Page 31 of Tiffanie

“Oh, no, Tiffanie. I’m sorry to hear that. He’s stopping them for a short time, right?” Essie asked, her face drawn with concern.

“I’m going in next week for another round of blood tests. They’ll see if the numbers are better. Meanwhile, the doctor is conferring with other specialists to see if they have any suggestions for alternative treatments that have worked well for them or if they’ve ever run into this weird result during therapy.”

“That’s positive, right? I love that he’s not stuck in one possible path. If the chemo isn’t working, he’ll have to change the plan. I bet he comes back with something that’s going to kick cancer’s ass.”

Tiffanie lifted her hands and crossed her fingers. Please let that happen.

“In the meantime, you’re having fun with Phineas. He looks to me like an amazing Daddy,” Essie said, studying Tiffanie’s face carefully.

“Daddy? Did Phineas tell you?” Adrenaline spiked through Tiffanie. Phineas hadn’t gossiped about her being Little, had he?

“Whoa, Tiffanie. Sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned anything. Phineas hasn’t talked to me about you. I just figured that you had a Little side.”

“Why? Because I’m weak and needy?”

“No,” Essie said, shaking her head to deny that claim. “Because I’m totally selfish. I am, and I guess I invented signs you were Little, hoping I could have a friend.”

Staring at the carpet, Essie appeared completely defeated, as if she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her. Tiffanie could only guess at the turmoil that had to be happening inside Essie’s mind. Gathering her courage, Tiffanie admitted, “I’ve never been Little before.”

“Really?” Essie’s shoulders straightened slightly as she met Tiffanie’s gaze.

“Phineas wants me to call him Daddy. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“I didn’t either when Zander asked me the same thing. I’d read some books, but I didn’t really believe this could be real life.”

“Me neither,” Tiffanie said and hesitated before adding, “I don’t know anything about being a Little friend, but I think I might like that.”

“I guess we can figure how this Little lifestyle works together,” Essie suggested.

“We can.” Tiffanie smiled at Essie, sure their relationship had changed forever. She’d always viewed Essie as more than just a boss, but now, exploring such a personal part of themselves would deepen the bond between them.

“No more work for today.” Ivan’s voice interrupted them. “It looks like you had a productive meeting. Now it’s time for Tiffanie to rest.”

Tiffanie rolled her eyes at Essie, but inside she was glad to have him give her an excuse to knock off for the day. Suddenly, she was exhausted. “I’ll chat with you later, Essie.”

“Definitely,” Essie said. When Ivan turned to leave, Essie met Tiffanie’s gaze and mouthed, “Daddy?” bobbing her head toward Ivan as he disappeared into the foyer.

“You might be right about that, Essie,” Tiffanie answered, confident Ivan was too far away to hear her.

“Right about what?” Ivan asked, reappearing in the doorway.

“About putting red tablecloths on the tables for the Knowledge Fair,” Tiffanie answered quickly.

“You can handle all those details later. But my carvings would show up best on dark blue or black,” Ivan said.

“Dark blue is a great suggestion, Ivan,” Tiffanie said, agreeing with him as she walked across the room. “I wish I’d thought of that.” She met Essie’s gaze and winked.

After grabbing her bag containing Biff and her notes, she wrapped her hand around Ivan’s upper arm and let him bolster her balance as they walked out to the truck. Yawning, she collapsed into the passenger seat and squeezed her stuffie to her chest. Who would believe she made her first Little friend and spent the night with her Daddy in less than twenty-four hours?

Chapter Thirteen

“How’s she doing?” Phineas asked at the door of the carriage house.

Ivan shook his head. “She wouldn’t eat anything for me tonight. Do you want to see if you can convince her?”

“I can try. I don’t suppose you’d go grab a beer and leave me alone with her for a couple of hours?”

“If you think she’ll eat for you, I’ll pack a bag for Timbuktu.”