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Skye waved her hand. “They were just leftover scraps from damaged items.”
“Where’s Amelia?”
“Left about ten minutes ago,” Tess said, looking between Ryker and me, lips pressed firmly together. I could tell she had a million questions, and Avery was the only reason she wasn’t firing away. Ah, what I wouldn’t give to hear them quiz Ryker later.
“Avery, we have to go,” I said.
“But I’m not done with the glitter.”
“It’s late, sweetheart.”
“You can take the glitter bottle and the rest of the fabric with you. I’ll put them in a box,” Tess offered. Avery looked at her as if she’d hung the moon.
I helped Avery into her jacket while Tess packed the box. When she handed it to Avery, she clutched it in her arms as if it was her most prized possession.
“You know what, I think I’ll stay out for a while longer,” Natasha said, beaming. “Unless you need me to come with you?”
“We’re good. Thanks a lot, Natasha.”
“I’ll order an Uber,” Ryker said. I wasn’t even going to ask again that he not come with us. And honestly, I wanted to spend more time with him.
“Can we go with the train?” Avery asked, looking between the two of us. Ryker deferred to me.
“Why not? The car isn’t much faster.”
The train was as full as expected on a Friday evening, but we still managed to secure three seats.
“Mom, did you like the movie?” Avery asked.
I didn’t want to disappoint my daughter... but I also didn’t want to lie to her.
Ryker must have noticed my dilemma, because he answered for me. “We made progress. But I’ll have to show her a few more before we win her over to our side.”
“Ooooh. Can I spend time with Amelia or Tess and Skye when you take Mom to the movies?”
“If you want to.” Ryker sounded a little too pleased. He looked at me over Avery’s head, winking. “So, what other movies do you think I should take your mom to?”
Avery tapped one finger against her chin, the way I did it when I was deep in thought, before launching into a debate with Ryker. I just watched them, unable to get a word in—I honestly had no clue what they were talking about. Ryker was out of his depth too when it came to movies outside of the superhero genre, but he covered it well.
He wasn’t one bit condescending or looking for a way out of the conversation.
“You think Mommy is listening to us?” Avery asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“Don’t think so,” Ryker replied playfully before lowering his mouth to Avery’s ear, holding a hand in front of his mouth as he whispered something.
“Yes,” Avery declared, giggling.
“Hey, I want to know what’s going on,” I protested.
Ryker shook his head. “Nah, we still have to keep our secrets.”
“Ryker, I have a science fair on Thursday,” Avery said. “Do you want to come?”
I froze. Damn, I didn’t see this coming. Avery was shy, usually didn’t like anyone else watching her except me. Ryker looked as stunned as I felt, but before I could come up with a smart way to answer, he said, “Sure. I’ll talk about the details with your mom, but I’ll be there.”
There was no stopping that dangerous train of thought I’d embarked on at the restaurant, even though I was a little worried that Ryker had felt obligated to say yes. Was this too much? What was I thinking; of course it was. I had to offer him a way out before the night was over.
That worry intensified when we entered the apartment. The reality of single motherhood might put him off. I was a little jittery as I spoke next.
