Page 34 of Peaches & Pistols

“Ohhhhh.” Everly nods as if Harper’s solved the world’s greatest mystery.

I’m honored my daughter thinks I look like a princess. I hope she always keeps that magic in her spirit, and also that she might look up to me long after she doesn’t need me anymore.

I want to be the mother I wished I’d had, the best possible mother to my little girl.

“That’s perfect! Because Aurora gets rescued by the prince—” Everly starts but is interrupted by Harper.

“Prince Philip!”

“Yea, him! Mama I wish we could get rescued by a prince.”

The room freezes. The girls are playing with the clothes and shoes as if a bomb wasn’t just dropped.

“What do you mean, baby? We don’t need rescued, we’re doing just fine.”

“But what if Daddy finds us?”

My heart stops. I have no idea how much she knows or has picked up on, but it’s the first time since we left she’s asked about Carter at all. I should’ve addressed it with her sooner, but I was selfishly glad to float in this world where he didn’t exist.

“Why don’t you girls go find Cecelia and see if she has any dessert for you?” Livy suggests, and ushers the skipping children from the room, shutting the door behind them.

I sink onto the clothes-covered bed.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Izzy asks at the same time Delilah says, “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

Livy sits beside me and rubs soft circles on my back.

“It’s okay. You all deserve to know, especially since my problems could come knocking at your door.”

The women wait, giving me the time and space I need to gather myself.

“Everly’s dad, Carter, is my husband. It wasn’t a…safe environment, which is why we ended up on a bus that landed us here.”

“Are you in immediate danger?” Izzy asks.

“I wish I could say no, but I honestly don’t know what’s going through his head. Part of me thinks if he hasn’t come looking yet, he might just let us go. But there’s also a chance he won’t stop until he finds us.”

The ugly truth tastes like ash on my tongue, but getting the poison out of my body is cathartic.

“Does my brother know all of this?” Livy asks tentatively.

“I think he suspects, but we haven’t talked about it.”

The girls nod, mulling over the information I’ve vomited in their unexpecting laps.

“If there’s anyone on this planet who can keep you safe, it’s Greyson.” Livy’s tone is grave but confident. Izzy and Delilah enthusiastically nod their agreement.

The funny thing is, I think my heart already knew that.

12

She’s everywhere.

She’s living in my house. Her sweet scent haunts me everywhere I go. Not even my bedroom is safe, because she started doing my laundry and washing my sheets.

I snapped at her to stop because I was going out of my goddamn mind knowing her hands had touched my clothes and pillowcases. She’s just doing her job, an incredible job at that, but I couldn’t let this beautiful creature wash my dirty underwear or scrub my fucking toilet.

Like a coward, I’ve been spending more time at the store than needed, to regain some semblance of sanity. It’s not working.