“Never,” he assures me. “I’m freaking out because Cadence just woke up from her nap, and I want to surprise Kenna by doing her hair. She looked so cute last week when Kenna did those pigtail bun things.”
“Yeah, she calls them space buns. I love it when Cadence has those.”
“Me too. Well, I did my best attempt, and they definitely don’t look as cute as when Kenna does it . . . ”
He turns the camera to show me a smiling Cadence with very loose and lopsided buns right above her ears.
“Those look like disheveled Princess Leia buns. How do you not know how to do pigtails at this point?”
“Carse, I’m being serious. Can you just please help a guy out?” Griffin pleads.
“Yeah, hold on. Let me see if Dakota is ready, and maybe she can help walk you through it.” I head across the hallway and knock on her door. While I wait, I ask him, “Are you sure you’re okay with me and Dakota driving up to get Cadence? Would you rather we stay at my parents’ cabin while you guys stay at the place you rented next door?”
My stomach knots just thinking about driving Cadence again. I haven’t gotten in a car with anyone since the accident. Luckily, I didn’t really need to until today.
“I didn’t tell you? I didn’t rent it, Carse. I bought it.”
At that news, my eyebrows shoot to my hairline. “Wait, what?”
“I know your parents’ place is huge, but I thought it’d be nice for us to have our own space next door for when we spend time here in the off-season. Besides, that way, you can feel free to still throw rowdy parties without us holding you back.”
Rowdy parties? Is G mistaking me with Jackson?
“I can’t tell you the last time I hosted a rowdy party unless Cadence’s first birthday party counts. It got pretty out of hand . . . ” I deadpan.
“Yeah, you’re right. But eventually, you’ll have a family of your own to bring there, so I was planning for the future.”
Before I can respond, Dakota opens the door, her cheeks flushed and her shorter hair tousled. She’s wearing deep purple yoga pants that look like they were painted on, paired with a matching crop top.
“Hey, what’s up?” she asks, a little breathless.
“Am I, uh, interrupting?”
Her cheeks flush deeper, eyes widening, and I can’t hold back the smirk on my face. Oh, I was definitely interrupting something. Perhaps a little self-care? Fuck, I really wish Griff wasn’t on the phone so I could press her on it.
“What?” she squeaks out. “No, not interrupting at all. What do you need?”
We’re definitely circling back to this.
“I know we weren’t planning to leave for another hour or so, but Griff is on the phone, and he needs our help doing Cadence’s hair.”
Dakota holds her hand out palm up and gestures for me to place the phone in her hand. I do so and move behind her to peek at the phone over her shoulder. Being this close to her, I’m engulfed by her jasmine perfume, which has hints of vanilla and sandalwood. I inhale deeply, now dying to know if she tastes as sweet as she smells.
Cadence fills the screen, and I watch Dakota hold back her laughter. “Well hello, little darlin’. How’d you sleep?”
“Kota! Hi!” Cadey Cat squeals as she waves at the phone. God, I love this little girl so much.
“It looks like you tried, at least, Griffin. But bless it, you cannot let her look like that on the night you propose to her mama. Alright, here’s what you’re going to do: I want you to just take out the one side and make sure your part is good and straight down the middle of her head.”
Griff props the phone up against the mirror and stands behind Cadence. “I think I did that part right. I just don’t get why they’re so floppy.”
Dakota bites her lip, but she can’t hide a smile as beautiful and wide as hers. “That’s alright, we can fix this. I want you to get the brush or the comb, whichever you used, a little wet under the faucet. Then, brush the one side of her hair back to the crown of her head. Getting it damp helps to keep the smaller pieces from falling out.”
Griff does as she says, pulling her hair back. “Perfect. Now comes the hard part. Do you have those little elastic hair binders?”
“Crap, we’re not past the hard part? Yes, I’ve got the elastic ones right here.” He holds up a little pink container full of them.
“Good. Grab one of those and use your pointer finger and thumb to widen it around the pigtail. Wrap it around three or four times if you can.”
