Chapter 117

• Later in the day, while Maddy was down for her nap, Kayla and I tackled the upcycling project I’d promised to help her with. I was looking forward to it as much as she was, and we’d been down to the decorating store the day before, taking Maddy to the park on the way, to choose the paint she’d like. She went for a gorgeous deep purple in the end. She’d learned so much about natural paints for her feature, she really impressed the store assistant, Jamila. I knew Jamila from my many trips there over the last couple of years when I’d had my store. It was the best place in all of Buffalo to get paint and supplies.
• I’d loved seeing Kayla’s eyes light up when we’d gone in, and how she’d grown an inch when Jamila had said that her knowledge was excellent, her passion was obvious and that she should come and see them when she wanted a weekend job in a few years. I’d introduced her as simply ‘Kayla’, but in my head I’d imagined myself saying, This is Kayla, my stepdaughter. I’d smiled to myself and shaken the thought away. One step at a time, Mary-Beth. But huh, so much for my big I’m a single lady independence thing and waiting for a relationship until Maddy was at school. But then, something like this happened when it happened, and it didn’t care what your life plan was.
• One step at a time.