Page 78 of Temporarily in Love

“My mom said there’s leftover pizza.”

“Works for me.”

Lila took the buckets of candy into the kitchen with her while Cora and I went into the living room. We popped on a Halloween cartoon special and sat together. She snuggled into me, and something reached out and pulled at my heartstrings. She might be a little interrogator, but she was a cute kid.

Lila walked back into the living room and handed me a plate of pizza. She sat on the other side of us. Cora had fallen asleep nestled into my side, and I tried not to spill pizza on the top of her head. Man, being a parent seemed exhausting.

“I think she stole my man,” Lila joked. “Oh jeez, this special does not hold up!”

“It’s a classic!” I argued.

“It looks so old!” she said with a laugh.

I laughed too because she was right.

She looked like she was going to say something else, but then the front door opened, and Brian and Kelsey walked in. Kelsey walked into the living room. She put a hand to her heart when she saw her daughter curled up next to me. Her eyes got all shiny.

Brian groaned. “Baby, no more tears tonight, okay?”

“It’s the hormones,” she hissed at him. “But look at them, so cute! Where’s Callie?”

Lila pointed upstairs. “I put her up in their room.”

Brian picked up Cora and held her in his arms. “Thanks for taking them tonight. I owe you.”

Lila waved him away with her hand. “It was fun, I don’t mind. I had Dec to help corral them, but they were both good.”

Kelsey hugged her sister. “We appreciate it so much. It gave us time to have a little date night together.”

Brian and Kelsey left not long after that with their sleepy girls in tow.

Lila yawned after we finished watching the Halloween special.

“I should go. You seem tired,” I said, giving her thigh a little squeeze.

“You could stay. If you want?”

“Would your parents get weird about that?”

She shook her head. “Nah. Plus, we’re over thirty.”

I laughed. “Do you want me to stay over?”

She nodded. “I want to be wrapped up in your arms. Tonight has been perfect. I want to go to sleep knowing you’re there.”

I nodded. “Okay, love. Let’s go to bed then.”

She seemed melancholy tonight, and I wondered if she was getting sad about our time ending. She still hadn’t said when she was leaving, which was why I came out with her tonight. Although I had to admit, it was fun taking her nieces trick or treating. It made me nostalgic for my childhood. And for all the years we missed hanging out because we avoided each other after our breakup. I had missed my best friend so badly. I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle it when she left me again.

I followed Lila up to her childhood bedroom. I took off my cape, and she led me into the bathroom. She rubbed some sort of wipe across my face.

“OW!” I exclaimed.

She gave me a sympathetic smile. “Sorry, baby, this Halloween makeup seems like a bitch to get off. These make-up remover wipes should do the trick, though.” She rubbed my face until it felt raw, and then she gave me a kiss. “You’ll all good now. Next time, let me do it.”

Neither of us questioned that ‘next time’ because we both knew there would never be a ‘next time.’ After she washed off her makeup and we brushed our teeth, we crawled into bed together.

“Seriously, will your dad come at me with a bat if he finds us asleep in here?” I asked.