LITMIR.BIZ

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Paige. You have to come to my party next week!”

      “A party?” Paige blinked in surprise, searching her mind to see if she’d forgotten an important date. No holidays coming up. No birthdays. “What brought this on?” she asked, when nothing special registered.

      “I’m getting married!” Amelia squealed so loudly Paige had to hold the phone away from her ear.

      “Married? When? To whom?”

      “To Derrick, of course. He asked me this afternoon!” Another bout of squeals filled the line. “We’re having an engagement party next Friday night. Can you come?”

      “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. But Amelia, this is happening so fast. Are you sure?”

      Amelia laughed. “I am. He’s definitely my soul mate.”

      “That’s great.” Paige twisted the phone cord around her fingers. So, now she was the last of the dying breed of single women among her friends. It shouldn’t bother her. And she was happy for Amelia.

      “I would ask you to be my maid of honor, but we’re eloping,” Amelia continued. “He’s taking me to Paris on our honeymoon, I can’t wait, Paige. Life is wonderful.”

      Paige’s hands instantly moved across her sketchpad as she began sketching a wedding dress. “I wish you were having a big wedding though. I’d like to design your dress.”

      “I know.” Amelia sounded faintly disappointed. “But Derrick wants to get married right away and I’m afraid to wait. You know how guys are, he might change his mind.”

      Don’t I? Eric had canceled their wedding the morning of the ceremony.

      “Paige, I’m sorry, I know how that must have sounded.”

      “Don’t sweat it,” Paige said. “I’m not going to rain on your parade, Amelia. And we are not going to talk about my failed love life.”

      “Thanks, Paige, you’re the best,” Amelia said softly. “I’ll see you next Friday.”

      The phone clicked into silence before Paige could think of a way to beg out of the party. She turned back to her project, but the house seemed unusually quiet. Growing up as an only child, she should have been used to be being alone. But she’d craved a big boisterous family with lots of sisters and brothers. In retrospect, maybe her need for a family was the reason she’d become so attached to Eric and his son.

      But the silence hung in the air, echoing off the walls. Eerie, cold, almost smothering her with the emptiness.

      Stop it. You have to get used to it.

      Determined to forget Amelia’s wedding, she flipped on the radio and decided to make a batch of brownies. Comfort food always spurred her creativity. She threw the brownie ingredients into a bowl, stirred the thick rich batter and popped the mixture into a pan.

      A loud howling sound caught her attention and her gaze strayed to the Blalock house next door. She’d still forgotten to tell Zeke about the neighborhood watch. She’d take them brownies and tell Zeke about the meeting. After all, a welcoming basket of food was only neighborly, and she didn’t want anyone to accuse her of lacking in Southern hospitality.

      “DADDY, THAT’S GROSS.” Summer covered her eyes with her hands and peeked through the finger holes as the fourth kitten popped out. Buffy, following her normal motherly instincts, licked the kitten clean.

      “They look like skinny rats,” August said, watching the other three kittens burrow underneath Buffy.

      “Yeah, they do.” Zeke hoped this kitten was the last. The girls refused to go to bed until all the kittens had been born. But Buffy started panting again, signifying the onset of another birth.

      Henrietta sniffed her way in and dropped into the corner, her tongue lolling out as she joined the scene. The doorbell rang and August and Summer both sprang up from their perch on the floor by the tub.

      Zeke rose, but August pointed her finger at him. “No, Daddy, you watch Buffy. We’ll get it.” August and her sister scrambled through the door at the same time. Zeke heard their feet padding on the hardwood floor in the foyer as the doorbell rang for the second time.

      “Paige!” both girls chimed.

      “Hi, girls.”

      A second of elation gathered inside Zeke at Paige’s soft musical drawl, but his smile instantly faded when he realized the house was a mess. Boxes cluttered the den, laundry littered the sofa, blankets and kittens filled his bathtub, and pizza sauce spotted his shirt where Henrietta had licked him. He pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn’t have to worry about Paige being attracted to him. She’d never be able to wade through the tornado-strewn house to find him.

      “Daddy, Paige brought a treat,” August yelled.

      Summer raced into the bathroom. “Daddy, look!”

      Buffy’s panting quickened and she dropped another kitten just as Paige and Summer stepped into the doorway.

      “We’re having kittens,” August announced proudly.

      Paige’s expression turned wary. “I hope I didn’t come at a bad time. I brought over some—”

      “Brownies! Yum!” Both girls reached for the basket and Henrietta lunged against Paige, almost knocking her over.

      Zeke grabbed Henrietta while Paige held the brownies in the air. “Get down,” Zeke yelled.

      Henrietta chowed down on the chocolate chunks that spilled from the basket. Paige’s rich laughter rang through the crowded bathroom, joined first by August’s, then Summer’s.

      Zeke lost himself in the moment. It was the first time Summer had laughed in ages. She’d taken the divorce harder than August, having bad dreams and moping around. “Thanks, Paige, those look great,” he said, reaching for a brownie.

      “Sure.” Paige leaned over and peeked inside the tub. “The kittens are precious. How many so far?”

      Summer held up five fingers.

      “The spotted one’s called Callie,” August said.

      “And the white one is Cotton.”

      Paige nodded. “Do you think she’s finished?”

      Zeke shrugged. “Probably.” His pulse hammered as Paige knelt, her bare thigh brushing against his. She reached a finger inside to pet the baby calico’s fur.

      “They’re beautiful,” Paige said softly.

      The girls gobbled a brownie, dropping chocolate flakes all over the floor. Henrietta quickly lapped up the crumbs.

      “Take Henrietta and put her in the yard,” he told the girls. “Then put on your pj’s and brush your teeth. With toothpaste. I’ll be right in to kiss you good-night.”

      The girls scampered out, leaving Paige and Zeke alone. Paige watched the kittens nurse and Zeke forced his hands to remain on the tub when they desperately itched to touch her. “Thanks for the brownies,” Zeke said. “My favorite.”

      Paige’s gaze locked with his, but she quickly looked away. “I…I meant to tell you earlier that we’ve had some vandalism in the neighborhood.”

      “What?” Zeke’s pulse raced. “I thought this neighborhood was safe. That’s why I moved here.”

      “It is.” Paige placed a reassuring hand on his arm. “We think the vandals are teenagers. So far, they’ve been sneaking into houses, playing video games, generally messing up people’s homes.”

      “Sounds like some real troublemakers,” Zeke said.

      “Anyway,” Paige continued, removing her hand, “We’re organizing a neighborhood watch program. The first meeting’s next week at my house.” She absentmindedly

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