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“She’s everything to me.”
Ellie’s grin is blinding. “Then let’s start planning.”
It took an entire week, some heavy subterfuge, and a few carefully worded suggestions to get Katie’s surprise party planned. I didn’t want to lie to her. That felt shitty when she’s only just now trusting me to take care of her. But I also couldn’t tell her the truth, which meant I had to be very intentional about what I told her so she wouldn’t be suspicious.
Cody spilled the beans about Katie’s birthday one night during dinner a couple of days after we went to the arcade. He’d asked her what she wanted to do for her birthday, and she looked like a deer in headlights at his question. I’m not sure if she thought he wouldn’t remember or if she didn’t want me to know it was almost her birthday, but in the end, she said she’d be fine with having dinner, just the three of us.
I told her I’d plan a little something for her birthday—specifically leaving out the word dinner—even though she protested. Cody managed to convince her to let me do this. He insisted that she deserved a special night after all the birthdays she’d planned for him. She couldn’t say no to his cute little face. Trust me, she grumbled about it for half an hour after he went to bed.
Tonight is the big event. Ellie took Katie out shopping for a new dress for what Katie thinks will be a fancy night out. Ellie insisted that she buy it as Katie’s birthday present, again using the “she deserves it” excuse to pamper Katie.
While the girls are shopping, Cody and I are getting the house decorated. I told him after they left that we were throwing a surprise party for her instead of going to dinner. I couldn’t chance him accidentally saying something to throw her off. He understood why I kept it a secret, which made me feel less guilty.
I told Katie I would take Cody to get some fancy duds for her “special night” as an excuse to keep him with me. We did go shopping, but it only took us half an hour to pick out clothes. He’s been loving being a part of the planning today. His ideas for decorating have been way better than mine, so I’m oddly grateful he’s been here to help. Seeing his little smile light up his face when I praise one of his ideas gives me feelings I’ve never had before. Pride or maybe love… I don’t know exactly, but it makes me want to do it as often as possible.
Everyone should be showing up in about an hour, and as I look around the living room, excitement wrapped in a ball of nerves starts to make me nauseous.
“Your mom’s not going to get pissed at me for all this, right?” I turn toward Cody. He’s sprinkling plastic confetti on the table by the door.
“Nope. As long as she doesn’t have to clean it up.” He tilts his head to the side. “Well, she might not be happy at first, since she doesn’t love being surprised, but then she’ll realize why she’s being surprised, and she’ll be happy.”
That was mostly unhelpful. Oh, fuck. I slide my palms over my eyes. This is going to blow up in my face. I’m talking massive destruction. Everywhere. No part of me will survive. This was such a bad idea.
Suddenly, tiny arms are wrapping around my waist. Cody is hugging me for all he’s worth, and my whole body settles into the embrace. It’s exactly what I needed to come back from the panic.
“Thank you for putting my mom first. No one has ever done that before.”
“Aw, shit, kid. You’re going to make me cry.”
“That’s okay. Boys are allowed to cry any time they need to.”
“Well, fuck.” My throat starts to get thick, and tears actually threaten to fall. I clear my throat and take a deep breath before I squat down in front of him. “You’re right, Code. I just didn’t want to do that on your mom’s birthday. I have a feeling she’d know I was upset, and she’d wonder why.”
Cody gives me an understanding look. “She’d definitely know. It’s like she has this superpower and knows when something’s off. I can’t get away with anything.”
That makes me laugh. “It’s annoying, isn’t it?”
“Seriously.”
I check my watch. “We better go get dressed before everyone starts showing up. Thank you for your help today.”
“You’re welcome. Thank you for including me.” He starts to go up the stairs to his room but turns around. “I’m not just glad you’re here for Mom. I really like having you here, too.”
“Dammit, Cody. I was doing so good,” I tease through my emotions.
He grins at me and runs up to his room, yelling, “You owe me five bucks for all your curse words.”
CHAPTER 25
Katie
“Ohhhh, this one!” Ellie grabs another dress to add to the growing stack in her arms. I sigh. Again.
Ellie whips around to glare at me. “Stop that.” She points a Cinderella-blue nail in my face. “Don’t act like I’m torturing you.”
I deflate, feeling guilty about my behavior. “I’m sorry. This whole fucking thing is just making me antsy. And a little bitchy.”
Ellie moves closer, sensing that this is bigger than not wanting to go shopping. “Hey, talk to me. What’s wrong?”
