There was a trepidation in Maggie as she entered the RV, the dark cloth of what had once been Roman’s shirts pressed up against her chest like a shield against the baby crawling on the floor. She was thankful for Charlie’s flaxen hair and blue eyes, it was so unlike Sofia’s once amber head of hair and green eyes. Sofia had looked like her daddy, all of Maggie’s had looked like dad. Well, save Sedona.
But that was the past. She needed to focus on the present, or the undercurrent would grab her again and drag her out to her RV bed to drown in her own memories.
“Babies get bigger,” Maggie offered, placing her goods onto a table gently and starting to spread them out for her. Wrapped up in the cloth bundles were a few of her own things- some loose clothing made for a mother’s body, the cleaned pump, bottles, and a small baby rattle in packaging she’d been too emotional to throw out years ago. “You sew? I could always use an extra set of hands with making clothes and patching up pants. It’s amazing how quickly these boys go through a pair of jeans,” Maggie offered. She wasn’t dumb, she knew what offer she was really making- offering a job to the girl was offering the chance to not be a camp bitch, or just Rodeo’s little sister come to stay.
It was status. A small status, but status nonetheless. And it was distracting, distracting of the small, living creature that was moving around underfoot. She wanted to reach out and touch the child, but feared Charlie turning into smoke.