Page 27 of The Forever Game

“How does he keep doing this to me? I had it all lined up. I’d arrange for him to pick me up from school, and he was going to walk into my classroom and the students were going to throw balloons in the air while I got down on one knee. They were primed and pumped and?—”

“What happened?”

“He just waited for me in his car and refused to come in even when I lied and told him I needed help carrying stuff!”

I can’t help a soft giggle. “He seriously didn’t offer to help you? That’s so unlike him.”

“I know!” Lani huffs. “He told me one of my students could help me, which means he knows I was planning on popping the question.”

“Uh-huh.” I nod, padding down the hallway to check on Billy.

“It’s just payback for last month when he tried to propose and I made sure I ‘got lost’ and couldn’t find the restaurant.”

“You two are unbelievable.” I shake my head. “You’ve turned this into a huge competition and taken all the romance out of it.”

“I can’t let him win, Caroline.” She sounds incredulous.

I roll my eyes and push open the playroom door, my eyebrows dipping when I notice that Billy’s not in here anymore.

Oh shit.

With a jerk, I spin, Lani’s complaints turning to white noise as I realize I just made a rookie mistake in the parenting department. Things are too quiet! I left it too long to check on him, and now Billy will be up to some kind of mischief in the house and I’ll?—

I race down the stairs, veering into the kitchen and screeching to a stop in the doorway. My heart plummets into my bare feet as I take in the mess.

“Billy,” I whine, unable to help myself.

“Hi, Mommy. I’m baking!” He throws his hands in the air, releasing a cloud of flour. It wafts through the air before landing on all the surfaces, which are already coated in a layer of white dust. Even Fezzik’s a little snow dog right now, his fur caked in white paste.

“Did you wash the dog, then flour him?”

“Uh-huh!” He smiles brightly. “He kept shaking, and the flour came off. Water helps it stick better.”

I frown at him, willing my voice to stay calm as I grit out, “You know you’re not supposed to bake without Mommy.”

His big blue eyes go a little larger, and he gives me this adorably coy smile. “Wanted it to be a surpwise.”

“Oh, it’s a surprise.”

“What’s going on?” Lani’s voice finally registers in my ear.

I let out a sharp breath. “Billy decided that baking would be a great idea, and my kitchen is now covered in flour and…” I creep around the counter and wince, noting the powdered sugar that’s been dropped all over the floor, and Billy’s pants and… “Oh crap.”

“Oh crap!” Billy yells, punching his little fists in the air.

“Billy!” I growl. “You know that’s a bad word.”

“Sorry, Mommy.”

“You got into the food coloring? How did you even reach it?”

“I climbed.” His expression is so sweet, his explanation so simple, and all I can feel is a cold shudder as I picture Billy climbing up the pantry shelves to the very top and then tumbling onto the floor and hurting himself.

Closing my eyes, I suck in a breath, fighting for calm, but I’m a trembling mess when my eyes pop back open and I stare at the bright red and blue droplets dripping off the bench, landing on my beautiful white drawers and handles, dripping down my cupboards like neon tears.

I can’t help sniffing, tears building quickly as I contemplate the epic cleanup.

“How can one kid create so much mess in such a short period of time?”

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