Oracle's Moon (Elder Races #4)(21)

“I was not bribing them.” He glared.

Her dimples disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. She said sternly, “What I say goes for anything that has to do with the kids. You may know a lot of things—and believe it or not, I mean this with respect—but you do not know human children well enough to know what’s good for them. If you have questions or concerns, you can talk to me telepathically or some time when they’re not around, so we don’t argue in front of them again and upset Chloe. That’s the only deal I will accept that involves the children.”

He sucked a tooth to avoid a sudden smile. She went from dejection to dictating in a matter of seconds. He approved. He also approved of her protectiveness for the little ones. “Agreed,” he said. “The connection is in place. You’ve already shown yourself to be proficient at…how did you say…yanking my chain. You may summon me at any time if you feel alarmed or in need. I will stop by some time tomorrow to begin collecting on my end of the bargain, so plan for my visit with the little ones. Now, go to bed.”

He lingered just long enough to watch for her reaction to his order. She sat very straight, and a sarcastic, angry look crossed her face. As she opened her mouth, he chuckled to himself and vanished.

Khalil might have a talent for rubbing Grace the wrong way, but she had to give him credit for one thing: once he disappeared after their talk, she was able to stretch out on the futon and fall asleep.

That didn’t last nearly long enough. Something squashed her nose.

Her eyes popped open. She stared into Chloe’s upside-down face as the girl hung over the end of the futon. Chloe was grinning. Her blonde hair stood around her head in a nimbus. Some might even compare it to an angel’s halo.

Grace knew better. She said groggily, “Pushing my wake-up button never gets old for you, does it?”

Chloe giggled and shook her head. She pushed Grace’s nose again with a forefinger. “Wakey, wakey, Gracie,” Chloe said. “When am I going to get a big-girl bed?”

Grace sighed. Chloe had a small toddler bed, which wouldn’t be suitable for much longer. She needed a regular twin-sized bed soon. “I’ve told you before, baby girl, we’ll get you a new bed as soon as we can afford one.”

“Yeah, but when will that be? I’m too big to sleep in a little bed anymore.”

“I know you are, honey,” Grace mumbled.

The only other beds in the house were upstairs. Grace had lived at home while she went to college, so she had a double bed in her bedroom, and the bed in Petra and Niko’s old room was a queen. Not only were those too big for Chloe, but they wouldn’t fit in the children’s downstairs bedroom. Maybe she could trade Chloe’s toddler bed to somebody for a twin-sized one. Petra’s friend Katherine ran a daycare. Katherine might know of someone who needed a toddler bed and was interested in a trade.

Grace put an arm around Chloe and hugged her while she looked at the window. The lace curtains still hung in a knot from Khalil’s furious entrance last night. Outside, the morning brightened past dawn, and birds were yelling at the top of their lungs. In Grace’s experience, early morning birds never sang. Instead, they bellowed. Grace had gotten perhaps five hours’ sleep. It was going to be another long day.

She asked, “Is Max awake?”

“Uh-huh,” Chloe said. “Can we have pancakes for breakfast?”

“If we do, will you eat the other half of Max’s banana?” Grace asked. Getting Chloe to eat fruits and vegetables was a constant challenge.

Chloe tilted her delicate jaw. “Bananas disturb me,” she said.

Grace burst out laughing. “Where on earth did you learn that?”

Clearly pleased with herself, Chloe grinned. “Pancakes, one bite of banana,” she offered, with a bargaining wiliness worthy of a Djinn.

“No, Chloe.”

“Fine! Ugh! You never let me have anything I want!” Chloe turned to stomp out of the office.

Grace called after her, “You’re getting pancakes, aren’t you?”

“Just wait until I’m big enough to push the grocery cart around!” Chloe shouted from the living room. “We’re never going to buy bananas again!”

Grace burst into a fresh peal of laughter. Chloe in a temper was a sight to behold.

Max was as sunny natured as his sister was tempestuous. Grace found him humming and burbling in his crib. “Eeeee!” he said happily when he saw her.

“Good morning to you too, sunshine,” she said. She changed his diaper then picked him up to kiss him all over his soft, round face. He giggled and threw his arms around her neck. She held him tight for a moment. Sometimes she felt like she couldn’t breathe for worrying about how she would take care of these kids. She felt too young and far too inadequate, but gods, she loved them with all of her heart.

In the kitchen, she settled Max into his high chair while Chloe climbed into her booster seat, the Lala Whoopsie doll dangling from one hand. Chloe set the doll on her lap and looked expectant. Grace peeled a banana, and Max’s eyes lit up. He had developed enough dexterity to pick up bites of food with his thumb and forefinger, so she cut up part of a banana and set it in a bowl in front of him. “Mmm,” he said delightedly and set to work.

When she set the other half of banana in front of Chloe, the little girl scowled. “Why can’t we have pancakes first?”