I Knew You Were Trouble - Cassie Mae Page 0,51
are green, plaid flannel, warm already in my cold fingers. I lay them out for Demi to see, and she’s pretty indifferent about the boring pattern compared to her sparkly pink. It pairs with a cotton t-shirt with the words Ho Ho Vroom on the front in the same plaid pattern, and a motorcycling Santa underneath. I let out a bark of a laugh, knowing there is no way in hell I’d buy this for myself, but I’ll be happy to wear it tonight for her.
“I took a guess at your size.” Candace holds the shirt up against me. “Might be a little big.”
“Pajamas are better big,” I tell her, shuffling through the rest of my goodies. She knows me better than I thought. Peanut M&Ms, large bottle of purple Fanta, a book of tattoo art, and a card. I’ll save reading that for later.
“I’m hungry.” Demi bounces off the couch and looks at Maddie. “Is dinner ready?”
“Yep.” Maddie pushes her goodies to the side and gets to her feet. “Hope you like crunchy ham.”
Turns out, crunchy ham tastes a lot like bacon, so it’s the best damn ham I’ve ever eaten. Since we don’t have a table, we sit on the couch and floor in the living room, and I watch Candace struggle with a knife and fork with the plate on her lap for a good ten minutes before she gives up and uses her hands like the rest of us.
Demi hops, sticking her stickers on any surface she can without being yelled at for it. Candace makes a whoops face at me when Demi reaches out and smacks a good work sticker to my forehead. Once we’re done eating, Maddie turns on some Christmas music, and she and Demi rock out while Candace and I shuffle around each other in the kitchen.
She’s meticulous in her cookie baking process, smacking my hand any time I try for some dough. Somehow I end up with flour all over my shirt while her green sweater remains spotless.
Demi begs to frost the cookies, so she and I switch spots. I flump on the couch with Maddie and find out that Candace has offered her a job watching the horses—and my heart grows like the Grinch’s.
“Really? It pays well?” I prod.
“I don’t know. You interrupted.” She gives my knee a smack then takes a sip from her blue Gatorade from her Christmas Eve box. Candace did well on the guesswork with the tastes of my sisters’. Demi got orange soda, which is in her top five, and Gatorade was a good bet with Maddie, being as athletic as she is.
“You should get more details then.” If Mad could get a better paying job that also gives her time with her boarding that would be ideal. For both me and her.
Laughter floats in from the kitchen, the snorts from Candace mixing with the squeals of my baby sister. It’s the most real and comforting background music.
Around ten-thirty, after too many cookies, Demi starts to drift, as much as she’s fighting it.
“But Candace didn’t show me her art stuff yet,” she mumbles through tired lips as I pick her up in my arms. Damn, she’s getting heavy.
“She’ll still be here in the morning, you goof.”
“It’ll take two seconds.”
“So it can wait.” I level my gaze. “Don’t you want Santa to come?”
“He’ll come this year?” she says, and the skepticism in her voice shatters my overgrown heart, reminding me exactly why she’s in my grubby apartment tonight.
“If you go to sleep.” I say it like a tease, but there’s a rough edge to my voice I can’t hide. I catch the faintest glimpse of a frown on Candace’s face before I disappear down the hall and set my sister up in Mad’s bed.
The sparkly pink nightgown catches on my Santa pajamas, and I smooth down the material, watching it break apart as she settles into the sheets. There’s a sleepy smile on her face, and it’s contagious. I pull the comforter up and tuck her in.
“Did you have fun?” Like I told Dad, her happiness is my number one priority, and I want this Christmas to be the start of great ones to come.
“Yep.” She yawns.
“You okay with Candace being here now?” I try to sound smug, but I can’t keep the hopefulness out of my voice. I want Demi to like Candace. I don’t know why. I don’t understand this need to get my sister’s approval on my co-worker-turned-buddy. But right now, it feels