I giggle, knowing exactly what he is thinking. “It’s not like we use that small little corner.”
“You never know,” he says, shaking his head.
“Use the corner for what?” Amari asks.
“Nothing,” we say in unison.
“Do you want me to take Amari to school?” He asks.
“Have you eaten?” I stare down at Amari.
She shakes her head.
“I should feed her first,” I say.
“Why don’t you get ready while I cook her something.”
I nod, looking down at my pajamas. If I didn’t know Kai the way I do, I would feel embarrassed at the way I look. I’m in an old raggedy shirt I’ve had for years, and my leggings aren’t any better. For someone who buys a lot of clothes, I always end up using my old loungewear as pajamas.
“Come on, little one,” he says, grabbing Amari’s hand.
Little onehas become a nickname that Kai calls her. She is petite, considering her age. Her height definitely didn’t come from her father. She got my height. I’m five foot two, and Kai is five foot eleven. I’m a little below average, but I think Amari might end up shorter than me.
An hour later, I’m walking into the kitchen, and the smell of something sweet lingers in the air. Natural light shines through the open bay windows next to the kitchen table. Liam bought this house a few months before he started at the surgical center. When he first brought me here, I fell in love with the bay windows. Sometimes, if I wake up early enough, I’ll sit at the kitchen table, drink my coffee, and watch the sunrise.
"Wow, you outdid yourself, Kai,” I say as I gaze over the spread he has out on the table. There’s a plate of crepes, blueberries, strawberries, and Nutella. “I didn’t know you knew how to make crepes.”
“If you can read, you can cook anything,” he says.
I narrow my gaze at him, not understanding what he means.
“All I did was follow a recipe.”
“They’re good, Mom. Have some,” Amari says from her spot at the table.
“I will. But first I need coffee.” I go over to the counter and pop a coffee pod into the Keurig. The coffee aroma swirls into the air with the sweetness from the crepes.
“Mom, can I stay home from school?” Amari asks.
I sit down and serve myself some crepes. “Why?”
“Dad said he’ll hang out with me all day.”
“Oh, yeah.” I give Kai a hard stare. “Why can’t you hang out with him after school?”
“Come on, B. All three of us can hang out as a family,” Kai says with a joyful tone.
This is my day off. I only work part-time as a medical assistant at a family practice, so today would be a good day for me. “And what are we going to do?”
“We can watch movies,” Amari says, excitement lacing her words.
“All day?”
Amari nods with a wide grin.
I tap my iPhone to show the time. It’s already ten in the morning. By the time I get Amari done with breakfast and out the door for school, she’ll only have half a day left. “Fine. We’ll stay home and watch movies all day.” I glare at Kai, because I have a feeling this was his idea.
After we get done eating, Kai and I clean up the kitchen. “Go find the movies you want to watch while we clean up,” I tell Amari.
