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“I know, I know. You’re right.” Clementine said, backtracking now that it was obvious Tulsi had started to lose her temper. “I’m sorry, Mama.” Clem ran across the room and threw her arms around Tulsi’s waist. “I’ll be good, cross my heart and hope to die. Just please let me go. It’s all I ever wanted in my whole entire life.”
Tulsi sighed as she smoothed her hand over Clem’s silky hair, her daughter’s hug melting her anger the way it always did. “All right, drama queen,” she said softly. “Let’s get going. Hopefully, the bus hasn’t left without you.”
“Can I bring Monster Princess’s clothes, too?” Clem asked, already shoving them into the open duffel near Tulsi’s hip. “I know they said no toys, but these aren’t toys, they’re accessories.”
“Fine. But we need to go with a capital G.” Tulsi turned to Pike, pulse pounding all over again as their eyes met. “Thanks for keeping an eye on her.”
“No problem,” he said, the warmth in his voice making her chest ache. “It was nice to meet the infamous Clementine. Mia’s told me so much about her.”
“Bye, Mr. Pike,” Clem called, waving as she pulled Tulsi toward the door. “We can hang out more when I get back from camp. We’ll play poker for candy so make sure you stock up.”
“I’ll be looking forward to it.” Pike grinned at Clementine before shifting his gaze to Tulsi, his smile remaining firmly in place. “See you around, Tuls. Don’t be a stranger.”
“Oh-okay,” Tulsi stammered.
She fought the urge to frown until she and Clem were back outside, but as soon as the shop’s front door closed behind them, her brows snapped together like opposite sides of a magnet. What theheckwas that? That smile? That easy, breezy smile that made it seem like Tulsi was just an old friend Pike was glad to run into while he was back in town? What had happened to the pain and loathing from yesterday? Had she imagined it or read something personal into an unrelated foul mood?
Tulsi shook her head as she and Clem hustled down the sidewalk toward the bus. No, she hadn’t imagined it. Pike had practically glared a hole through her forehead. If looks could kill, she would have been lying beside the road, bleeding from multiple stare wounds.
So what had changed? What had happened between last night and this morning to banish the loathing in Pike’s eyes?
“I have to talk to Mia,” Tulsi mumbled, tugging her phone out of her jeans pocket.
“What?” Clementine panted, out of breath from taking two steps for every one of Tulsi’s.
“Nothing, baby.” Tulsi forced a smile as she tapped out a quick text to Mia asking her to give a call when she was up. “Just thinking out loud.”
“Grandpa says only crazy people do that,” Clem said.
Tulsi tucked her phone back into her pocket with a roll of her eyes. “Grandpa has a lot of big opinions. That doesn’t mean they’re the truth.”
Clementine nodded. “Opinions. Everyone’s got one.”
Tulsi laughed. “Yes, but don’t say that at camp, either.”
“Why?” Clementine asked. “It doesn’t have any bad words in it.”
“I’ll explain when you get home,” Tulsi whispered as they neared the bus. All the other kids were on board, but the storage area beneath was still open, and two of the counselors were crossing the parking lot from the nearby drug store carrying flats of bottled water.
“You found her!” Deb met them by the storage area under the bus as Tulsi tucked Clem’s duffel inside with the other bags.
“Yes, thank goodness.” Tulsi put an arm around Clem’s shoulders, hugging her close. “She was at Mia’s looking for her doll. We found it, so she’s all set.”
“Great!” Deb grinned down at Clem. “Hailey is saving you a seat. She’s so excited there are going to be two six-year-olds at camp this year. I bet you two are going to have the best time.”
“We are!” Clem was prancing with excitement as she turned to give Tulsi one last hug. “Bye, Mom. Love you!”
“Love you, too.” Tulsi hugged her daughter hard, holding on for as long as Clem would tolerate before setting her free. “Have fun, be good, and remember all the things we talked about.”
“I will!” Clementine waved before dashing to the front of the bus and disappearing inside, sending a pang through Tulsi’s heart. She’d been so scared when Clem disappeared she’d forgotten how nervous she was about the camping trip until she watched her baby climb out of sight.
“They’re going to be fine,” Deb whispered as they meandered a few steps away from the bus. “I know it’s scary, but Hailey and Clementine are both mature for their age. They’re going to have a wonderful time and make amazing memories.”
“I know. And Clem’s so excited to go.” Tulsi tried to smile, but couldn’t seem to get her brows to unfurrow. This entire morning had been too upsetting to snap back so easily. “She’s just so little. My mom didn’t let me go to camp until I was in third grade.”
“They’re growing up faster than we did,” Deb agreed with a sigh. “But I’ve heard Mrs. Grier expects so much of her first graders. Gaining some independence will probably be good for them.”
Tulsi nodded. “I’ve been trying to prepare Clem all summer. My friend Mia and I had Mrs. Grier when we were little. Mia was so much like Clem and she got in trouble all the time. Mrs. Grier has a zero free spirit tolerance policy.”
