I left Rosie out there with a few of the girls, and when Evie and I come out to see what's going on, Rosie is sitting on the stage next to Tommy playing Rock-Paper-Scissors.
I grin, raising a brow at him. He shrugs. “What, I know nothing about kids. I don't know what to do with them.”
“Mama, can I dance too?” she asks, looking over at a few of the girls setting up the stage for tonight's show.
Looking over at the bin of props, I get an idea that I know she will love. “Dance party!” I shout, and everyone cheers. I love random dance parties. I'm always in here during set up or when we clean, blasting the music and just enjoying the moment.
Picking out a few things, I put them on the table next to the stage.
“Here,” I tell Rosie and help her into a pink tutu. Before we left the house, I changed her out of the dress and into shorts and a tee shirt because the duck pooped on her right as we were about to leave.
I slip a pink, feathered boa over her shoulders and top it off with a metal tiara. I match her outfit, but in red, then head over to the laptop hooked up to the DJ system and put onBetter When I'm Dancin’by Meghan Trainor.
Rosie starts shaking her little butt, inviting Tommy to dance too. I think she's taken a liking to him. He may not know anything about kids, but this one seems to think he's doing an okay job.
We all dance around the room, laughing, singing, and enjoying the music. Evie sits at the bar, watching with a smile.Nope, she's not sitting out of this.I race over to her, pulling her off the stool and onto the dance floor.
She groans dramatically in protest, but lets me, nonetheless. I start to dance silly around her, trying to get a grin out of my overly stressed, overworked bestie. Sadly, she doesn’t get her stress out by killing or fucking, much to my disappointment. I wish she was into the killing part, because how awesome would that be for friend bonding time!
The idea of her fucking anyone sets me on edge. No one's good enough for Evie, and I'll let that be known. In all the years I’ve known her, she’s never had a girlfriend. Never dated, never had hookups. As a joke, I got her a big box of sex toys. She looked genuinely grateful for it.
I continue dancing like an idiot, not caring. I do some disco moves like the swim, twist the light bulb, and even the floss. The last one has her giving me a deep belly laugh, and I know I broke through. From time to time, she gets into these manic fits of stress and anxiety, and I always do whatever I can to distract her, bringing her back down to earth. Evie would do anything for me, and I would do the same for her. I would give her the world and slay anyone who tried to get in the way.
Cassius
“ISTILL THINK YOU'REa fucking idiot for letting her watch Rosie alone for two days,” Axel grumbles as we get out of the car and head into the club.
“I still can't believe she brought her here,” Dean comments.
“Enough, you two. Rosie is safe with Harlow, and she's not that hard of a kid to take care of in the first place. Rosie loves Harlow. Also, who the hell else would I have gotten to watch her? We sure as hell weren’t going to bring her with us.” Yeah, no way. Last night was crazy. But both Neo and Axel needed it. Axel is still a grumpy fucker and looks like he's ready to kill anyone who looks at him wrong. Guess getting his ass kicked did nothing but give him a couple of black eyes and a fat lip. Neo, on the other hand, was able to let his beast come out to play for a bit, which buys him time. I told him that if he's at risk of the beast making an appearance when he's not welcome, he should talk to Harlow. I mean, if they really are friends now, she should understand. If anyone knows about controlling the beast within, it's her.
When we open the front doors,Just Singfrom the Trolls World Tour is blasting somewhere in this building. How do I know that song? Rosie has it on repeat most days. The guys and I all look at each other with raised brows, and Neo grins wide, racing off towards the music.
There, in the middle of the dance floor, are Harlow and Rosie, lost in the music. Both have massive smiles on their beautiful faces as they laugh. Harlow picks Rosie up, spinning her around as they dance, making Rosie break out into a fit of giggles. A smile takes over my own face as I see how happy my baby girl is, and it's all because of Harlow. Most people may see her as some unhinged monster, but me? No, she's a blessing in disguise. Even Dean and Axel can't help but smile. Not sure if it's because of Rosie or from seeing that the two ladies in front of them are having the time of their lives. Maybe both.
“Now, this is what I call a party!” Neo cheers and races over to a table with props on it. He slips on the bright orange tutu, orange feathered boa, and tiara so that he's matching the girls, Rosie in pink and Harlow in red.
Neo dances over to the girls and takes Rosie from Harlow, spinning and dancing with her around the room. Soon, he puts her down and starts dancing with Harlow, making her laugh as he dips and spins her around the dance floor.
Then I hear quacking and look down to see a white duck waddling around Rosie's feet, quacking to the music as if it's singing. Rosie bends over, picks it up, and tucks it under her arm.
“What the heck is that?” I ask, looking over to Evie, who is sporting a very amused grin.
“Rosie and Harlow picked up a new friend at the fair today. Congratulations, you're now a grandpa to a 5-year-old duck,” she laughs. “Oh, and by the way, it hates men, so good luck with that,” Evie cackles and walks away, heading into her office.
“That's it; I'm moving. I didn’t sign up to live on a fucking funny farm,” Axel says dramatically.
I should be more surprised. But honestly, I'm just happy that Harlow didn't kill anyone while we were gone. I call this a win.