“You guys want to come sleep with me until morning?” Laura asked, patting the bed beside her. Both kids grinned and jumped into the queen-sized bed, snuggling up on either side of their older sister. One sibling under each arm, they both sighed with contentment as Laura turned off the light. The nightmares never followed them into Laura's bed, and if they did, Laura was there to keep them safe. That was Laura's job.
Laura had no doubt that they had nightmares. She had them almost every night herself. If she had someone bigger and stronger to snuggle up with after waking up, she would have gone running just like they did. To be honest, she rather liked having them with her. They kept her safe from the nightmares.
Dallas was back asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow and the light was off. He had his butt pressed into Laura's hip and his arms wrapped around Finn, the stuffed dog. Ivy usually took a little bit longer to go back to sleep.
Laura shook her head as she found a comfortable position. They should just start all going to bed with her in the first place. They kids ended up here every night anyway. It would probably give them all better sleep that way.
“Laura, were you dreaming?” Ivy whispered in the dark.
“Yeah, I was,” Laura answered. “Why?”
“You were mumbling and smiling. Were you dreaming of Ethan from Mia's fundraiser last month?” Ivy asked. “You said his name. What were you dreaming about?”
Laura felt her cheeks heat and was glad it was too dark for her sister to see. There was no way she was going to tell her innocent little sister that she had been dreaming about the one-night-stand she'd had with the guy a year and a half ago. Nope.
“I don't really remember the dream,” Laura lied, shifting her weight slightly. She remembered the dream vividly. She remembered him from that night perfectly. She also remembered how he had his secretary tell her he never wanted to see her again. “And I wasn't dreaming about Ethan. You probably heard wrong.”
“If you say so,” Ivy said with a shrug. She yawned. “I liked Ethan. He was nice.”
Laura nearly sat up. “When did you meet Ethan?”
“At Mia's fundraiser,” Ivy replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “He helped you look for Dallas when he got lost. Remember?”
Laura needed more sleep. “You're right. I forgot that you met him during that.”
Laura relaxed. Ivy didn't know Ethan from her one-night-stand. She knew him because her little brother Dallas got lost with another little boy at a fundraiser for the ranch Laura worked at a little over a month ago. The two boys had followed a dog out into a snowstorm. The entire ranch shut down to find him.
Ethan had helped her look for her brother. She was surprised he'd done it, given that he supposedly hated her. He was with her when they got the news the boys had been found, safe and sound.
She purposefully pushed the rest of the memory away. Especially the part where she'd kissed him at hearing the news. It was a stupid thing to do. She still couldn't believe she'd done it. She told herself it was all just the emotion of the moment. Hopefully, he did too.
Ivy sat straight up, bumping Laura's shoulder in the process and keeping them both from sleep. Ivy looked around, panic filling her small frame.
“Where is it?” she whispered, pulling at the sheets. Her breath came in tiny gasps.
“Where is what, Ivy?” Laura asked, sitting up. “Don't wake up Dallas.”
“Dad's shirt!” Ivy wailed, pulling at the comforter. “I can't find it!”
“You had it two seconds ago,” Laura replied. She felt around on the bed and quickly discovered the t-shirt Ivy now used as a security blanket. “You were laying on it.”
“Oh.” Ivy scooped it from Laura's hands and held it up to her face, breathing in the scent of it. It was just an old t-shirt their dad used to wear. There was nothing special about it, other than the fact that it had belonged to him. Ivy had found it in the laundry after he died and started using it as a security blanket. She couldn't sleep without it now.
“Does it still smell like him?” Laura asked. Her throat tightened with the question. It had only been about ten months since the plane accident that killed their parents. Just thinking about them still hurt. She wondered if it would ever stop hurting.
“A little,” Ivy replied. “It's starting to go away, though.”
Laura's heart broke a little. She sounded so sad and resigned. A seven-year-old shouldn't have to know this kind of pain, Laura thought. To be honest, a twenty-five-year-old shouldn't have to know this sort of pain.
“I know where his cologne is,” Laura said after a moment. “We can spray some on it tomorrow. That way it will still smell like him.”
“I'd like that,” Ivy murmured, sleep finally pulling at her. “I don't want to forget them.”
“We won't ever forget them,” Laura promised, smoothing the girl's hair as Ivy snuggled closer into her. “Never ever.”
“Good,” Ivy whispered, her voice trailing off as she found sleep again.
But now, Laura was awake. She couldn't help but think of her parents. As soon as she closed her eyes, she saw the pictures of the wreckage from her parents' flight. It was just a small private plane, but the crash had killed the two of them and the pilot instantly in the mountains.