"You were perfect," Tully said.
They stayed in the car for the entire ferry ride; not once did Marah stop talking to Tully.
On the Seattle side, the car started up again and they were driven around the city as if they were tourists on vacation, then they pulled into a brightly lit porte cochere, where a hotel doorman came out to greet them. He opened the door and bent down. "And which of you lovely ladies is Marah Rose?"
Marah instantly raised her hand, giggling. "I am. "
He pulled a single pink rose from behind his back and handed it to her.
Marah looked awestruck. "Wow. "
"Say thank you, Marah," Kate said more sharply than shed intended.
Marah threw her an irritated look. "Thank you. "
Tully led them into the hotel. On the top floor, she opened the door to a gigantic suite where all kinds of kid-type play stations had been set up—bouncing rooms and virtual boxing and miniature bumper cars. All the girls from the recital were already there with their families. In the center of the room was a white-draped table. On it was a huge tiered pink cake adorned with tiny frosted ballerinas.
"Aunt Tully," Marah screamed, hugging her. "This is awesome. I love you. "
"I love you, too, princess. Now go play with your friends. "
Everyone stood there for a moment, stunned. Johnny recovered first. Carrying William, he sidled up to Tully. "This is not spoiling her?"
"I wanted to get a pony, but I thought that would be over the top. "
Mom laughed. Dad shook his head. "Come on, Margie, Johnny," he finally said. "Lets check out the bar. "
When Kate and Tully were alone, Kate said, "You sure know how to make an entrance. Marah will be talking about this for years. "
"Too much?" Tully asked.
"Perhaps just a bit. "
Tully gave her a bright smile, but it wasnt the real thing. Kate instantly recognized the pretense. "Whats wrong?"
Before Tully could answer, Marah came bouncing back, her little face shining with joy. "We all want a picture with you, Aunt Tully. "
Kate stood there, watching her daughter practically swoon over her godmother. Although she hated to admit it, she felt a pinch of jealousy. This was supposed to have been their night; hers and Marahs.
Tully sat in the limousine, with Marahs head in her lap, stroking her goddaughters silky black hair.
Across from them, Kate slept against Johnny, who also had his eyes closed. A small boy lay tucked alongside each of them. They looked like the Hallmark version of family perfection.
The limousine turned onto the beach road.
Tully kissed Marahs soft pink cheek. "Were almost home, princess. "
Marah blinked slowly awake. "I love you, Aunt Tully. "
Tullys heart closed like a fist around those words, and she felt a swell of almost painful emotion. She used to think that success was like gold, worth sifting through mud for, and that love would always be there, waiting somehow on the riverbanks for her when she was done panning. She couldnt imagine now why shed thought that, given her background. She ought to have recognized loves scarcity early on. If success were gold, lying in rivers, love was a diamond, buried hundreds of feet beneath the surface of the earth and unrecognizable in its natural form. No wonder it touched her so deeply to hear those words from Marah. Theyd been so rare in her life. "I love you, too, Marah Rose. "
The limo pulled into the driveway, tires crunching on gravel, and parked. It took forever for the family to get out of the car, walk into the house. They all immediately headed upstairs.
Tully stood in the empty living room, unsure of what to do. The floorboards creaked. Shed tried to merge into the lane of their nighttime routine, but she kept getting in the way, so finally she gave up.
Kate came down the stairs at last, sighing tiredly, holding a pile of afghans in her arms. "Okay, Tully. Whats going on?"
"What do you mean?"