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“I’ve never had that before,” she says, glancing up at me with an arched brow.
I push the bucket closer. “It’s the best. I promise.”
She grabs a handful, and her eyes brighten as she swallows it down. She immediately goes for another handful.
Maliki shakes his head at us with a smile.
Molly turns to look at Maliki. “You want to try some?”
His smile grows. “I’ll let you two have it all.”
“Your dad doesn’t appreciate the art of sprinkling sugar on top of everything,” I whisper to her, and she breaks out in laughter.
* * *
Molly taps her chin.“Hmm … there arewaytoo many colors. I can’t pick only one.” She does another scan of my nail polish collection. “Can I pick however many I want?”
“Yes, ma’am,butwe have to stop at ten.” I wiggle my fingers in the air. “Unless you have an extra thumb somewhere.” I grab her hand to inspect it.
She bursts into giggles. “No!”
She spins to look at Maliki. He’s in the chair, watching us.Beauty and the Beastis playing in the background, there’s an array of fingernail polish bottles scattered around us, and Molly’s hair is braided into four braids.
“Can you paint my nails while Sierra does my toenails?” she asks him.
My mouth falls open.
Maliki shifts in his seat. “Sure, but I can’t promise they’ll look pretty.”
“It’s okay. If they don’t, Sierra can redo them.”
I laugh, my hand going to my stomach, as Molly hands him ten bottles and another for “glitter on top.”
* * *
“I thinkit went well with the exception of Jessa losing her shit when she saw me,” I say after we drop Molly off at home.
To minimize the baby-mama drama, I gave Molly a hug at the car and stayed behind while Maliki walked her to the door. I wouldn’t let Jessa taint the fun we’d had today.
I grin over at him. “I learned something else about you today.”
“Yeah? What’s that?”
“You are a terrible nail-painter.”
“Yes, I’ve been told that by a six-year-old.”
38
Maliki
I groanwhen the name flashes across my phone.
If only I didn’t have to answer.
I briefly wonder when is too young for a phone.
Noah has an iPod.
