Page 100 of Comeback
“Oh no. I forgot my princess dress!” I say with an exaggerated pout that turns into a grin at my favorite five-year-old.
“You can wear my Elsa tiara, Auntie Brina.”
“Oh, thank goodness.” I grin at her and get up from the bed.
The three of us head out to the living room of the apartment where Greer’s princess costume supplies are strewn around.
“What happened in here?” Olivia asks, taking it in with wide eyes.
“I brought out all my dresses for the princess fashion show.”
Olivia glances from her daughter to me with an amused expression.
“And we’ll put everything away when we’re done. Won’t we?” I nod and Greer reluctantly does the same.
With a small laugh, Olivia grabs her purse and then goes to Greer and squats down. “Be good for Aunt Sabrina. Don’t stay up too late. And don’t eat so much that you hurt your stomach.”
There’s a little flicker of sadness on Greer’s face as she seems to realize her mother’s impending departure. I’ve stayed with Greer before, so I know she’ll be fine, but she adores her mom more than anyone else in the world.
“Love you, jellybean.” They embrace and then Olivia stands. Greer goes back to her mountain of costumes, and I walk Olivia to the door.
“Text me if you need anything,” she says.
“I won’t. We’ll be fine.”
“Okay, then text me pictures of the princess fashion show or I’ll feel left out.”
Laughing, I hug her. “You got it.”
With one more hesitant look at her daughter, she heads out the door.
Three hours later, Greer and I have eaten an entire package of dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets, shared a very large bowl of strawberry ice cream, and tried on every single princess dress, tiara, and accessory she owns.
A knock on the apartment door interrupts our second screening of Moana. I go silent and wait for it again. When it comes, I pull myself up from our blanket fort.
“This is the best part!” Greer protests.
“I’ll be right back.” I cross over quickly to the front door and pull it wide, expecting UPS or Amazon.
“What are you doing here?” I ask as I stare at Archer standing in the hallway.
His gaze rakes over me and his lips pull apart, flashing a sexy smirk. I lift a hand to the tiara perched on top of my head. I’m also wearing a tulle skirt and about ten beaded necklaces. Oh, and how could I forget the lipstick and blush that Greer decided we needed.
“I thought you might need some help babysitting, but I see you have everything under control.”
“We’re having a princess party.” I think I’m still in shock because I just stare at him. He’s in jeans and a Henley with a navy Mavericks hat.
He steps close and brushes a kiss to my lips. “You’re a very pretty princess.” The gruffness in his voice makes my stomach flip. “And I missed the hell out of you so please say it’s okay I’m here.”
“It’s okay. More than okay.” I finally snap out of it and wrap my arms around his neck. I breathe him in. How is it possible to miss someone so much in such a short amount of time? He kisses me again, but this time we’re interrupted by Greer.
“Aunt Brina?” Her sweet voice is hesitant as she calls for me. Oops, forgot about the child. I step away from Archer and turn to her.
“We have a guest.”
She stands up in the middle of our fort. We pulled several blankets and all the pillows to make a cozy spot for watching the movies. I can’t guess what her reaction is going to be. With her dad out of the picture, she doesn’t have a lot of men Archer’s age hanging around. Olivia is very careful about the guys she dates and who she lets meet her daughter.
Archer leaves me and walks right up to her, squatting down at eye-level.
