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“A’wy!” she shrieks, shoving Claire aside as she comes barreling toward me.
I crouch down and catch her, spinning her in the air before clutching her to my chest in the biggest hug I can muster. “Well, hey there, beautiful little lady!” Vivi giggles, squeezing my cheeks together with her satin-clothed hands. “Are you a princess today, Vivi?”
“I Pwincess Anna,” she says matter-of-factly. She shoves a finger toward Claire. “Care Bear Queen Elsa.”
Ah, I know these names. What’s the movie? Frozen? I give Claire an assessing once-over. “You’re the ice queen, huh? Fitting,” I add with a wink, because I can throw shade just as well as she can.
Claire’s eyes roll, arms folding across her chest, hip jutting out with attitude. But the corner of her mouth twitches, threatening to show me how much she enjoys our banter, and how much she loves seeing me with Vivi.
“What are you two up to today?” I ask.
“Nothing,” Claire replies much too quickly.
Vivi looks between Claire and me. “A’wy come wif us?”
Claire’s expression softens right before my eyes. She can’t say no to her niece. She steps up to us, fingering the end of one of Vivi’s braids. “Oh, honey, I bet he’d love to but I’m sure he’s very busy today.” She shoots me a dangerously slanted look, one that tells me to lie if I need to. She’s going to try to pass the heartbreaking of that little munchkin off to me.
Unfortunately for Claire, pissing her off is my new favorite past time. She gets all riled up when I crawl my way under her skin. I suspect it’s because it’s so easy for me to do.
When Vivi pouts up at me, I tap her nose. “As luck would have it, Princess Anna, my schedule is wide open today. Where are we going?”
Claire groans, sagging forward. “Look, Avery,” she starts laying it out for me. “We’ll be gone pretty much all day. We’re going for breakfast, then to the market. We’re going to the zoo at High Park, picnic lunch afterwards, that kinda thing. It’s going to be a long, busy day.”
“Cool. When are we leaving?”
Vivi vibrates with excitement in my arms. “Right now!”
“Well, I’ll tell you what. I’m a little sweaty right now. Do you think you could wait for me while I take a quick shower? I wouldn’t want to be stinky around such beautiful princesses.”
Vivi’s head bobs about a hundred times.
Claire reaches for her. “We’ll just wait out here for you.” Stubborn.
I ignore her by turning away, spying the stuffed dog in the stroller. Claire follows my gaze. Her mouth opens and I know she knows what I’m about to do, because I know she knows, after she spied on me through her peephole on Thursday night, that I have a dog.
“Vivi, do you like doggies?” I ask.
Vivi’s eyes widen and her jaw drops. She holds her pink hands up as if they were claws and yell-barks, “Woof, woof! Woof, woof!” Then she leans forward and…licks my cheek.
“Oh, God! Vivi! I’m so sorry, Avery.” Claire looks downright mortified. She pulls Vivi from my arms and sets her on the ground, crouching down to eye level. “Vivian Thompson, you cannot lick people,” she states firmly, shaking a finger at her. Then her voice drops, soft and quiet, and she smooths her hands over Vivi’s braids before taking her tiny hands in hers. “Personal bubble, Vivi, remember, sweet pea?”
Claire plants a kiss on Vivi’s pout and both eyelids before tears can spill out. She glances up at me and winces. “Sorry. Grandpa has a dog at home and all those two do is lick each other’s faces.”
The laugh that rumbles in my chest and tumbles from my lips is hearty and genuine. Everything about this is the best. I love how expressive Vivi is about all things, and I love watching Claire parent her, a little bit of chastising followed by utter love and sweetness. It’s classic Claire.
I hold my hand out to Vivi. “Come on, Vivi. There’s someone I want you to meet.”
I’m a little on edge, for more than one reason, when I open the door to my suite. As a Bernese Mountain dog, Sully’s a hundred-and-thirty pounds of fluff, love, and slobbery kisses. I’m worried that his size alone will be enough to scare little Vivi. I’m also nervous about Claire seeing where I live for the first time. It feels kinda intimate, and I wonder if she feels it, too.
Sully is waiting at the door like he always is, and Vivi flings her arms around his neck before collapsing to the floor in a fit of wild, shrieking giggles as he assaults her face with his big pink tongue. I should’ve known Vivi would be fearless.
Claire’s face bursts at the seams as she watches them. She sinks to her knees and buries her hands in Sully’s thick, black fur when he gives her attention. I watch her lean forward and press a kiss to the tip of his wet nose. “Hey handsome,” she murmurs.
My heart kicks it up a notch, and I turn my attention back to Vivi. “What kind of dog does Grandpa have?”
“Gamps has Tookey,” she tells me.
Claire giggles and smiles up at me. “My dad has an Australian Shepherd named Turkey.” At my quizzical smile, she adds, “He was born on Thanksgiving.”
