Page 32 of Sweet Surprises

“Exactly,” Tag told him. There was a fondness in his voice that tugged on Charlotte’s heart.

It was only when they were all in and Tag was pulling out onto Maple Street that she realized Olivia hadn’t said a word.

Chance was going on a mile a minute about his rock collection, so there wasn’t much she could do to check in with the teen. But worry gathered in her belly. What if Olivia didn’t want another adult in the house, ruining her vibe?

What if she thinks I’m trying to replace her mom?

But that was silly. No one would think anything like that. Charlotte pushed the thoughts aside and gazed quietly out the window at the passing scenery.

The village quickly gave way to cheerfully decorated suburbs, and then the patches of holiday lights grew farther apart as they drove through more wooded areas and fields.

At last, they reached the covered bridge again. Tag tapped his horn lightly and waited an extra moment before proceeding.

“We have to make sure there isn’t another car, Charlotte,” Chance yelled to her from the backseat.

“That’s very smart,” she told him. “I’m glad your dad takes his time and keeps us all safe.”

The tires clattered over the boards of the bridge, and when they came out on the other side, she could see the holiday lights at the Johnson’s little brick house, and a swirl of smoke coming out of the chimney.

By the time they reached the tree-lined driveway that led into Lawrence Dairy Farm, Chance had gone silent. Charlotte stole a glance back and found him asleep on his sister’s shoulder again.

Olivia gave her a small smile and Charlotte nodded back, glad that the teen didn’t seem too upset to have her along after all.

Tag drove them past his parents’ stone farmhouse and all the way back to the big green Victorian at the edge of the wooded hillside.

It was darker back here, where the lights from the other houses were barely visible.

Tag parked and headed back to get Chance. Olivia gently unstrapped her brother as Tag leaned in for him, then pulled the sleeping boy onto his shoulder and headed into the house.

“Want to see your room?” Olivia asked.

“I’d love to,” Charlotte told her. “Thanks.”

Olivia nodded and they got out of the car together. It was freezing cold outside, but still beautiful to see the stars in the velvet of the night sky above.

“You can’t see them in the city,” Charlotte said softly.

Olivia was already grabbing one of the suitcases out of the back of the truck.

“Let Dad get the heavy one,” she said over her shoulder as she headed for the house. “Just take your bag.”

Charlotte grabbed her duffel and shrugged. There was no point arguing with the man, if that’s what he wanted.

She followed Olivia up the steps of the porch and into the house. Tag hadn’t turned on any lights except the one in the stairwell, so she couldn’t see much.

When they reached the second floor, she could hear Tag speaking softly with Chance in one of the rooms. Olivia opened a door that revealed another set of stairs.

Charlotte followed. These steps were carpeted, which would be good if she couldn’t sleep and had to get up and wander around in the wee hours like she sometimes did since losing Dad. She had grown so used to getting up with him in the night while she’d been taking care of him that it became a habit. It was like her body never got the message that he was gone.

Olivia flicked a switch, and Charlotte could see that the stairs opened into a nice-sized room with radiators, pink carpet, and a sloped ceiling on one side.

A narrow stone fireplace against the back wall, flanked by two small windows, gave the space charm. A nice big bed with a snowy white duvet and a big dresser took up just about all the rest of the space, though there were a couple of foot trunks and a stack of cardboard boxes along the right-hand wall. A door on that same wall led to a small bathroom in the eaves with a clawfoot tub.

Above the bed were a couple of prints of paintings of flowers. Charlotte walked over to look.

“We’ll take those down tomorrow as soon as I get home from school,” Olivia said. “And we can put up some of your photos. Maybe the one from your dad, if you have another copy.”

Tears suddenly prickled Charlotte’s eyes.

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