Page 63 of Fighting Chance

Her head is shoved into the large bag overflowing with tissue paper. She pulls out teddies of all different shapes and sizes and…

My brows furrow as I lean forward. “Are those marshmallows?”

Allie’s eyes light up. “They’re Jellycats!”

“A Jelly…what?”

Carlton leans into my side, discreetly whispering under his breath, “Pretend you know, otherwise she’ll go on a rampage.”

My eyes widen slightly as I click my fingers. “Oh, you said a Jellycat? Of course, the…the um…”

Carlton coughs into his fist. “Teddy bear company.”

“…Teddy bear company that makes…”

Allie stares at us, unamused. “They make teddies of…well, everything!” She chuckles as Emmy digs through the bag, her dimples making an appearance as she pulls out a pancake stack plushie with three blueberries on top. She squishes it to her chest, her cheeks so puffy with her smile I wonder if it’s hurting her.

“You’ve outdone yourself, dear,” Carlton praises as Emmy tries to hug all the teddies at once. He faces me. “I’d love to say I contributed but I tried picking out a toy and Allie swatted my hand away.”

“You wanted to buy her a drum set.”

“What’s wrong with that? Drum sets are fun! And this one had pink flames.”

“I don’t think Kieran wants us to give Emmy a present that would drive him mad,” she deadpans.

“Thanks, Allie.” I chuckle. “Yeah, the drums…probably a good call not getting them. I have a permanent headache as it is.”

Carlton just winks. “Headphones.”

I laugh at his persistence as I turn my attention back to Emmy, opening another present. This one has her confused,spinning it around. I look around her to see what it is and find a makeup and hair bag for little girls.

“So you can do your hair and makeup,” Allie whispers. “We can play dress-up and princesses.”

Rubbing a hand down my face, I can’t help but laugh again. “Layla is going to take one look at that and convince Emmy to put it on me.”

Allie’s eyes snap to me, her brow quirking. “Layla? Bella’s best friend?”

“That’s the one.”

I clear my throat, trying to move the topic along because Allie is like a dog with a bone; she knows when I’m hiding something and the last thing I need is her meddling. If she finds out I’ve been thinking about her for nearly a year and a half, she won’t stop until I’m confessing my feelings.

“What’s your favorite Jellycat?” I blurt.

Her eyes narrow. “Kieran, do?—”

“You should see her collection,” Carlton jumps in for me, and I’m beyond grateful. “She has an entire shelf at home for them, calls them her babies.”

“They are my babies.”

Carlton just smiles. “Of course, dear.” Leaning into me, he whispers, “I’m scared one of them is going to go all Chucky and Annabelle on us and murder us in our sleep.”

Allie rears back. “Honey! They would never! Chucky and Annabelle are atrociously ugly. My Jellycats are adorable.”

“You own one that looks like a mole-rat, dear.”

“Adorable ugly is a thing, Carlton.”

Now that Carlton has taken the heat off me, I peer over Emmy’s shoulder. She’s opened a teddy that’s shaped like a macaron but it has bunny ears and a little white tail. “That one’s cute, Em. What should we name it?”