Hot Mess

“We don’t have bears here,” she replied innocently. “Got sharks, though.”

And that was me never going in the water.

“And those sharks are not interested in us,” Theo said. “But they might like nine-year-old girls if they don’t tidy their room!” He tickled her sides, and she squealed, running off toward the house the second she escaped his clutches. Her laughter rang out until she was inside, well away from us.

He looked over his shoulder at the old ladies at their table. They were now taking names of people and—were they taking money?

“Are they taking money?”

Theo squinted. “Jesus, they are. What are they taking money for?”

“I bet they’re either doing a talk somewhere, or they’re charging people for a UFO-hunting session. That’s what the telescopes represent.”

“Bloody hell. They have to have permission from the mayor to do that.”

“I bet they have it. Elsie said to me last week that they thought they were close to getting him to declassify files, so I bet this was a compromise.”

Theo rubbed his temples. “I have no idea how I haven’t had a heart attack yet with these three around. Are you coming to make calzones? Did Ari ask you?”

“She did. Right after she shoved her book in my face to show me it.”

“Bloody Ever After High. She found it on Netflix and won’t stop watching it. She about screamed the flipping library down when she found it on the shelf. I thought they were going to revoke her card for creating such a disturbance.”

I laughed. “What time are you making the calzones?”

“I’m going to make the dough in a minute, so come over when you’re ready.”

One glance down at myself told me I needed at least thirty minutes. “I’ll go take a shower and come over after.”

“Deal. See you then.” He chucked me under the chin with a grin and headed to his house. I watched after him for a moment, more specifically staring at his ass in his jean shorts.

I shook my head, breaking the spell, and went back inside, stopping only to grab my phone.

I needed help.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN – THEO

“No, you cannot have a tiger as a pet either.”

Ari huffed. “Can’t have a monkey, can’t have a tiger, can’t have a puppy. Can I have a fish?”

“As long as you mean a goldfish and not a shark, sure.”

Elle laughed into her hand. “At least a clownfish. Come on.”

“Whose side are you on?”

“Hers.” She grinned.

I should have known.

“Elle, will you braid my hair like you do in your videos? From the top?” She pointed to the top of her head. “Please?”

Elle smiled. “Do you want one braid or two?”

“Two!”

“Grab some hair ties and I’ll happily do it.”

Ari rushed off to her room to presumably spend the next five minutes going through her endless collection of hairbands, just to find two matching ones… to put in her wet hair and ultimately sleep in.

“You don’t have to do that,” I said, loading the dirty plates into the dishwasher. “Now she’s gonna ask you every day.”

“You say that like I mind.” She gave me a smile that was on the dreamy side, and I couldn’t help but return it.

There was something about this woman, and I desperately needed to put my finger on it.

Ari came rushing back in then with two bright green hairbands, waving them enthusiastically, plus a comb tucked under her arm. “I got them!”

“Okay, sit on the stool.” She pulled one out from the island and patted it. Ari jumped up right away and sat bolt upright like someone had stuck a metal rod in her back.

I bit back a small laugh and finished putting the last of the dirty dishes in the dishwasher. When I turned, Elle had Ari’s wet hair split into a perfect parting down the center of her head and had one side secured loosely in the band.

With nimble fingers, Elle immediately got to work braiding her hair. French braids were a tedious task, one I’d never mastered no matter how many times Blaire had tried to teach me over the years. Elle worked it like a master, swooping the hair through and adding sections as if it were second nature to her.

Ari grinned the entire time. Exactly like the Cheshire Cat. I half expected her to turn invisible halfway through the first braid.

“Can you do that to yourself?”

“Of course she can, Dad. I watched her do it!” Ari rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling.

Elle glanced up at me. “Yes. I learned how to do it when I was in my teens because my sister wanted me to do her hair, but she hated how long it took me to practice. So I started practicing on myself, going like down the side of my head to my ear until I had the movements all figured out.”

“Can you a full head of braids? Like Blaire’s?” Ari asked.