her tank top and shorts. She looked good just as she was. What would she look like all dressed up?
“We’d like to give you a surprise tomorrow but need you to leave with Nana for at least three hours.”
Her smiled faded. “Leave?”
“Jim and I will stay with Liam and Aden.”
She looked at the floor for a moment. “I need to think about it. Okay?”
I nodded and watched her walk away.
She’s going to say no, I sent to Winifred.
Think of a way to help her say yes.
While still thinking of how to accomplish that, I heard Aden start begging to play in the sprinkler instead of coloring at Winifred’s place. It didn’t take Michelle and Winifred long to cave. The kids were the answer.
I waited until Michelle went inside to make lunch before conferring with both boys by the swing set.
“I want to do something nice for your sister. Something really special. But, in order to do it, I have to convince her to leave you two here with me and Jim so she’ll go with Winifred.”
“What do you want to do for her?” Liam asked suspiciously.
“Girl stuff.”
Aden cocked his head to look at me. “And we get to stay here with you and Jim?”
“Yep.”
“Can we have cake?”
“I think we can manage that.”
Aden looked at Liam and gave him an eager nod. Liam didn’t look convinced.
“We’re not forcing her to go, just giving her the chance to choose.”
Once I convinced the boys that we wouldn’t be forcing Michelle to do anything she didn’t want to, I had them on my side. Together we started plotting our approach. As soon as Michelle was up the next morning, the boys would come over to my place for breakfast, and we would let Michelle decide if she wanted to go with Winifred or not. From there, the boys came up with some plans of their own.
After Jim came home, Aden and Liam shared their ideas with him. Tomorrow would be a “boy day”—breakfast followed by cake and a hike through the woods to find cool bugs and other wildlife. The boys were so excited that, when Michelle called them in for the night, they went racing up the stairs without a whine of protest.
It didn’t take long for them to quiet down and fall asleep. I sat on the couch in my apartment, listening to Michelle move around. Tomorrow she’d buy a dress. And, if everything went well, next week we’d go on our first date.
* * * *
I was at my door as soon as I heard movement across the hall. Breakfast was started and all I needed were the boys to back me up. I couldn’t wait for date night. Michelle might think she didn’t know herself, but I knew she did. She just didn’t trust herself. Especially when it came to what she wanted. Me.
At the sound of footsteps in the hall, I opened the door. It wasn’t Liam or Aden, but Michelle.
Her pulse accelerated. At first I thought I’d startled her. Then, her gaze dropped to my shirt and stayed there for several long seconds. I fought not to grin as she struggled to meet my eyes.
“How did you sleep?” she asked.
“Fine. The bed still smells like you.”
As I expected, she blushed and her scent sweetened. Everyone wanted me to move slowly with Michelle, but she was giving me all the physical signals to pick up the pace.
She hesitated in the hall, as if wanting to say something but unsure how to say it. From her apartment, I heard the boys and grinned. They were up and hurrying to get dressed. Liam appeared behind Michelle first.
“Want some breakfast, buddy?” I asked.
“Yep,” Liam said before turning to look behind him. “Hurry up, Aden.”
Aden ran down the hallway from their bedroom as he pulled a shirt over his head.
“What are you up to, Liam?” Michelle asked.
“Nana Wini said if it was okay with you, we could spend the day with Jim and Emmitt so you could go do girl stuff with her.” He looked up at her pleadingly. “Can we?”
She looked at me with worry. “Emmitt...”
I could hear the “no” coming.
“They’ll be safe,” I said, stepping close and speaking softly. “Everything’s been quiet, and you’ve left them before.”
“I know. But that wasn’t right.”
I ducked down a little to catch her gaze. “Do you trust us?”
Her expression softened. “Just three hours?”
I knew I’d won and stepped back to allow Liam and Aden to run into the apartment.