36. Emma #2
Lucas and Lucy bolted to the living room, already shouting predictions about who would score the most. Max stayed behind long enough to give me a serious look. “Throwing me back into the fray, Em. Nice.” But he couldn’t hide his smile as he followed them out.
I cleaned up and set up the decoration station on the kitchen counter before calling them back.
Trying to control the mayhem, I gave everyone a job to do, which they performed with the usual chaos.
Lucy piped buttercream into perfect swirls, though plenty ended up on the counter – Max took it upon himself to wipe it off with his finger.
Lucas shook the sprinkles like he was doing an exorcism, then carefully placed one star in the middle of each cake.
“For wishes,” he said very seriously.
Negotiations began.
“Two each,” Lucas demanded.
“Half each,” I countered. “With milk.”
Lucy crossed her arms and thought about it. “One each,” she said, “and I’ll read to Lucas for ten extra minutes tonight.”
“Deal,” I said, shaking her hand.
Max leaned over the tray and pointed to one hugely decorated cupcake. “That one is mine.”
“Of course it is,” smiling at him.
We ate. Lucas ended up with a chocolate moustache and tried to lick it off. With the patience of a saint, Lucy handed him a napkin. Max acted like his cupcake was so good that he almost fainted. Lucy and I just rolled our eyes and tried not to laugh.
“Okay, story time,” I declared once faces were wiped and crumbs were gone.
Lucy darted for the bookcase and came back with a dinosaur encyclopaedia and The Golden Compass. “Alternate,” she said firmly. Lucas nodded seriously.
She chose the chapter. I read out loud. My voice softened and found the rhythm it only does with stories.
I looked up every now and then, and saw Max listening, completely focused.
When Lucy finally relaxed, reassured that Lyra would be fine until tomorrow, Lucas shoved the dinosaur book at me. “Read T. rex,” he demanded.
I started, but Lucas stopped me after two paragraphs. “No. Uncle Max does the voices.”
Max pretended to be shocked, then launched into his repertoire. His velociraptor’s scream almost knocked Barney off the rug. His stegosaurus was like a disapproving aunt. Lucy kept correcting his “facts”, but she let the screaming pterodactyl pass because it was so funny.
And slowly, inevitably, Lucas melted against my side, thumb in mouth, and eyelids heavy. Lucy stayed awake longer, but by the end her head was resting on my arm.
“Bed?” I said in a low voice.
Max looked me in the eye across the sofa, and we both knew the plan had worked.
Lucy yawned so wide that it looked like it might break her in two, but then she tried to deny it right away. “I’m not sleepy.”
“Of course not,” I said with all the seriousness I could muster. “You are wide awake. But you are definitely going to brush your teeth again.”
Lucy groaned like I had sentenced her to hard labour, but she let me pull her up. Max didn’t think twice; he just scooped Lucas into his arms. The little guy quickly curled up against his chest, resting his head on his shoulder as if that was where he belonged. It made my throat feel tight.
I followed them up the stairs. The house was quiet except for the soft sounds kids make when they’re too tired to fight it anymore: shuffling feet, a little sigh, and the creaking of Max’s steps as he carried Lucas like he was nothing.
Lucy made a whole production of brushing her teeth. She stood on the stool like she was on stage and scrubbed with all her might. Then she got into bed, moved her pillows around three times, and leaned over to me and whispered as if we were sharing secrets.
“Emma? Do you think Lyra would be good at hockey?”
I smiled. “I believe Lyra would do well at anything she chose to do.”
Lucy nodded, satisfied. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. Night.”
“Goodnight, Lucy,” I whispered, kissing her forehead.
In the next room, Max was tucking Lucas in with ridiculous care, arranging dinosaurs like they were royalty. Max lowered his voice. “The stegosaurus gets the pillow. Tough day.”
I whispered back, “Of course,” and wrapped the blanket around Lucas’s belly. Then I smoothed his hair until he fell asleep.
We tiptoed out. Back downstairs the house felt twice as still, the kind of hush that only comes when kids are finally asleep.
Barney groaned and stretched out on the rug like he had been dealing with the kids all night.
Max dropped onto the sofa and patted the space next to him.
I curled up, tucking my legs under me. He slung an arm lazily over the back of the sofa, letting his fingers brush my shoulder.
“You were good with them,” I said softly.
He smiled. “Please. You were the one who got Lucy to brush her teeth without a court case. I just gave dinosaurs questionable accents.”
I laughed and leaned in a little closer.
The silence stretched, comfortable and quiet, broken only by Barney’s snoring.
I laid my head on Max’s lap. “Just for a second,” I whispered, my eyes already heavy.
I hadn’t realised how tired I was until that moment.
He brushed my hair back gently. I opened one eye and saw him looking down at me, soft and unguarded.
The front door clicked open. Aidan and Grace walked in, their voices low and happy.
“How was it?” Grace whispered as she looked in.
“Angels,” I said, getting up from the sofa. “Asleep in no time.”
“Thank you. Both of you.”
Aidan clapped Max on the shoulder, then looked at me with a grin. “If they wake up asking for you tomorrow, you only have yourselves to blame. And just so you know, you’re officially hired for next time.”
Max laughed. “We’ll check our schedule.”
Grace smiled, already taking off her shoes. “Don’t check too hard.”
We stepped out into the cool night air together, and I didn’t know if I was more scared by how natural it felt – or how badly I didn’t want to let it end.