Page 12 of Summer Heat
Before I could ask what she meant by that, Maya started humming my toothbrush song. I looked at her in the rearview mirror. "It's a good song, right? A nice little ditty, if you will."
Kinsley's lips twitched, and my heart soared. It was my goal to get these two to have a good day.
"Where to? Are we getting island gear, or should I head to Ft. Myers for the boring stuff?"
"Ft. Myers," Kinsley said.
"Are you sure? We could get some nice Sanibel Ts and bathing suits right here."
She grimaced. "I don't need to be shopping in a tourist trap."
That was the issue with living on an island, everything was designed and priced for the tourists. "Ft. Myers it is."
We drove through the island and took the bridge over to Ft. Myers. There wasn't much traffic getting off the island this time of day. Instead, there was a stream of cars arriving.
"Are we interrupting your work on the house?"
I chuckled. "I think we've established that I've been procrastinating, and I'd much rather be doing this."
"We're so much fun, Momma," Maya said from the backseat.
"You're a lot more fun than renovating bathrooms; that's for sure. I should put in more soaking tubs, right?"
Maya threw her arms out. "Huge tubs everywhere."
"Your daughter is a riot. You know that, right?" I glanced over at Kinsley, who had an expression on her face I couldn't place.
"She's something, all right," Kinsley said with a smile.
For the first time in a long time, I was looking forward to a Sunday.
We arrived at the box store, and we got out. When Maya lagged behind us, I picked her up and carried her.
"You don't have to carry her."
"I don't mind. She's as light as a feather."
"You mean a sack of potatoes?" Kinsley tickled Maya's leg as we walked through the parking lot. It was a Sunday, so the lot was full, and there were a lot of people walking in and out of the store.
Maya looked down at Kinsley with a frown on her face. "I'm not a sack of potatoes."
I moved Maya away from Kinsley's reach in mock outrage. "How dare you say that? She's light as cotton candy and fun-loving like a puppy."
"Puppy! I want a puppy!" Maya's gaze moved from her mother to me.
Kinsley laughed. "You did it now. You have no idea how much she wants a puppy. We couldn't have one in that house. The landlord had a no-pet policy."
"No kidding," I said, meeting her gaze as we walked through the automatic doors.
I scanned the signs that were hanging from the ceiling to find the kids clothing section, but Maya was already walking in the right direction. She must have been here before.
I avoided stores at all costs. I wore clothes until they got holes in them and ordered delivery for my groceries. It was much harder to focus on what I needed in a place that was so big and noisy. It wouldn't take me long to forget why we were here.
In the girls' clothes section, I set Maya down. "I want a puppy too, but I'm not home enough for one. I'd have to hire a dog sitter."
Kinsley picked up a T-shirt that was folded on a table. "Couldn't you take the dog to work with you? I can see it now, a dog hanging his head out the window of your work truck."
I liked the picture she gave me in my head. But I wasn't sure it would be a good idea to have a dog running around a worksite. "He could get hurt."
