Her Name Was Annie by Beth Rinyu (the little red hen read aloud txt) 📕

call from outside. After letting him in, I picked up my phone, toying with the idea of calling Francesca to see if she had heard about it. I started to bring her up in my contacts and then stopped. She was enjoying Christmas with her daughter and grandson; I wasn’t going to ruin it by bringing up a bad memory from her past. So, I decided on a bubble bath and a glass of wine to try and decompress.

When I was younger, I’d head into a bathtub full of bubbles with a good book or a fashion magazine. These days, I opted for the sales circulars instead. Max lay on the cool tiles of the bathroom floor until my skin began to prune, and my bubbles faded away. I could’ve dealt with that and stayed in for a little while longer, but once the water chilled, I was out of there. I cocooned myself in the oversized towel, taking the few steps into my bedroom to change into clean pajamas, when I heard the front door open. Max bolted down the stairs, followed by the sweet little baby voice Kara would always use when greeting him. It was just about 9:00 p.m., and I was a little surprised, not expecting her home so early.

“I didn’t think you’d be home until a little later,” I greeted once I reached the bottom of the steps where Kara was sitting on the floor in the foyer, giving Max belly rubs.

She stood up and took off her coat. I jerked my head toward the closet she was standing right beside, reminding her to hang it up instead of just laying it down somewhere. “I wasn’t supposed to be.” She opened up the closet door and placed her coat on the hanger. “Until Dad called Ian into work.” She huffed. “I thought he was supposed to be in Florida, and next thing I know, he’s cutting Christmas short with some work emergency. He probably just figured Ian was with me and made something up.” She crossed her arms and pouted, resembling that five-year-old blond-haired, blue-eyed girl I remembered so distinctly.

“No, I don’t think that’s what he did.”

“Of course you’ll defend him.” Her voice trailed off as she strolled into the kitchen. I followed behind her, and she froze staring at the two half-eaten bowls of ramen noodles. “Who was eating ramen noodles? Not you.” She spun on her heels to face me. “You always get on my case for eating these,” she continued.

“Oh, umm…” I was floundering for words, once again feeling like I was in a role reversal, making up a lie to my mother after sneaking my boyfriend into the house. “Dad stopped over to surprise you. He left your present under the tree.” I was hoping that would be enough to divert her attention, causing her to rush to the living room to see what it was, but she wasn’t falling for it. “He was hungry, so I made him some noodles.”

“And you had some too? Remember your spiel about all the sodium…blah, blah, blah!”

I shrugged. “Well, it’s Christmas. You’re allowed to live a little on the edge one day a year.”

“With ramen noodles? What’s next, Mom? Skydiving?”

“Will you just be quiet?” I demanded, dumping the noodles into the trash, then putting the bowls into the dishwasher. “How was your day with Ian’s family?” Her face lit up, and if I had known that was the key to get off the dreaded noodle topic, I would’ve used it when she first walked in.

“Do you know they have horses? Their property sits on twelve acres. It’s absolutely beautiful.” Kara and horses. She took riding lessons as a child and always wanted a horse of her own. The closest she ever came to one was the oversized stuffed one Jack found at some feed and seed store. The thing was so big, it hardly fit through the door.

“Oh, wow. You must’ve been in heaven.”

“They were really nice people. He has an older brother and a baby niece who is just the cutest!”

“Sounds like you had a good day!” I smiled.

“It was. Did you have a good day?” she asked. I had sensed a little guilt in her tone.

“Oh yeah! I spent the morning with Pop, then I came home and relaxed.”

“With Dad?” she asked.

“What?” My voice rose an octave. “No!” I vehemently shook my head. “He came over to drop off your present. I made him something to eat, and as you can tell he didn’t even get a chance to finish when he got the call.” I hated lying to her.

“Okay.” She smirked with a hint of amusement in her eyes. “I’m going to get in my pajamas, then let’s watch a Christmas movie.”

There was nothing I wanted more. I was going to get to spend some time with my most favorite person on earth. It may not have been the Christmas I had planned, but overall it wasn’t so bad after all.

Chapter 32

IT HAD BEEN much too long since my best friend, Julie, and I had gotten together for Sunday brunch. Being that Valentine’s Day was coming up in the next few days, and neither of us technically had a valentine to spend it with, we decided to be each other’s dates and celebrate a few days early. What I didn’t know was she included Colleen and Shelly, two girls we went to school with, who were always much better friends with Julie than me. In fact, I never really cared for them much. They always came off as snobs back in high school, and the few times I’d been forced to be in their company since, much hadn’t seemed to change.

“So, you’re leaving for Cali on Thursday! I’m so jealous!” Julie beamed as she took a sip of her mimosa. I was happy the mean girls were running late because it gave me time to catch up with Julie. I had filled her in over the phone about my impromptu trip