Page 98 of Employing Patience

For the first time in a while, I smile at her, surprisingly overwhelmed with how much her support means. “Thanks.”

“Of course.” She waves her hand toward the rest of the house. “I didn’t do this, and you didn’t do this, so …”

There’s no fucking way.

“Just trust me,” I tell Hannah. “Whoever did all this, it wasn’t Art.”

It’s clear from her expression that she doesn’t believe me.

I give her an evil grin. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t take your advice anyway.”

Her groan lingers long after she walks out the door.

30

ART

“You all have fuuuun,” Mariana sings as she leaves, and there’s something in my sister’s voice that has me on high alert. I swing around to ask her what she means by that tone, but the door’s already slammed behind her.

Alice and Gus are watching me from down the hall, faces bunched against the mischief they’re so clearly holding in.

I point at them. “Spill.”

Alice clasps her hands in front of her in a demure way that is definitely not Alice. “It’s the new costume we got you. Very pretty.”

Relief sweeps through me. A princess dress I can deal with. If Mariana thinks a little thing like that is going to panic me, she doesn’t know me well at all.

“Okay, take me to it.” I hold out my hands, and they grab on, pulling me down the hall to their playroom. They’re giggling a ridiculous amount, considering we play dress-up all the damn time, and I’m racking my brain, trying to figure out what could be so bad, when we reach where the costume dress is hanging up. There are two bags.

“What’s all this?”

“Thi-this one’s for—”

“Next time!” Alice practically screams, cutting Gus off. He starts laughing his head off, and that same suspicious feeling from earlier sets in again.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing. We’re dressing up and baking, and you’re taking too long. I want pastéis de nata.”

“Fine …” I look from Alice and back to Gus, waiting for one of them to break, but neither does. Looks like I have no option but to get into the dress and get on with my day. Whatever … thing is going on here, I’m going to have to be patient for it.

Today, I get to be Cinderella, complete with giant blue dress that is going to make baking a safety hazard. I’ll have to make sure I don’t let them in the kitchen while I’m using the oven.

“And the tiara,” Alice says.

“But I’m not true royalty.”

She clears her throat and lifts the crown higher. There’s no point arguing because it’ll be going on anyway.

I tuck it into my hair and curtsy. “Better?”

“You look beau-beautiful, Tio Artur,” Gus calls from where he’s lying on the floor with his legs up the wall and a hat over his face.

“That’s Princess Arty to you, toad.”

He laughs, and the doorbell sounds through the house. Because of course it does.

I turn to Alice. “Ten bucks for you to get the door.”

---