Page 75 of Summer Heat
Kinsley recoiled.
I pushed off the counter and put my hand on Maya's shoulder. "Let's take the critters outside. I don't think your mom wants them in the kitchen while she's cooking."
Maya looked up at me. "But he's so cute."
I laughed, looking at the little guy in her hands. "He sure is. But crabs belong outside. They live in the sand and the water. He wouldn't do well in the house."
Outside, she skipped over to the sand on the edge of the patio where she put him down. "But we could put sand and water in a container and feed him. He could be mine. I promise I'll take good care of him."
I sat next to her. "He doesn't want to be cooped up in a box."
Maya pouted, her lower lip protruding. "You want a friend, don't you?"
She was a hard one to say no to. "You're the only friend I need."
"What about Mommy? Is she your friend?" Maya asked.
Had she noticed me kissing her mom? "She sure is."
"I have lots of friends at school," Maya said matter-of-factly.
Of course she did. She was a happy, well-adjusted kid. "Does your class have a pet?"
She nodded. "We have a beta fish named Zap."
"That's a good name."
Her expression fell. "We didn't get to name him. Last year's class got to because he was just a baby then."
"You'll get a pet one day." When she had a new place to live and was more settled. I tried not to think about all the cool things we could get in my house. I'd love to have a lizard or a toad. I'd help her take care of it too. Teach her everything there was to know. But Maya wasn't mine, and she wasn't going to stay here.
Her lip quivered. "Mom said that we're not home enough for one."
"Maybe for a cat or a dog. But you could get a fish or something that requires less work. Depending on the kind of tank you have, you only need to feed him once a day and change the water occasionally."
She turned around and headed toward the door.
"Where are you going?"
"To tell Mom you said we could get a fish," she called over her shoulder.
I groaned as I stood. and it had nothing to do with my joints. "You can't tell your mom that. You'll get me into trouble."
She paused, then came back. "I don't want to get you into trouble."
I held up my hands as if attempting to calm a wild animal. "We have to be smart about this. We have to wait for the right moment to ask her."
Her forehead creased. "When will that be?"
"When you and your mom are settled in your new place," I said, even though it pained me to admit this truth out loud. I was crazy to think they could stay with me forever.
Her lip quivered. "We live here now."
I rested a hand on her shoulder, marveling at how tiny she was. "You do. But I don't think your mom wants to get a pet now."
"Are you her boyfriend? My friend Cassie at school said if we live together, you must be my stepdad."
I blanched. "What do you know about boyfriends?"
