chair.”
It was so easy, Lily thought, to plan how you would raise your child — to say with absolutecertainty the things you would and would not do. But once the child got exposed to outside influences, allthose plans were shot to hell. “Well ... Mimi, I guess we’d better get you home for your nap. You’ve hadquite a day.” She picked her daughter up. Her new dress must have added five pounds to her weight. Ormaybe it was the Chicken McNuggets. “Thank you, Jeanie, for taking her shopping and ... taking care ofher.”
As they walked out of the building, Ben said, “You look like you’ve been poleaxed.”
“I’m just overwhelmed. The house, the car ...” When she set Mimi in her car seat, Mimi’s lacypetticoat flew up high enough to obscure her little face. “And Mimi ... god ... leave her with your motherfor two hours and...”
“She becomes a meat-eating femme fatale?”
Lily’s laugh gave way to an uneasy sigh. She leaned against the car. “Maybe having theMaycombs over for dinner will work things out. I just want this whole custody thing taken care of as soonas possible. It’s scary how fast stuff can change your life, y’know?” She wiped away a stray tear, missingCharlotte.
“I know.” Ben gave her a little pat before he headed to his car. “I’ll see you back at the house,okay?”
“Okay.”
Lily slid into the driver’s seat. “So Mimi-saurus,” she said, “how ’bout we go back to the houseand take a nap?”
“No nap!” Mimi screamed from her car seat. “Go McDonald’s!”
CHAPTER 8
When Ben, Lily, and Mimi returned to the big McGilly house, a huge black animal was sprawledon the porch. “Oh, shit,” Ben swore. “Mordecai’s gotten out of his pen again.”
“Excuse me?” Lily said.
“The dog. Mother and Daddy’ve been keeping him in the pen out back since we got here. Theywere afraid he’d scare Mimi.”
Lily paused before opening the car door. “Is he dangerous?”
“He was when he was younger, but now he’s just old and cantankerous. He sleeps and farts mostof the time. He’s always been good with kids, though, and if you call him by his name, he knows you’refriendly and won’t bother you.”
Just to be safe, Lily carried Mimi extra high on her hip when they reached the porch.
“Mordecai!” Ben called when they approached the door.
The rottweiler raised his huge head, glanced at Ben, and lowered it again.
“Cow!” Mimi exclaimed delightedly.
“He’s a doggie, sweetie,” Lily corrected her, “but he’s just about big enough to be a cow. Hisname’s Mordecai.”
At the sound of his name, Mordecai looked up at Lily and wagged his stumpy tail.