He wraps his arms around me and holds me tight. “She was crazy, but I can’t imagine the pain of losing a spouse. Even if Eric didn’t talk about her or if it was arranged, she seemed to care about him a lot. Grief can make people do crazy things.”
“If something happened to you, I’d act the same way,” I admit as he leans forward and steals a kiss.
“Me too, babe. Don’t want to even think about it. Oh, do I have lipstick on my mouth now?” he asks.
“Nah, I could literally get on my knees right now, and this stuff would still be perfect.”
Archer chuckles. “That’s actually kinda hot, and I’d like to test that out. Whatcha say, wifey?”
He steps back, getting a full view of my costume, and smirks.
“Hold on, I need to get my headpiece before you make a judgment.” I run to the bathroom, then position it on my head. Sassy comes chasing behind me, and that’s when I notice she’s wearing a Thor costume. I nearly fall over laughing because it looks like she has human legs.
“Poor baby.” I bend down and pet her. “What has he done to you?”
Archer meets me in the hallway. “You love it.”
“Yeah, but now my Sassy is gonna steal the show!” She runs around, and I can’t get over how cute she looks. The kids at the trunk or treat are going to be hysterical over this.
“Yes, she will,” he says in a baby voice, then his phone vibrates. “Guess I’ll have to take a rain check on the lipstick test. Sadie and Annie will be here in fifteen minutes.”
They arrived last night and stayed in a hotel next to the airport. Then this morning, they checked out and will be staying with us tonight.
“Awesome!” I say. “You don’t think Annie will be mad that I have an entire giant-size bag of candy for Sadie, right?”
Archer shrugs. “We can spoil our niece any way we want. There’s nothing she can do about it.”
I pull him into a hug. “I love that you call her our niece.”
“She is, sweetheart. That ring on your finger says so.”
Before we get too caught up in the moment, I pull away and take Sassy outside. Archer fills the pumpkin bucket to the brim with candy. Moments later, there’s a knock on the door.
Archer grabs his shield, and we answer it together.
“Trick or treat!” Sadie says with a big grin.
“All treats!” I tell her, wrapping her in a hug. “Your costume is amazing.”
“I’m Black Widow!” she squeals as they enter.
“I know, and she’s a bada—“ Archer elbows me before I can continue. I clear my throat. ”Bad to the bone!”
“We got you something,” Archer admits, handing over the plastic holder filled with full-sized chocolate bars. Sadie’s eyes are as wide as saucers as she starts digging inside.
“Mommy, they're big ones!” she gasps with excitement.
Archer meets Annie’s annoyed gaze. She purses her lips then smiles. “Tell Uncle Archer and Aunt Everleigh thank you.”
“Thank you!” She squeezes me, then Archer, and that’s when I noticed Annie is dressed like Dark Phoenix. She’s wearing a bright red wig and a one-piece suit that fits her like a glove.
“Wow, you look incredible.”
She laughs. “I guess I understood the superhero assignment.”
“I’d say so. Gonna get some dates tonight,” I tease, and she shakes her head with a smirk. Before I can say anything else, Sassy makes her big reveal.
“Aww,” Sadie says, bending down to pet her. The giggles that escape Sadie as Sassy tries to lick her are adorable. “Is she coming with us?”