Page 31 of Here and Now
Penelope raises her brows. “We could be?”
“Yeah, I mean, you’re supposed to be thinking about it.”
“I am.”
“Thinking about it or planning it?” I ask.
“Thinking,” she says slowly.
Before I can ask another question, Hazel pops back around from the back. “Scones.”
I’d like to shove that scone?—
“Great!” Penelope says with a little too much enthusiasm for me. “Miles has been waiting for one.”
Penelope takes a scone off the tray and places it in a bag. “Total for the scone and coffee is twelve dollars.”
“How much is the coffee?” I ask. Usually I get a pastry and a tea and it’s five bucks.
“The coffee is five dollars.”
“Five dollars for the coffee?” I ask, now turning my attention to Hazel who shrugs. Right. Well, even if it was eleven dollars, it would be worth the encounter I just had with Penelope. I got to spend a few minutes with her and honestly, that’s the only reason I came here anyway.
I could’ve made my own breakfast and tea at home.
I pay and give Penelope a tip. Since my lifelong friend is clearly trying to cockblock me, I grab the coffee and scone, lifting the bag up. “Thanks for everything. I’m sure I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Penny nods. “See you tomorrow.”
While I had all intentions of going to get coffee from Penny again, my sister needed me as soon as I left the coffee shop that morning, causing me to miss it for the last four days.
Only she’s forgiven because I’m holding the tiniest, most beautiful little girl I’ve ever seen. She’s a day old and already owns my heart.
“Now, no matter what they tell you, Cora, I’m your favorite uncle, and I didn’t put the hole in the wall. Your mother did.”
Eloise rolls her eyes. “You’re already lying to your niece. Nice example you are. You totally put the hole in the wall and blamed me.”
One day, when we were kids, there was a mystery hole that appeared in the living room wall of our grandmother’s house. At least it was a mystery as far as Gran was concerned. Of course, Eloise and I know exactly how it appeared there. However, my diabolical sister always thought if we just stuck together a little, Gran wouldn’t punish us as harshly.
That time I went along with it. We told Gran neither of us knewhow it got there. Surely it wasn’t the fact that Eloise and I were playing baseball in the house. We’d never do such a thing.
Gran was never able to prove anything, and she’s a stickler on fairness and evidence. Therefore, we got away with it, and each time someone wanted to blackmail the other, the hole became the chip we used.
Even to this day.
I grin. “It was you who did it, El. We both know it.”
My sister sighs, her head turning to look out the window. “Yeah, yeah, but Gran doesn’t know. Hey, thanks for keeping Ethan a few extra days. I hoped I wouldn’t end up having a C-section, but this one was clearly not willing to make things easy on me.”
“You don’t have to thank me—he’s my nephew.”
“I know, but ... still. I know you wanted to be on the lake this summer.”
I rock Cora in my arms, as her brother is running around out back. “I’m where I need to be.”
She reaches her hand out, resting it on my arm. “She’s really perfect.”
“She is.”
