Page 26 of Resisting the Fall

“Yeah, right. We’ll take you for as long as you can stay. Penny hasn’t stopped talking about your visit since I told her you were coming.”

I stepped through the door behind Carson. “I’m guessing she’s already asleep?”

“Unfortunately. She has school in the morning, so I told her she’d have to wait to see you until⁠—”

“Aunt Maven!”

I barely had time to set down my violin case before my favorite child in this world came bounding into my arms. I twirled her around, then set my pajama-clad niece down and kissed the top of her head. “Look how much you’ve grown! Again.” I shook my head and looked at my brother. “Didn’t we agree Penny needs to stay little forever?”

“We did.” Carson sent his daughter a playfully stern look. “Just like I told her she needed to go to sleep. An hour ago.”

Her big green eyes blinked up at her dad, framed by honey-blond hair. “I tried. I was just too excited to see Aunt Maven.”

“Awww.” I put a hand to my chest. “You can’t blame her for that.”

His brow lifted accusingly. “Can I blame you?”

“For being the most hype aunt ever? Sure.”

Carson shook his head.

“Come on.” Penny grabbed my hand, clearly realizing we’d won this round. “I want to show you our room.”

Our room. I loved that! When Carson had told me he and Penny were moving back to Autumn Ridge and would live with my mom, I insisted Penny take my old room. There were too many memories between those four walls anyway, and the fresh start would hopefully prove to be exactly what we both needed.

“Wow.” I stopped in the doorway, allowing my eyes to take in all the changes. “It looks amazing!”

“Dad painted the walls pink and bought me a new bedspread.”

“New curtains too, I see. And look at that fun hammock chair!” I carefully situated myself on the knitted fabric. “I’m super jealous. I always wanted one of these.”

“Don’t be jealous,” Penny said, coming to stand beside me. “While you’re staying at Nana’s, you get to sleep in here, so you can sit in it whenever you want.”

“That’s so sweet of you.” I pinned Carson with a look. “But I already told your dad I was going to sleep on the futon in the office.”

Carson shrugged. “I mentioned that, but it seems she also inherited that strong will of yours.”

Penny gave a proud smile. “And Dad said I could sleep in his bed tonight.”

I glanced between the pair of them, feeling like I couldn’t disappoint Penny. “Fine. But just for tonight. Tomorrow I’m sleeping in the office.”

Carson glanced at his watch, then at his daughter. “Speaking of sleep, say goodnight to your aunt. You need to go to bed.”

Penny’s frown almost made me undermine my brother’s parenting a second time, but I held my tongue. Instead, I reached out my hands toward her. “What if tomorrow morning before school, I braid your hair in one of those side braids you love?”

Penny threw her arms around my neck as her answer.

I squeezed her back. “Goodnight, Sweet P.”

“Night, Aunt Maven.”

After Penny had disappeared through the doorway, Carson leaned a shoulder against it, his gaze fixed on me.

“What?” I asked, mindlessly swinging the hammock with my feet.

“How are you doing? Honestly.”

I glanced down at my hands, taking a minute to sort through my tangled thoughts. “I just don’t understand why Ben is being so… difficult. I mean, I know I was the one who insisted we file for divorce in Vermont, but now, when there’s a way out of this absurd court order Judge Rost is forcing on us, he won’t take it.”