dream about carrots. I don’t want to eat any more of them.” I held back my laugh and nodded along with her decision.

“No carrots today. You got it.”

“Where’s Daddy?” Josie asked, her hand winding into my hair.

“Still sleeping. How about we make breakfast together and then we can wake the stinky boys up?” I asked, and both girls jumped up with excitement.

“Pancakes?!” They cheered, and I nodded, a smile forming on my face,

“Alrighty, then. Let’s go get cleaned up, then we can get started on carrot pancakes.” I teased.