Chapter 30
THIRTY
“ D o me, too!” Jumping off the bed, Colby ran into the bedroom, putting out her arm. She tugged on the bottom of her top to get her attention. “I want to smell pretty, too!”
Sage leaned down to put a dab of perfume on each of Colby’s wrists.
Not content, Colby went on her toes to look at the bathroom counter. “I need a necklace, too.”
“Of course, you do. I didn’t forget.” Opening a small box on the vanity, she took out a neon-colored, silicone turtle necklace. “You look gorgeous.”
Content, Colby flounced out of the bathroom to show her mother and arouse jealousy in her baby sister.
Hurriedly, Sage brushed her hair then grabbed a tri-colored, beaded pacy holder before going to stop the wailing coming from Tinsley.
Picking her up, she hooked the pacy holder onto Tinsley’s pink shirt then attached it to the pacy in her mouth.
“There you go, sweet pea.” Gray, misty eyes stared at her while Tinsley continued to suck on her pacy.
Colby noticed the pink pacy holder and made a face. “That was mine. I want it back.”
“Colby, you gave it to Tinsley when you stopped using your pacy. It’s nice not to take something back that you gave as a gift. Besides, you have your necklace. Tinsley wants to look pretty, too.”
“Okay,” Colby conceded reluctantly, placing a protective hand over her necklace. “But I’m not giving her my necklace.”
“You might feel that way now, but you might not when you get older.” Sage sat down on the edge of the bed, making a face at Glory. “Feel free to jump in at any time.”
Glory laughed. “Why should I when you’re doing an excellent job? I had to deal with them arguing who had more fish sticks for lunch. Are you sure you want to take them on your date with you?”
“I warned him they were a handful.”
“And he still wanted to go? Brave guy.”
“Do you want me to help you into the living room so you can meet him?”
“Another time. I think being introduced to two women in our family is more than enough for the night.”
Sage knew that overwhelming Kent wasn’t why she didn’t want to meet him. Glory was self-conscious about her looks.
“Perhaps next time. I’m not going to let you put it off much longer. I want you to meet him. I need your opinion.”
“Take pictures of him. I want to see what the guy sweeping my sister off her feet looks like before I meet him in person.” Glory reached out to untangle Tinsley’s fingers from the necklace Sage was wearing.
“I can’t just take a picture of him,” Sage protested.
“I don’t see why not. Take some pictures of the girls and sneak a couple of him in.”
“I’ll try.” Sage glanced at the clock on the nightstand. “Do you need anything before we leave?”
“Nope. I think two bottles of water, a glass of juice, and a package of crackers is enough.”
“All righty, then. Girls, say bye to your mom.”
Both girls carefully kissed their mother before leaving the bedroom.
Shutting the door, she placed Tinsley on the floor while she double-checked she had everything the girls would need while they were out.
She was tucking her cell phone in the back pocket of her jeans when the doorbell rang. Hearing the sound, the girls started squealing and jumping up and down.
“Girls!” she shushed them. “Ladies don’t jump up and down when someone comes for a visit.”
“Why not?” Colby stared at her with stormy gray, curious eyes.
“Because it’s not ladylike.” As she walked to the door, she gave them a once-over to make sure everything was in place. Each of them had their shoes still on, Tinsley still had her pacy, and Colby had her necklace. They were good to go.
Opening the door, she started to greet Kent when two little bodies barreled past her.
Bemusedly, Kent stared down at the two girls before a wide grin spread on his face. “Hello.” Going to his haunches, he put himself on their eye level. “You two must be Sage’s nieces.”
Their two heads bobbed up and down.
Sage placed a hand on the taller one. “Kent, this is Colby.” Sage put her hand on the other head. “And this is Tinsley.”
“Wow,” Kent said in an exaggerated voice. “Sage told me how cute you both were, but she didn’t tell me you two were as pretty as a picture.”
Both girls started giggling.
Smiling, Kent straightened. “You girls ready to go out?”
Sage went to get the tote bag containing their essentials, leaving Kent to deal with their excited squeals.
“Can I take that for you?” he offered, already reaching out.
“No, thanks, I got it.” Placing it on her shoulder, she bent down to pick up Tinsley. “You can take Colby’s hand for me.”
“I’d be honored.” Kent held out his hand to her niece. “May I?”
Giggling, Colby took it.
“I thought we’d just walk to the small park a couple blocks away.” She nodded at the two car seats that had arrived today in the mail. “I need to get those unboxed, and it would be dark before we could get them installed in your back seat. The girls need to get some fresh air anyway.”
“I could use it myself.” He held Colby’s hand, and they went out the door.
After closing the door, she made sure it was locked before they started walking down the hallway.
“The rest of your day go good?” she asked as they got in the elevator.
Kent nodded. “Any day I can get out of work early is a good day.”
Sage agreed. Glenda had warned her there would be times when she would have to work overtime.
So far, so good. The first two days had run smoothly.
It helped that the trial against Hollingsworth seemed to be going well.
Everyone in the higher offices who were dealing with the lawsuit were in a cheerful mood.
Sage took that as a sign she wouldn’t have to be looking for a new job.
As they walked, Tinsley talked to her constantly, pointing to different objects they passed, while Kent was forced to answer numerous questions from Colby.
“How tall are you?”
“Six three,” Kent answered her easily.
“My dad was taller.”
Kent didn’t seem to know how to answer that comparison. Luckily, Colby was on to her next question.
“Are you Sage’s boyfriend?”
Sage had to stifle her laughter at Kent’s wary expression.
“Yes.”
“Are you going to marry her?”
“Colby, that isn’t a question you should be asking,” Sage reprimanded her before Kent could answer.
Kent looked relieved.
Pouting, Colby looked up. “My dad married my mom. Mom said when Sage has a baby, I can hold it. I want Sage to get married so I can hold her baby.”
Sage’s laughter died in her throat.
“Colby, I’m not going to be having a baby anytime soon. You have plenty of baby dolls to play with at home. You don’t need a real one to hold,” she told her, noticing Kent was frowningly gazing down at her stomach.
She gave him a dirty look that he could possibly think she’d be pregnant. They’d only been together once, and she had assured him she was on birth control.
“I am not pregnant,” she hissed at him.
Another relieved expression crossed his face.
Irritated, she rolled her eyes at him.
“Be for real.” Snidely, she looked him over. “I know what you make at the firm. If I was going let myself get pregnant to land myself a rich baby daddy, I would go for a billionaire.”
“How do you know I’m not?”
“You live in a casino for a tax break,” she reasoned. “You’re not a full partner yet with Hollingsworth, and you drink cheap beer.”
Speeding up to keep up with Colby, Kent laughingly told her from over his shoulder, “Sage, I couldn’t fool you if I tried, could I?”
“Nope. I’m all-seeing,” she replied jokingly.
The moment she set Tinsley on her feet when they reached the park, the girls ran off to play. Finding an empty picnic table, they sat down, keeping them in sight. She pulled out two bottled waters and two juice boxes, gave a bottled water to Kent, and opened the other one.
“It’s nice out.” She sighed, relaxing.
“Yes, it is,” he agreed, nodding his head toward the girls. “The girls are adorable. They don’t seem too much of a handful to me.”
“Give them time,” she warned.
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Tinsley began wailing as if the world was coming to an end when Colby accidently knocked her down.
“Colby pushed me,” Tinsley sobbed into her shoulder when Sage picked her up.
“I saw. She didn’t mean to.” Soothing her, Sage set her back down when she stopped crying.
“Be more careful, Colby,” she called out as they resumed playing as if nothing had happened.
“We will!” Tinsley yelled out.
“I wished some of the squabbles at work were so easy to deal with,” she remarked offhandedly, sitting back down at the picnic table.
“What squabbles at work?”
“Nothing.”
Kent raised an eyebrow at her. “Come on; I won’t tell. Is something going on I don’t know about?”
“You’re lucky you work on the higher floors; none of the drama going on at work affects you.”
Kent rested his chin on his hand. “Spill the tea.”
“There are two women who are making everyone’s life miserable. I don’t understand how they get away with some of the crap they’re pulling.”
She tried not to show her frustration, yet it must have seeped out of her voice.
“That sounds bad. What’s going on?”
“Bree just fired my replacement. Avery is a sweet girl, and she was fired for having to leave early because her daughter missed the school bus.”
“That’s harsh.”
“It was her first time having to leave early. I feel terrible for her. They are also threatening to fire Brian. He’s such a nice guy.
On his way into work, he gets coffee for everyone who asks him.
He lives next to the best coffee house in town.
Everyone who asks pays him at the end of the week.
He got written up by Bree. If it happens again, he’ll be fired.
He’s getting married next month. He can’t afford to lose his job.
I think his feelings were hurt more than anything. ”
“What was he written up for?”