Page 7 of Spring Break with a Bass Player
“I know.” I wink and he chuffs out a laugh before holding out his arms for a hug.Ugh, so much affection with these people.
“Hug me back!” he whines, not unlike his daughter, as he squeezes me tighter.
“Oh my God, knock it off,” I squeak, as he rocks us back and forth.
“Not until you hug me like you mean it.”
Growling, I do, making sure to pinch the back of his arm and make him yelp as he releases me.
“Are you two playing nice?” Vienna asks as she returns to the kitchen with her bag in one hand and Haven’s hand in the other.
“She pinched me,” Wells hisses, making Haven snicker and Vienna roll her eyes.
“Did you deserve it?”
He saysnothe same time I sayyeswhich earns us a new round of giggles from his daughter.
“All right, you two, we’ll see you Sunday.” Clapping my hands, I make a shooing motion toward the door. “Goodbye, love you, we’ll see you later.”
“Jeez.” Wells pouts, even though he’s having trouble keeping his frown in place.
“Daddy,” Haven says on a laugh, running into his arms and holding him tight as he spins her around, “we’ll see you Sunday.”
There’s another round of goodbyes before I’m able to usher them out the door. Wiping the back of my hand across my forehead, I look at Haven with a dramatic flair. “Phew! That tookforever.” Her smile is still in place, but a little of the light has dimmed, and I hope like hell that one day, it won’t—that she won’t see her father leaving and be reminded of her mother. “Popcorn or ice cream?”
“Dinner first,” she chides and I shrug.
“All right, fine. Dinner first andthenpopcorn.”
“And ice cream.”
“You got it, girl.”
4
BRIDGER
Saturday morning comes way too fast. My younger sister arrived in the middle of the night which led to a midnight snack of nachos and a frozen pizza. Something was off with her but I didn’t pry. She’ll tell me when she’s ready.
That didn’t stop us from catching up, though, and by the time I’d finally gone to sleep, I’d been wired, my fingers itching to play. But I’d refrained, instead falling into a fitful sleep and waking up feeling worse than if I’d just stayed up all night.
Dragging myself into the kitchen, I start the coffee pot and note that Saige’s car isn’t in the driveway. It hadn’t been there last night when Lettie had gotten here either.
Did she spend the night with someone?
Jealously curls in my gut at the thought of her tangled up with someone else. It’s irrational, but I can’t help it. With all that pent-up attitude, she’s gotta be wild in bed.
And I want to be the one who brings it out in her.
“Are you making coffee?” Lettie mumbles, rubbing her eyes as she shuffles into the kitchen, her black hair tied up on the top of her head.
“It’s almost done.”
“Thank God,” she breathes, dropping onto a stool and resting her chin on the palm of her hand.
“Are you all right?”
“Not without coffee.”
