if we don’t train and use it often enough, it’s harder on our bodies when we do. We’ve been slacking a little since we’ve all been super busy lately.”
“Gotcha.” Kinda.
I pulled into Jasmyn’s place, unloaded the orc, and received payment before we headed back to my house. Once we got there, I made Basil go sit on my couch while I ran across the street to Ulma’s and picked Rasha up. She jumped into my arms, and when I told her Basil was at the house, she started jumping around.
Ulma and I shared a laugh before I walked my daughter across the street. Rasha ran right into the living room when we got there, and even though I could tell how tired Basil was, as soon as he saw her, he sat up and said, “Hey, Rasha! How are you doing, sweetpea?”
She smiled widely and surprised me by giving Basil a hug. The witch caught my eye over her shoulder and I could see—and feel in my chest—how happy it made him.
Rasha sat beside him on the couch, and Blaze immediately hopped off Basil’s shoulder onto her lap, making her giggle in delight. She loved that crazy lizard. She started petting him, and he curled up in a ball after rubbing along her fingers, then Rasha started talking a million miles a minute about every little thing she did in school today. The fact that she felt comfortable enough around Basil to talk like that was mind-blowing. Basil listened with rapt attention, and a warmth settled in my chest as I moved into the kitchen to figure out something to do for dinner. Rasha had never been so comfortable around another adult before, not even Ulma, and she loved that woman.
“Did you do your homework already?” I heard Basil ask her.
Rasha sighed. “I still have one paper, but I was having trouble with it.”
“Do you want me to help you?”
I paused, hanging halfway in the pantry to listen to her answer.
“Sure… I missed a lot when I was in the hospital since I didn’t get to go back right away.”
Basil said, “That’s okay, I’m sure we can figure it out together. And if your daddy and I don’t know how to do it, I’ll call my little brother. He’s the smartest guy I know.”
“You have a brother?”
“I have eight brothers.”
“You do?” She sounded amazed.
Basil laughed. “And I have ten sisters.”
“Woah.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, and now some of my siblings are… married, so I have even more brothers- and sisters-in-law.”
“You have a big family.”
“I do. My youngest sister is six, so she’s pretty close to your age. I bet you would get along. One of my nieces is ten, so you’re right in between them.”
“Do you think one day, I could meet them?” My chest tightened at the hopefulness in her voice.
Basil hesitated for a second, then said, “As long as it’s okay with your dad, then yeah, I’m sure you can. They’ll love you.”
“Okay,” Rasha said. “I like when you come over here.”
“Yeah?”
“Mhm. You’re nice, and Blaze is so cute.”
“He is.” I could hear the smile in Basil’s voice.
“Plus, you make my daddy happy. I like when he’s happy.”
I froze at that.
Basil was quiet for a moment, then softly said, “He makes me happy, too.”
“I know.”
My heart was poundin’ like crazy in my chest. The fact that my daughter could tell Basil made me happy… Did that mean she thought I was unhappy before? Was I that obvious? Had I let my loneliness affect her?
Basil said, “You make me happy, too, you know.” And then Rasha started giggling like crazy, so I was pretty sure he was tickling her, but he stopped quickly so she didn’t get out of breath. Basil chuckled and asked, “Where’s your bookbag? I’ll grab your books so you don’t have to wake Blaze up.”
“It’s by the door. Does he really turn into a dragon?”
“He really does. Maybe we can show you after dinner.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, of course. Blaze loves showing off for his favorite girl.”
She giggled, and the sound was so sweet and happy, I had to stop to take a breath. He was so good with her and set her at ease so effortlessly and comfortably. It made me feel like maybe… maybe this really could work out somehow. Maybe he really was meant to be a part of my family.
“Hiro?”
I turned to find Basil standing in the kitchen doorway with a backpack in one hand and a concerned expression on his pretty face. “Yeah?”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah,