Author's note: Happy Saturday! Here is a great Everlark chapter, but an even better one is going to come your way next week. Look at the bottom for a preview of what's coming up. :)
Many thanks to my beta JavisTG!
Happy reading!
Chapter Twenty-Two
Sam watched in wonder as Peeta finished piping purple roses onto the cake in front of him with precision. "That's so cool!" Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Peeta chuckled. "Glad you think so." He held out the piping bag. "You wanna try?"
She shook her head. "No, that's okay."
"I want to try!" Becca said from the other side of the table.
"Come on over." Peeta held out the piping bag and helped settle Becca on the stool he had been sitting on. He helped guide Becca's small hand to make a flower. "Great job, Becca!" He looked toward Sam. "Change your mind?"
Sam considered it a moment and then nodded. She took the spot Becca had vacated and let Peeta guide her hands. The flower was wobbly, but didn't look too bad.
"Can I go next, Daddy?" Callie asked at his elbow.
Peeta allowed Callie a turn.
"Whose is best?" Callie asked as soon as Peeta sat the bag aside.
"They all three look great." He said with a proud smile before he pressed a kiss to the top of Callie's head.
Peeta's phone rang and he stepped away from the girls, discussing whose was actually the best, to answer. "Hi, Katniss."
"Hi, Peeta." She said breathily. "Are my girls behaving?"
"They're doing great! They just helped me finish up decorating a cake."
"Good." She paused. "So we've got it all figured. Everything is final."
"That's good, right?" He asked.
"Yeah, it's great." Katniss let out a sigh. "Gale is going to come to see the girls a bit. But I'd like my daughters and me to go out to dinner with you and Callie."
"That'll be fun, yeah." Peeta turned to where the three girls were taking turns licking the frosting out of the bowl he'd mixed the color in. "I'll make sure they're not covered in frosting."
"Thank you. We'll be there in a few minutes." She hung up the phone
Peeta turned to the girls. "Okay, you three, go to the bathroom and get cleaned up. Sam and Becca, your parents are on their way."
"Both of them?" Sam asked, her eyes wide.
Peeta nodded. "Yep. They'll be here in a few minutes. Go get the frosting off." He watched them all go and then put the cake in the fridge. He'd clean up the flowers later.
Conrad walked in from the main room of the bakery. "Everything's cleaned up. You are free to leave as soon as that cake is done."
"It's mostly done. I let the girls each do a flower." Peeta leaned in and whispered, "They can be cleaned up in less than five minutes."
Conrad chuckled. "You're really good with them."
"Thanks." Peeta said, feeling his face heat up a little.
Sam came running out of the bathroom with her hair soaked. "Becca and Callie are getting water everywhere."
Peeta sighed. "Go to the house and ask Cara for a towel to dry off." He walked into the bathroom to find the giggling girls and water all over the floor and themselves. He shut off the faucet. "It's a good thing you both wear the same size clothes. To the house."
He quickly sopped up the water, listening as his father ushered everyone out the back door.
"Oh, hi, Katniss." Conrad said cheerfully. "The girls got into a bit of a water fight."
Peeta heard Katniss heave a sigh.
Becca said, "I'm gonna borrow some of Callie's clothes."
Peeta walked into the other room, holding all the wet rags. "Hey. Sorry. I told them to clean up and they…" He twitched his head toward the back.
Katniss shook her head. "Go change. Your dad wants to talk to you."
Conrad offered, "He can come inside to wait." He ushered the girls out.
Peeta sat the wet rags in the bin with the other dirty clothes. "I have to finish cleaning this up." He turned and she followed.
She grabbed his hand and wrapped her arms around him. "I'm so grateful for you."
He returned her embrace and kissed the top of her head. "I'm here for you. All the time. Whatever you need."
She looked up. "I never…" She sighed and rested her forehead against his shoulder. "I'm not married anymore. I'm not a part of the Hawthorne family. I'm just Katniss now."
He gently scratched her back. "I know it's going to be different for a while. But my family will gladly have you here whenever you need it or want it." He pulled back. "Guess what?"
"What?"
"I put an offer in on a house. I'm waiting for a call to see if I was accepted."
"That's awesome! Congratulations!" She pressed herself up and kissed him.
She meant it to be quick, but neither of them pulled away. She opened her mouth to him and he slipped his tongue inside, pulling her even closer. A million memories of all their lives crashed through his mind. His lips buzzed. His whole body felt like it was a live wire. He figured if he looked at his fingertips, they would have lightning bolts shooting from them.
She broke the kiss and leaned back against the wall. "Well, that was something."
He smiled and leaned against the opposite wall. "It was." He chuckled. "What do you think sex is like?"
Katniss laughed and pushed off from the wall. "I can't wait to find out." She picked up some paper towels and finished sopping up the water.
"But we will. If you're not ready." Peeta offered as they walked out of the bathroom with the last of the rags.
"It's just…" She paused as they stepped out of the bakery and she saw Gale kneeling in front of Sam and Becca. "It feels too soon."
He slipped his hand into hers and kissed her knuckles. "I'll lock up here."
"Then we'll go get something to eat." She started to step away, but he stopped her.
"You look nice, by the way. Green suits you." He turned away.
Katniss felt the grin grow on her face at Peeta's compliment. She walked over to where Gale stood with the girls.
"So nothing changes." Gale was explaining as Katniss got within earshot. "You'll finish out your week with your mom and then you'll come have your week with me."
Becca wrapped her arms around Gale's neck. "You'll be okay, Daddy."
Gale laughed and kissed her cheek. "I know. And so will you." He wrapped his arm around Sam's waist. "And we'll all get to celebrate Sam's birthday in a couple weeks."
"It's okay if we're all together?" Sam asked, looking anxiously between her parents.
"Of course." Katniss smoothed her hand over Sam's hair. "You guys okay?"
Sam nodded and wrapped her arms around Gale. "Daddy said nothing's gonna change."
"And nothing will." Gale promised.
"But what about Madge and Peeta?" Sam asked. Her voice was uneasy.
Peeta had paused beside them, but continued on without a word.
Katniss dropped down. "Right now, Peeta and I are friends. And maybe eventually it will be more. If it ever makes you uncomfortable, you tell me and I will try all I can to make you comfortable again. But I love Peeta."
"And do you love Madge, Daddy?" Becca asked.
Gale nodded. "I love her very much."
Katniss sighed and stood. "I'll give you guys a few more minutes alone, okay?" She patted Gale's back before she walked into the house.
Peeta stood just inside the door waiting. "Is everything okay?"
She smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her face into his neck. "I want to be alone with you."
"I can carve out a few minutes." He murmured in her ear.
She shook her head and looked up at him. "Want to come home with us tonight?"
"I don't want to stay." He whispered. "That doesn't feel right."
"And you don't have to." Katniss swallowed. She opened her mouth to say something else, but was interrupted by the door opening.
Becca and Sam came inside, pausing to wave at Gale.
"We'll talk later." Katniss said.
Becca held up her arms to Katniss. "Will you pick me up, Mama?"
Katniss smiled and lifted her daughter up. "Not going to be able to do this for much longer. You're getting so big."
A short time later, Peeta had bustled everyone out the door and they headed toward the local Chinese buffet. Katniss and Peeta held hands underneath the table. Callie and Becca talked rapid-fire to each other. Sam rolled her eyes and focused really hard on trying to figure out her chopsticks.
Katniss leaned close and murmured, "I think Gale and Madge have advanced their relationship."
"What makes you think that?" Peeta whispered.
"She was there today." Katniss glanced toward Sam who was now engaged in a conversation with her sister. "And just the way they looked at each other…"
Peeta squeezed Katniss's hand. "Are you okay?"
"It's his life." Katniss sighed.
"It is. But you have been part of it for so long."
"Well, I'm not anymore." Katniss pulled her hand out of Peeta's. "Hey, Callie, did Becca ever tell you about how good she is at shooting a bow and arrow?"
Callie nodded. "I asked my daddy if I could learn too, but he said no."
"It seems a little dangerous." Peeta said apologetically.
"We started out with soft tips until she got the hang of it and none of the arrows fell." Katniss explained. "It is dangerous if you start too soon and don't stress safety first."
"Well, if you're the expert, maybe you could give Cal a couple lessons." Peeta said with a sideways grin.
Callie's eyes widened. "Could you?"
Katniss laughed. "I think we can figure something out." She winked.
As they finished their meal and melted into safer topics, an inkling of an idea started forming in Katniss's mind.
Becca and Callie went to play in Becca's room the second they were through the door. Sam looked between Peeta and Katniss and then wandered into her room mumbling something about finishing a book.
"You want to sit?" Katniss asked clutching her hands together nervously.
"Sure." Peeta took her hand and pulled her to the couch.
Katniss looked down toward the hall and then curled up against his side. "I don't want to upset them." She said softly as she turned on the TV.
"I get that." He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "But I really like when I get be close to you like this."
"I like it too. Even when our skin isn't touching, I feel recharged." She took his hand that draped over her shoulder and slipped her fingers through his. "So they helped you decorate a cake, huh?"
"Yeah, they helped me pipe on some roses." He nuzzled her hair. "Sam asked me to make her birthday cake."
"Did she?" Katniss smiled to herself. "She's really warming up to you."
"She is. I like spending time with your kids. I like spending time with you." He moved from underneath her. "We've been talking a while about going on an actual date, but you keep making excuses. Brushing me off."
"Not because I wanted to—"
"I know." He cupped his hands around her face. "Please promise me, though, that you'll agree to go on a date with me. A real one."
"Okay. Next week. When Sam and Becca are with their dad. We'll go on a date."
"Thank you." He leaned in and pressed a kiss to her lips. "It's starting to get late. Cal and I should go."
Katniss scrunched up her face. "Too bad." She leaned in and whispered, "I was hoping you could hang out long enough for the girls to fall asleep and then we could make out."
Peeta laughed. "And here I was just hoping for a date." He pulled her in for a soft kiss. "I'll call you tomorrow." He stepped back and called for Callie.
"I'm not ready to go." Callie grumbled as she shuffled out of the room. "Can't I stay the night with Becca?"
"Not tonight, kiddo." Peeta handed over her coat. "Bye, Becca. Bye, Sam." He pulled on his coat and winked at Katniss. "See ya, Ruthie." He hesitated a moment before he kissed her cheek.
"Who's Ruthie?" Becca asked once the door shut.
Katniss laughed. "I am. I was." She wrapped an arm around Becca's shoulders. "Let's get you ready for bed." She kissed Becca's head and steered her down the hall.
Sam hovered in the hallway. "Mom, will you tell us about Ruthie?"
Katniss smiled and nodded. "Get your PJs on and I'll make us some hot chocolate. Then I'll tell you both the story." She tapped Becca's nose. "How about a slumber party in my room?"
Becca's eyes brightened. "Can we eat cookies?"
"We most certainly can." Katniss started the water on the stove and then gathered up all the cookies and chips that were left in the house. She always said they would cut back, but she had an addiction to salty things that especially reared its head once a month.
"Mom, is the hot chocolate ready?" Becca asked from the doorway.
Katniss smiled. "Almost. Come get the food and I'll be right behind you."
Sam and Becca gathered the junk food in their arms and scurried off to Katniss's bedroom. Katniss fixed up the cocoa and followed. She passed each of her girls a cup and then sat hers aside to change into her pajamas.
Katniss settled into the middle of the bed with her cup. "Soulmates find each other in different lives. Peeta and I knew each other in a bunch. And we remember them all in little bits and pieces. Memories that feel like they might be dreams."
"Like remembering something from when you're small?" Sam asked.
Katniss gave her daughter a proud smile. "Where did you get so smart?" She pressed a kiss to Sam's temple.
"I got smart parents." Sam said behind her cup.
Katniss chuckled. "Well, yes, it's like remembering something from when you're small. Except we were already grown and had a whole life behind us."
Sam asked, "And you were Ruthie once?"
"I was Ruthie." Katniss answered, taking a sip form her cup. "A long time ago, she was a young woman who lived in a big city."
"If you were Ruthie, who was Peeta?" Sam asked, leaning her head on her mother's shoulder.
"He was a young woman named Helen. She was from a rich family with lots of plans for Helen. But Helen met Ruth and Helen decided she didn't want those plans anymore."
"How old were they?" Becca asked.
"Ruth was sixteen when she met Helen. Helen was nineteen." Katniss said. "They loved each other."
"They were lesbians." Becca said, proud of herself for such a big word.
Katniss laughed. "Where did you hear that word?"
Becca looked slightly offended. "Maggie Odair says her Aunt Jo and Aunt Cressida are lesbians. It's when two girls love each other."
Katniss nodded. "That's exactly what it means."
"When was it?" Sam asked. "When Helen and Ruth met?"
"It was 1923." Katniss recalled. "Helen was engaged to some rich man her parents wanted her to marry. But she loved Ruth. And they would meet in secret to drink illegal alcohol and dance and be in love."
"Well, what happened?" Sam asked. "Did they live happily ever after?"
Katniss shook her head and sipped her hot chocolate. "Helen married the man anyway. Because her parents wanted her to. And he took her away."
"Were you sad, Mama?" Becca asked, tears forming in her eyes.
Katniss sighed. "I was very sad. I was so sad that I…" I stopped eating.
"What happened to Ruth, Mom?" Sam asked.
"She died." Katniss said. "She never got to see Helen again."
"That's so sad." Becca said, wiping at her eyes.
"What happened to Helen?" Sam asked. "Was she happy?"
"I never asked Peeta. I don't know." But she had asked him once. He said when Helen got word that Ruth had died, she'd jumped off a bridge. Not a very happy story in the slightest.
"Were any of them happy?" Sam asked.
Katniss wrapped an arm around Sam's shoulder. "We came over on the Mayflower together. We met on the boat and got married there. And then we had a very happy life together in the New World." Not entirely true, but both of them had survived the first winter, so that was something.
Katniss told her daughters edited versions of some of the happier lives until both girls were asleep. Katniss lay between them, feeling the breathing. She let it soothe her to sleep.
She dreamed of Helen and Ruth dancing the night away.
Preview for Chapter 23!
Peeta smoothed his hand over his hair as he walked up to the front steps of Katniss's house. He raised his hand to knock, but the door flew open.
Katniss laughed. "Sorry. I've never been on a real date before, I'm a little anxious."
He smiled confidently. "Well, I'm here." He held out the bouquet of flowers made out of cookies. "The gentleman in me wanted to bring flowers, but the baker in me said cookies."
She laughed again. "Thank you. I'll go put them in a glass of milk."
He let out a guffaw. "That's a good one."
"Come in. I'll get my purse." She stepped back.
Peeta followed her inside. Katniss wore the same green shirt she'd worn the day at court. Did she only have green shirts or had she liked being complimented on it?
She put the cookies on a plate on the counter in the kitchen and then picked up her handbag from beside the door. "So where are we going?"
"It's a surprise." He held out his hand.
"I've never been a big fan of surprises." Katniss stopped beside his car.
Peeta smiled and opened the door for her. "You remember how I told you I was waiting to get a response for an offer I put in on a house?"
"Yeah?"
"It was accepted. I got the keys and had all the utilities turned on earlier this week."
She smiled and squeezed his arm. "That's so great! Congratulations!"
"Thanks." He took her hand in his. "I stocked up the kitchen a bit. I figured we could cook together. Kind of relax."
She let out a relieved breath. "I'm so glad." She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek and slid into the passenger seat.