Page 69 of Love Like This

Hadley pointed at her. “You’re half dressed!”

Isabel scoffed. “I’m Pooh. You said we should embrace the theme,and I’m embracing it. Actual Pooh wore no pants, if you remember, so you shouldconsider yourself lucky. Sexy-Wonder-Woman-Pooh is better than Naked-Pooh. I’mconfident you’ll agree.”

“Oh, dear,” Hadley said, grateful that the twins were too young tobe scarred.

“I dig your Tigger outfit, though!” Isabel said.

Hadley grinned. “Really? I put most of it together myself. Rentedthe feet and tail, though!” She turned in a circle to showcase her orange andblack ensemble.

Isabel offered her applause. “Rockin’ it as always, Had. Gonnasteal some grub and camp out on the couch.”

“Enjoy!” Hadley sang after her and continued to organize thesnacks.

Outside of Sexy-Pooh, Hadley’s Winnie-the-Pooh theme party was offto a promising start. Not only had most of the Seven Shores dwellers chosen toattend, but they’d contributed gifts for the twins’ room and decorations toHadley’s already detailed party. Bonus! Because the weather was crisp and cooland sunny for fall, she’d chosen to stage the gathering in the courtyard,stealing what time she could before the sun went down. The snack tableoverflowed with cozy baked goods and a variety of punch flavors all gearedaround her theme.

“What do you think of all this?” she asked Will, who wore hisWinnie onesie. He smiled at the colors as she bounced him from one attendee toanother to say hello. “Hey, buddy, those are my whiskers,” she told him, whenhe got a little handsy. “Tigger needs his whiskers.”

She surveyed the space and her variety of guests. Gia, Autumn, andIsabel drank the “honey flavored” punch, as Kate whisked Carrie around to thedifferent interactive stations. There was Pin-the-Tail-on-Tigger, Help PoohFind His Pants, and her own personal favorite, cupcake decorating, manned byLarry Herman himself. If only he would quit demanding that people stay realisticin their frosting designs. Barney had already quit the activity altogether andstolen two handfuls of unfrosted cupcakes in artistic protest of Larry’s rules.Conversely, Elle’s Pin-the-Tail-on-Tigger station consistently held a steadyline. But then, everyone lined up for time with Elle.

“My, my, my! Just look at this!” a new voice said loudly, from thegated entryway.

She turned and beamed at the sight of Sonora entering thecourtyard with Spencer. She wore Kanga ears and a fluffy apron which wasperfectly coordinated to Spencer’s subtle nods to Roo, including ears,whiskers, and a blue shirt! They’d made such an effort that Hadley almostcouldn’t contain herself.

“You came,” she said, rushing over to Sonny, who gave her a heartysqueeze.

“Told you I wouldn’t miss it. It’s too fantastic an idea! I don’tknow why we don’t have more parties just because. Makes the world brighter.”

“I agree,” Hadley said.

“Wait! I’m here, too!” Kendra yelled, racing in behind them. “Isuck at parallel parking.” She wore a Tigger T-shirt and an “Oh, Bother”baseball cap.

“You look fabulous,” Hadley said, and hugged her promptly beforedirecting her immediately to Autumn, Kate, and the twins for a lively reunion.Sonny headed off for refreshments, which left Hadley and Spencer on their own,making eyes at each other. They were still finding their footing after theother morning, but with Spencer close by, Hadley was pretty much putty.

“Babe, you did an outstanding job. Just look at this place,”Spencer said, looking around. “It’s the best kind of fall festival.”

“Just you wait for next month. A Monster Mash! I’ve already pickedup a few scary props.”

“But isn’t Halloweenthismonth?” Spencer asked, quirking her head.

Hadley widened her eyes. “My creative whims cannot be controlledby a calendar.”

Spencer laughed and held up her hands. “I should have anticipatedthat.”

The gathering went much later than they’d anticipated, with folksgetting comfortable as the stars took over for the sun. Kendra carried asleeping Will into the apartment for Autumn, who kept the video monitor withher at all times. Spencer took on the challenge of getting Carrie to sleep and,once again, shocked them all with her speed in doing so. “Can you move in?”Kate asked, accepting the little girl delicately from Spencer.

“What if, in addition to a salary, I tossed in free coffee?”

“Incredibly tempting,” Spencer said, taking Hadley’s hand. “And itwould get me closer to Hadley, which is a bonus.”

“Nicely done,” Autumn said, pointing at her. She winked at Hadleyas she passed.

“This woman is a gem!” Larry Herman declared from across thecourtyard, grabbing everyone’s attention. He pointed directly at Sonny, whosmiled in appreciation.

“We’re going shopping next week for potential investmentproperties,” she informed the curious group. “I know of a few pocket listingsthat Mr. Herman might be interested in.”

Hadley made her way over to them. “Larry, that’s fantastic news!Did you know Ms. Sonny is Spencer’s mother?”

Larry eyed Spencer and then Sonny. “I can forgive that.” He turnedabruptly and made his way back to his cupcake station, where he began to packup the remaining few.

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