Page 16 of Kiwi

"Make sure you are doing this for you, Piper, and not her. You don't owe her anything."

"I'm doing it for me. It's like I'm stuck in limbo, you know? I need closure. We'll see after tomorrow. I'm not saying this visit will give me what I need, but I have to try."

Dad puts his arm around me, and I snuggle into his embrace. "I'm proud of you, Piper. Not just with the situation between you and your mother, but with school too."

"Thanks, dad." I kiss his cheek. "We've both come a long way, haven't we?"

"We sure have, Bean, and it's been one hell of a ride."

Dad stands, and I do the same. "Promise bought a movie for Jaxson. The damn thing has a fuckin' talking donkey. You up for a movie night? Don't make me sit through that shit alone."

I giggle. "Yeah. I'll watch it with you guys. And don't be trashing Shrek."

* * *

I don't thinkI got an hour of sleep last night. I was up before the sun and ended up watching Jaxson when he woke up at five, so that Promise could sleep in a bit longer. It's now a quarter to seven, and I'm sipping on a cup of coffee while sitting on the front porch as my brother happily plays with his toys beside me. The screen door creeks, drawing my attention. I look over my shoulder, to see Promise steps out of the house.

"Good morning, sweetheart."

"Morning."

Promise sits in the rocking chair beside mine. "Thanks for letting me sleep. Your dad usually gets up with Jaxson on the weekends, but he headed out early."

"Yeah, I heard him leave around four."

The two of us are quiet for a beat before Promise asks, "Where's your head this morning? How do you feel about today; about seeing Madison?"

I let out a deep sigh. "My head is good, but I am nervous. I still don't know what I'm going to say."

"I don't think you'll know what to say until you are face to face. You can't rehearse anything like that. All you can do is be honest with how you are feeling at that moment. There is no right or wrong here, Piper."

I look over at Promise when she reaches out and squeezes my hand.

"You're right. All I can do is take one step at a time."

A few minutes of silence pass before Promise speaks again. "Your dad said Kiwi was taking you today."

"He is," I say just before taking a sip of coffee.

"Do you want to talk about that?" Promise asks with a knowing look. I'm sure Promise is the only person who suspects I have feelings for Tai.

I shrug. "There's nothing to talk about."

Promise snorts. "This is me you are talking to, sweetheart. Your dad and the other guys might be oblivious to what is going on between you and Kiwi, but not me. That storm has been brewing for over a year; probably longer."

I look at Promise and shake my head. "There can never be anything between Tai and me. Not only would dad lose his shit, but Tai doesn't see me the way I see him. I'm sure he still sees me as a little girl. I thought at one time there was something between us, but..."

"What do you mean?" Promise asks.

I fidget with the cup in my hands. "A little over a year ago at the rally after that guy tried to attack me, Tai was comforting me. I misjudged a moment we shared. I thought he was going to kiss me. Nothing happened, though. All I did was embarrass myself."

"I don't know, Piper. I notice the way Kiwi looks at you. He most certainly doesn't look at you as a little kid."

Just as those words leave Promises' mouth, I hear the familiar rumble of a motorcycle making its way up the drive toward the house. A second later, Tai appears. Cutting the engine, he climbs off his bike and makes his way up the porch.

"Good morning, Kiwi," Promise greets him.

"Mornin'," he jerks his chin then trains his eyes on me. "Ready?"