“Well, what did he want? Weren’t we good enough for him?”
I covered her hand with mine and squeezed. “I think we’re more than good enough for him, and maybe that’s what scared him.”
“You should have told me.”
“I should have,” I agreed.
“I’m not some baby who’s going to freak out, you know,” she said.
“I know. Out of the two of us, I’m a much bigger baby.”
That earned me the smallest of smiles.
“Was it Mom?”
“Was what your mom?”
“Did Mom break in? She does that kind of stuff.”
This was why I didn’t have honest conversations with people. They asked questions that required even more honesty.
I blew out a breath. “I’m honestly not sure. It’s possible. Is there anything you can think of that she’d be looking for?”
She shrugged those little girl shoulders that had already carried more weight than was fair. “Dunno. Maybe something worth a lot of money.”
“Well, whether it was your mom or not, you don’t have anything to worry about. Liza’s having a security system installed today.”
She nodded, fingers back to tracing patterns on the counter.
“You wanna tell me how you’re feeling about all this?” I asked.
She leaned down to scratch Kitty on her head. “Dunno. Bad, I guess. And mad.”
“Me too,” I agreed.
“Knox left us. I thought he liked us. Really liked us.”
My heart broke all over again, and I vowed that I would make Knox Morgan pay. I went to her and wrapped an arm around her. “He did, honey. But sometimes people get scared when they start to care too much.”
She grunted. “I guess. But I can still be mad at him, right?”
I brushed her hair out of her eyes. “Yes. You can. Your feelings are real and valid. Don’t let anyone tell you you shouldn’t feel the way you feel. Okay?”
“Yeah. Okay.”
“So, how do you feel about having a party tonight if Liza says it’s okay?” I asked, giving her another squeeze.
Waylay perked up. “What kind of party?”
“I was thinking about a bonfire with apple cider and s’mores,” I said, cracking an egg into a glass mixing bowl.
“That sounds cool. Can I invite Chloe and Nina?”
I loved that she had friends and a home that she wanted to share with them.
“Of course. I’ll check in with their parents today.”
“Maybe we can have Liza pick some of the country music Knox and Nash’s mom liked,” she suggested.