Page 76 of Picking Daisies on Sundays

The last time I watched Levi cut into a strawberry shortcake was when I turned eighteen. He made me one for every birthday I had in high school. It was like déjà vu watching him now. Only this time he was taller and the muscles in his arms under his T-shirt were toned.

The girls gathered chocolate and popcorn for themselves while Levi handed me a (huge) piece of cake. It only took seconds for me to eat it all. “That wasincredible. I can die happy now.” Claire giggled at my comment. “Rhea, what movie are we watching tonight?”

“I don’t know, Levi picks the movies. He has to make sure they’re appropriate first,” she responded.

Slowly, I turned to Levi and threw a strawberry at him. “You liar!”

He laughed, catching the strawberry before it could hit him. “What! I take movie night very seriously!”

“It sounds like you’re questioning my taste in movies.”

“I definitely am.”

“Jerk,” I said with a laugh.

Moving into the living room, I panicked when realizing I hadn’t planned for this: seating arrangements. This was a moment I didn’t know I needed to be concerned about until it arrived. Should I be sitting close to him? Would the girls think it was weird if I wasn’t since they think we’re dating?

I sat down on the couch before he could—I shouldn’t be allowed to make this decision. But it seems like he didn’t have a chance to either because Claire sat on my left and Rhea sat on my right, both of them clutching numerous toys and candy.

“Guys, can we let Dani breathe a bit?” he asked when he

walked in and found them both beside me.

They responded to him with pouty lips. “Give her a little bit of room at least,” he said. The girls each moved about an inch away from me. I laughed, “It’s alright, don’t worry.”

He sighed and sat down on the other side of Claire, and rifled through the movies, listing off ones they could pick from that were appropriate.The Princess Diarieswon. And when it ended, they begged him to play the second. He gave me an unsure look, so I clicked play on the second.

Thirty minutes in and Rhea’s head felt heavier under my arm and Claire’s posture became slouched, slowly falling into Levi’s lap. The scene where Mia and Nicholas were in front of the fountain began—

“Hey!” I angrily whispered at him for pausing the movie.

“What?” he whispered back.

“This is my favorite part. You can turn it off after.” I took the remote and resumed it.

Mia and Nicholas were fighting and then suddenly, they stop talking for just a moment, and Nicholas pulls Mia forward with his hand behind her head and kisses her.Reallykisses her. Every fiber of his being was being put in this kiss. My shoulders sagged with relief and I could feel the blood from heart traveling through my body. His arms around her, her hair in his face, and her leg pops up, right before she pulls away and they trip backwards into the fountain.

I click the TV off and look at Levi to say, “Now wasn’t that worth it?” But he was already turning away from me, lifting Claire into his arms. She was wrapping her delicate arms around his neck and her legs around him like a koala bear.

“I’ll come back for her in a second,” he said, walking away.

I looked down at Rhea. Her small lips were parted, releasing tiny snores. Her bangs were all over the place and popcorn was in both of our laps. The various toys filling the space on the couch was laughable. Picking the pieces of popcorn off us and dropping them into the bowl, I lifted her up into my arms, careful not to wake her.

I went up the stairs to where Levi had gone and found him in the room furthest down the hall, tucking Claire into bed. His head turned swiftly, like any movement around them had to be accounted for.

“Thank you,” he whispered, taking Rhea out of my arms. She immediately clung to him, like she could recognize the sound of his voice even when asleep.

I watched as he tucked her into the bed across from Claire, and led us out of the room, leaving the door open a crack. Levi looked tired; his shoulders were rolled forward, and his eyes were half closed as we walked down the stairs and into the living room. He fell onto the couch with a groan. I fell beside him. His face was clouded with worry but also with sleepiness as he stared up at the ceiling like it was singing him lullabies. How often was he here taking care of the girls after work? How often were there messes being made that had to be cleaned?

We were surrounded by toys. I began tossing them into the basket across the room, the sound jolting him. He sits up and watches me.

“You’re pretty good,” he says.

“It’s those softball skills,” I responded with a wink hoping to make him laugh. He does. It makes me smile.

He grabs a stuffed bear and tosses it.

“Oh my gosh, you suck,” I laughed.