Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46805 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 187(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46805 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 187(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
“Daddy. Come home. I want you to take care of me,” she whispered into the now quiet nursery.
CHAPTER 14
When the fresh food in the refrigerator had dwindled to a few apples and random staples like teriyaki sauce and mustard, Brooklyn debated what to eat that morning for breakfast. Remembering his treat for her at that first meal of apples and peanut butter, she headed for the pantry to grab the jar. “Oh, yeah, Fluffikins. Daddy told me to look in the pantry.”
She opened the door and froze. Inside was a large box with several smaller boxes stacked on top. Each was wrapped in different festive paper—birthday, Christmas, baby, Valentine’s Day, and turquoise blue. He’d remembered her favorite color!
How had Caden stashed these in here without her seeing? She tugged the pile out into the kitchen and sat on the floor. Was she supposed to open everything now? “He’s not going to be gone for all the holidays, is he?” Brooklyn asked Fluffikins, trying not to cry at that thought.
To cheer herself up, Brooklyn took a picture of her presents and posted it in the group chat with the other Littles. Excited comments followed as everyone demanded to know what she found inside. When she shared she hadn’t opened any, Pippa encouraged her to dive in. Giana wanted her to open the smallest one first and build up to the largest. She decided to do as Aspen suggested and to open one present a day.
After a long debate, Brooklyn chose the largest package. She carefully peeled the paper off, trying not to tear it. Some letters appeared as the paper sagged away from the box. LL HOU.
“It can’t be,” she said out loud.
Brooklyn threw neatness into the wind and ripped the paper ferociously until the picture on the front appeared. It was an enormous dollhouse. She made herself take a minute and snap a picture of the box and send it to her new friends. Then she ignored the buzzing incoming messages to open the gift.
Carefully pulling out the parts, Brooklyn celebrated everything. Soon the floor was littered with furniture, miniature figurines, walls, roof and floor sections, and even small details like curtains, rugs, and hangers. When she found the directions, Brooklyn forced herself to stop and read them through. She really wanted to throw herself into the construction and figure it out as she went, but this was too important. She wanted it to turn out perfect.
It came with miniature tools to put things together. Brooklyn leapt to her feet and ran to the kitchen to get a plastic bag to store them. The direction booklet had ten pages. Brooklyn decided to complete half today and half tomorrow. That would give her something to do for two days.
Carefully, she read the first step and dived in. An hour later, she finished fitting together what she had allotted for today. Eyeing the project, Brooklyn struggled with the temptation to finish it. The middle floor was a bit wobbly. She couldn’t leave it like that. Maybe it would be better to complete all the pages and then tomorrow, she could work on the furniture and décor.
Afternoon shadows filled the house as she placed the last rug on the floor in front of the fireplace. The dollhouse was exquisite. Brooklyn sent thank-you vibes to her daddy. She took another picture and sent it to the chat.
To her astonishment, Brooklyn scrolled back and guesstimated the other Littles had sent over a hundred messages. What had she missed? Scanning them quickly, she watched new ones pop up.
Giana: Six hours! I win!
Pippa: It was closer to seven. That makes Aspen the best guesser.
Aspen: Both of our guesses were so close. I vote we share the prize.
Brooklyn: What prize? And you were betting on how long it would take me?
Pippa: I guessed ninety minutes. I obviously have never constructed a dollhouse, but that was a ton of pieces!
Aspen: It’s gorgeous! I want to come play!
Pippa: Count me in! Tomorrow? I’m off at six. If you all want to order pizza, I’ll pick it up on my way over.
Giana: I can make it then. I’m off tomorrow. Well, unless there’s an emergency.
Aspen: I’ll bring dessert. Don’t worry about anything, Brooklyn. We’ll come prepared.
Giana: I’ve got drinks.
Brooklyn: I can do something.
Pippa: You’re sharing your present with us and hosting.
Brooklyn: Okay! See you tomorrow.
Wrapping her arms around herself, Brooklyn gave herself a hug. What had started out as another tough day had become one of the best. Her daddy had done this for her. She turned to consider the stack of presents still waiting to be opened and shook her head. This one was enough. She would save the others for the next time he was gone.
Brooklyn walked into the pantry and scanned the shelves, spotting a lot of space at the top. She could put them there out of the way. It was too high for her to reach, so she pulled a chair close and lifted one package before stepping onto the seat. One by one, she set them safely on the shelf.