AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“It’s very important to me that Daisy learns to share,” she continues with a small laugh. “And you’ve been keeping Juliana to yourself for weeks.”
The women break out into a chorus of giggles, and I groan. This is my life now. I’ve brought another woman into the house, raising the estrogen levels. It seems they’ve already become fast friends, and I can’t stop the train from going off the track.
“It’s been ages since we’ve had breakfast together,” Tory complains from her spot at the kitchen counter. “Who am I supposed to gossip with now, Hex? My husband?”
Abigail snickers, accidentally spitting out her coffee, and Juliana smiles broadly. Even if this is my nightmare, it’s so good to see her happy. I want her to feel comfortable here with everyone. We’re her family now.
“Well, who says I’m the one with the sharing problem?” I grumble, sitting down next to Tory and stealing a piece of her bacon. She immediately smacks my hand, but I pop the fried meat into my mouth and chew quickly. “For all you know, Juliana’s the one holding me captive.”
Said woman blushes and takes a small sip of her coffee, but Tory fixes me with a stare.
“Sweet Hex.” She sighs. “This is what relationships are, and the sooner you learn, the better it will be for everyone.”
“Learn what?” I ask, already nervous about her answer.
“It’s never the woman’s fault,” Abigail chimes in, smiling as she helps Daisy get her eggs to her mouth.
“Right,” Tory confirms. “Even when we’re wrong, we’re right. And that’s why we’re sure you’ve been keeping her from us and not the other way around.”
I look at Juliana, but she purposely isn’t looking at me, instead focusing her attention on Daisy. She holds out a small piece of bacon, which Daisy grabs with her chubby baby hands and chews on listlessly.
“Can I get you anything, querido?” Juliana calls to me from next to the highchair.
“Maybe my dignity,” I grumble, causing the women to break out in another chorus of laughter.
“Come on, Hex,” Tory says sweetly, squeezing my forearm. “You know it’s all good fun. Abigail and I are so happy to have another woman around, and more importantly, we’re happy that you’re happy.”
“Who’s happy?” Evanesce asks, almost floating into the kitchen.
Great. Just what this kitchen needs—more women.
“Well, that’s my cue,” I tell the women, standing and heading for the door. “The female-to-male ratio in this kitchen is too off-balance. I’m going back to bed.”
“I’ll be back soon,” Juliana promises, coming over and placing a sweet kiss on my lips.
“Take your time,” I tell her, rubbing my hand along her arm. “I’m glad you’re making friends. Stay down here all day if you want. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Me neither,” she whispers, placing another sweet kiss on my lips.
The other three women holler, and Daisy adds her voice to the mix. She has no idea what’s going on, but she loves using her voice. She giggles with joy, and the women turn to fawn over her.
Soon, there will be another baby crying all night and adding an unnatural level of cuteness to the house. I can see it now—in five years the house will be full of children chasing each other around and playing hide-and-seek with the ghosts. I don’t know if the thought horrifies or excites me.
I turn to walk out of the room and immediately run into a grumpy-looking Cassandra. Speaking of ghosts. Her hands are on her hips, and she’s glaring at me.
“You’ve barely played with me at all since that lady got here,” she complains, pouting. “I hate her.”
I sigh heavily, moving to the stairs and patting the spot next to me for her to sit down. How can I explain to an eight-year-old ghost that I have a girlfriend now?
“You’re still my best girl, Cassandra,” I tell her. “But Juliana is someone I love, and she’ll be around a lot. And she would be jealous if I spent all my time with you.”
“That isn’t my problem,” she answers petulantly. “You’ve blocked me out of your room. That’s mean, Hex.” She folds her arms and looks forward, ignoring me. “I got all those other ghosts to come save you, and you haven’t played with me once.”
I have a feeling that one day, I’ll be sitting on these stairs having a similar conversation with Daisy, or maybe even my own daughter. I don’t have time to please everyone. But I know one thing that is guaranteed to make Cassandra feel better.
“I’m sorry I’ve had to block off my room, but now that Juliana’s here, we need a little privacy. To make it up to you, I promise you can come to church whenever you want to. You won’t even have to break the lights anymore.”
She turns to me with wide eyes and an excited grin.
