Page 95 of Castings & Curses

“Be good for Paisley.” He grabbed Sarina into a quick hug, and then pulled Liv into the hug too. “Listen to your mom.”

As the firefighters left, the backyards seemed to empty out. The girls ran off to splash in the kiddie pool.

“Where are they all going?” Tyler asked as he showed up at the picnic tables. He had a large watermelon in his arms.

“Hey, Tyler, they got a call. You just get here?”

“How are you feeling today?” Kolby placed her hand on my arm. She had her hands full of their children.

“Much better, thank you. I was having an emotional morning, and my blood sugar must have abandoned me. You were so sweet to help me,” I said with genuine feeling.

“I was telling Kolby about your calendar idea.”

I had to think about what calendar idea. We talked about the firefighter’s pinups, but… “Oh right, the chicken pinup calendar.”

“Well, I think it would be a fun idea. But what about instead of glamour shots of show birds, I mean those are all over the place, you got people to dress like their chickens.” Kolby seemed very invested in this concept, excited even.

“You mean like fashion sense to match the bird, or putting matching outfits on?” I asked.

“Maybe a little of both? It was your idea. I just think it would be a good one,” Kolby said.

I shrugged. “Now's the time to start thinking about it for next year.”

“Aren’t you working on the firefighter’s calendar for this year? Why would the chicken calendar have to wait?” Tyler asked.

“Mostly because there isn’t a strong concept to start working on, nor is there funding in place. The work is mostly done on the other calendar. I will send out the final files to the printer next week. There is a big difference between starting something like this, and working on one that is already on everyone’s schedules.”

We chatted a bit longer about not much before Tyler needed to go find Nan and let her love on the baby.

I searched out the girls with my gaze. They seemed happy splashing about. Liv wasn’t trying to make sparkles, and Sarina didn’t suddenly have a tail.

Amazingly enough, it felt like a weight was off my shoulders. I didn’t need to explain a whole lot to Eric. And I wasn’t the only one keeping a little something extra in hiding.

It was hours before Eric returned. The backyard party event was going strong. It would probably keep going until the mosquitos started mixing cocktails out of everyone’s veins. The light was fading, but the fireflies hadn’t shown up yet. I sat on the old glider, gently rocking back and forth.

There was a squeak that sounded every other time, and it blended in with the cicadas. I had missed this, the sweet warm air as it cooled from a hot day. The way the bugs and frogs provided a background chorus to the lowered voices as people sat around the fire pit. This was my home. I was glad I came back.

“Hey.” Eric’s voice was gentle, tired.

I patted the seat next to me. He sat with a heavy thump and a groan. Lifting his arms up, he stretched them wide across the back of the glider. I started to lean in, but he reeked of smoke.

“You smell.” I told him. “And you’re covered in grime. Was it bad?”

“It could have been worse. Barn down in south county.” He let out a heavy sigh. “Some kids were messing around with fireworks in a hay loft. They got out, they got the animals out. We mostly kept it from spreading. Where are the girls?”

“Inside watching a movie. I wanted to enjoy the night, watch the moon come up.”

“Make wishes?” He let out a low chuckle.

“I believe I said, I didn’t wish for you.”

“Do your wishes sparkle?” He leaned in, and in the low light he smoldered, in more than one way.

I pressed my palm against his chest. “No, seriously, you smell like smoke. Like all the smoke at once. Which you are going to find highly ironic.”

He leaned back. “Why do you say that?”

As the glider swung forward, I used its momentum on the back slide to hop to my feet. I smiled, happy I could still do that little trick. Grabbing one of the citronella candles off the corner of the porch, I snuffed it out, and held the candle out in my hand. I glanced up at the sky. Stars were just starting to become visible.

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