Bonus Kisses - Freya Barker Page 0,84
another bite of his trout in his mouth.
Rafe tries again. “What I mean is, we’re a couple. We—”
“What your dad is trying to say,” I jump in, trying to clarify, “is that—”
“They’re gonna get married,” Sofie announces, surprising the hell out of me.
Shocked, I look over at Rafe, who merely shrugs.
“I know that,” he tells his sister agitatedly. “They practice all the time. Kissing and stuff.”
My mouth drops open as their father throws his head back and bursts out laughing. I glance over at Sofie, who is watching her father closely, the hint of a smile on her lips.
“The only thing I don’t know,” Spencer adds. “Is Auntie Taz still our auntie?”
That sobers the mood and I quickly grapple for an answer.
“That won’t change, buddy. My sister will always be your mom, so that makes me your aunt.”
“It’ll be weird, though,” Sofie points out. “If you and Dad are together and we still call you Auntie.”
“I see what you mean,” I agree.
“What if you just call her Taz?” Rafe suggests. “Leave off the Auntie. Unless you have a better idea?” He looks at me and I shake my head.
Sofie startles me with a soft snicker. “We can always call you Makaku.”
Spencer finds his sister’s idea hilarious, and the two dissolve in giggles while their father and I smile at each other over their heads.
It’s all going to work out.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Taz
“Auntie…I mean Taz?”
“Yes, honey?”
“Do you think Mom sees us?”
I turn my head and glance at Sofie’s profile.
We’re lying on a blanket by the waterside, staring up at the endless stars above. Spencer is already sleeping in the tent and Rafe is having a beer by the fire, the dogs sleeping at his feet.
“I’d like to think so. I would imagine she’s always around, so she can see you and your brother grow up.”
I turn back to the stars and a silence stretches between us, but not uncomfortably so.
“Would she be mad?”
“Because of your dad and me? I don’t think so, Sofie. Your mom and I talked quite a bit before she died.” I hesitate, trying to figure out the best way to word this without going into details that shouldn’t be shared with an eight-year-old. “Sweetheart, she asked me to look after you and your brother, and I’d like to think maybe she was hoping this might happen.”
She doesn’t respond immediately, and I sneak a glance to find her still staring up into the night sky.
“Daddy says he loves you.”
“I love him too.”
“He says he also loves Mom.”
“As do I. That never goes away.”
“Isn’t that kinda weird?”
I try to keep my face impassive, even though I want to smile. That question makes my niece sound like a typical preteen. “Nope. I don’t think there’s a limit to how many people we can love.” I sense Sofie’s eyes on me and turn to face her. “Your heart doesn’t run out of space, honey. It has endless room for love.”
She looks at me with sad eyes before returning her focus to the stars above, and I do the same.
“Do you think she’s lonely?”
Her tremulous little voice has me reach over to find her hand, and I curl my fingers around it. “How could she be? She has all of us.”
Not much later Sofie announces the bugs are getting bad, and I walk with her to the bathrooms so she can brush her teeth and do her business before turning in.
“Night, Daddy.” She bends down to kiss Rafe goodnight, but he pulls her down on his lap, hugging her tight.
“I’ll tuck you in,” he rumbles before setting her back on her feet and walking her to the tent.
“Stay,” I order Lilo and Stitch, who grudgingly lie back down, but in no time are back asleep.
It’s been a busy day for the pups, first sniffing and exploring the campsite, and after that decimating a large tree branch they’d pulled from the underbrush. Neither of them seems inclined to wander too far away, which is a relief.
Sitting down by the fire, I toss another log on when I hear Sofie’s voice from behind me.
“Night, Taz.”
I twist my neck and see her head poking out of the tent. “Night, honey. Sleep sweet.”
Bullfrogs strike up a chorus by the water’s edge, blending with the buzz of the cicadas, and the soft hum of voices in the tent. It’s oddly peaceful and I breathe in deep, filling my lungs with fresh air and a whiff of woodsmoke. The perfect way to end an eventful day.
I’m well aware it could’ve