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The couple laughed.
“You’re too cute for your own good.” Mr. Sam tapped her nose. “Let’s get inside and get dinner going. It’s cold out here.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Having Pippi in their space magnified all of Catherine’s feelings about the adorable redhead tenfold. She loved watching the girl’s face as they gave her a tour of the house. She was so expressive and a constant ball of compliments. Cat was proud of her house and she loved showing it off, but this was next-level fun.
“And this will be your room.” Sam swung the door open to reveal a very femininely decorated bedroom. It was the furniture from their daughter’s bedroom when she’d lived at home. White woods and soft purple linens. Cat had always loved it, so when they moved to the Ridge, she chose to keep it for the guest room
Pippi walked in and set her bag down before sitting on the bed and giving it a couple of bounces. Her Little girl antics were so genuine and made Cat smile.
“This is great! So pretty and so comfy. Thank you for letting me stay here.”
“You’re welcome. How about we all go work together on some dinner and then we can get to the funner stuff.”
Sam took the lead as usual, but Cat didn’t mind. She loved that he was embracing Pippi just like she had. Not that she doubted he would. He was such a Daddy at his core. He needed Pippi in his life just as much as Cat did.
In the kitchen, they all worked side by side to make some pasta and meatballs. Pippi did a little jig when Sam showed her the box of bow-tie pasta and expressed how they were her favorite. She was great in the kitchen and so excited to show off her meatball-making skills. Sam did the sauce and noodles while Cat chopped everything for a hearty salad.
Their conversation was easy and comfortable as they got to know one another. Pippi told them about all of her recent life changes and Cat couldn’t help but cheer in her head with each tie that bound their girl to her other life had been loosened of unfurled, leaving her basically free to live her life however she wanted to. She wasn’t sure Pippi saw it that way, but when the time was right, Cat would share her thoughts.
“This sauce is yummy!” Pippi smiled.
“If you keep eating so fast you’re going to give yourself a tummy ache,” Cat teased as she reached over with a napkin and dabbed the corners of Pippi’s mouth.
“Oh, sorry.” Pippi blushed. “It’s just so yummy.”
“So are these meatballs, wow. Where did you learn to make these?” Sam forked another one onto his plate.
“My best friend Kay is Italian and we used to go over and help her grandma get all of the meatballs made for family dinners.”
“How come you haven’t touched yours?” Cat asked.
“Oh, I don’t eat meat.” Pippi shrugged.
“Are you a vegetarian?”
“Well, no I guess not really, just most meats… umm… I just don’t like how they feel in my mouth. Especially ground meat. If it’s not ground, I can sometimes eat it, but it’s not on my top list of foods I’d choose.”
“That’s good to know. We’ll keep that in mind for our next meal.” Cat made mental notes to figure out what Pippi’s favorite things were and add them to the shopping list.
“Don’t change anything for me. My ex-husband and kids love meat, so I’m used to finding little work-arounds. And I can basically cook any meat you put in front of me. ”
“You are a fantastic cook if these are anything to go by.” Sam took a big bite and Cat watched as Pippi beamed with pride.
“Thank you.”
They finished up and Cat got up to begin cleaning off the table. Pippi followed suit but Sam stopped her.
“You’ve done enough kitchen duty tonight, little one. Let Ms. Cat take you and show you where the bathroom is so you can take a shower and get in your jammies before we settle down for the night.”
“I don’t mind helping,” she argued.
“And I appreciate that, but I want you to go take a shower and all of that so it’s out of the way and we can all relax.”
Pippi didn’t move, so Cat took it upon herself to help her obey.
“Come on, little girl. Mr. Sam is right. We will clean up out here while you take care of yourself. Then we can watch a movie and have some popcorn.”
