“Let’s go to the gift shop first,” Gilly said.
“Yay!” Max cheered. “Do you think they’ll have dinosaur toys?”
“Guys! Stop!” Trina snapped. We all shut up, and stood at attention, staring at her guiltily.
“Sorry, I just…” She paused and took a deep breath. “I just want to make sure everyone is ready. We have to be on our best behavior.” She stared intently at Gilly. “This is a public place, Gilly. You know what that means.”
Gilly’s face fell, and she stared at her sparkling red shoes. “I know,” she whispered. “No naked time. No singing. No dancing.”
“Maybe you should tell Desi and Trey those rules next time they to go a party,” I stage-whispered to Trina. For a second, I thought she might lose it again, but she bit her lip, hiding a smile.
She put her hands on her hips, her gaze sweeping over us while she morphed into bossy Bird Brain. But it didn’t bug me today. It was sort of…cute.
God, I was toast. Burned beyond recognition.
“The ladies who do the tours sometimes dress like Molly Brown, so no making fun of their clothes,” Trina warned.
Gilly bounced on her toes. “I like dress-up. Can I dress up, too?”
“Maybe later.” She cast me an anxious look, then continued. “We’ll do a tour first. We’ll hear about Molly’s life and some of the awesome stuff she did.”
“Like what?” Max demanded, his face cloudy.
“Was she an astronaut? Did she sing on American Idol?” Gilly’s expression was hopeful. Poor kid.
Trina shot me a pleading glance before regaining her composure. “Even better. She survived a horrible shipwreck. Lots of people died, but she didn’t. Once she was in the lifeboat, she got in a big argument with one of the ship’s officers. He said women weren’t strong enough to row the lifeboat, that they’d get sucked into a whirlpool and drown. Molly threatened to throw him overboard if he didn’t shut up. So he shut up, and everyone in her boat made it.” She glanced at me. “The guy was a pig, obviously.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Why are you looking at me? I’d never say that. I’d tell everyone to row their asses off, including the chicks.” I grinned.
She rolled her eyes and turned back to the kids. “Anyway, that’s why she has the nickname The Unsinkable Molly Brown.”
“So she was a pirate!” Gilly exclaimed. “Like Captain Jack Sparrow.” She glanced at Max. “I love him. But I hate that jelly monster. The one with the heart in the jar.”
Max frowned. “Captain Jack’s weird. But my mom likes him.”
“Guys,” I interrupted, laughing. “Molly Brown was not a pirate. Zip your lips and listen to Trina.”
Trina stared at the ground, her shoulders shaking, and for a second I was terrified she was crying. Then she raised her face to mine, and I saw that she was laughing. Our eyes met and I felt a jolt of connection shoot between us.
“I give up,” she said, still laughing. “Here’s the deal, guys. Don’t break anything, or cause any scenes, and we’ll call it good, okay? Then we’ll go find ice cream and pianos on the mall.”
“Yay!” Gilly and Max cheered and we headed up the steps and onto the covered porch. The kids made a beeline for a bench swing, while Trina and I sat on a stone balustrade.
I smiled down at Trina. “Way to relax and go with the flow, BB.”
“I’m learning from the best, Edmunds.” Her eyes stayed on mine, and if we’d been anywhere else, I would’ve kissed her.
But instead, a lady dressed like an old-fashioned schoolteacher threw open the door, killing the moment.
“Welcome to the Molly Brown House!”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Trina
Friday, June 21
“At least they didn’t call the cops,” Slade joked, as the door slammed shut behind us.
Gilly clung to my leg, sobbing. “I’m s-sorry, Trina.” She looked up at Slade, wearing the most pathetic expression I’d ever seen. “I didn’t…hic…mean to break the glasses…hic… We were just pretending…sob…to…to…hit the iceberg.”
“And we were scared of that bear rug,” Max said, a single tear rolling down his cheek. “I saw its mouth move.”
I fumed, biting back all my anger and embarrassment. I glanced at Slade, who gave me a pleading look as he squeezed the kids’ shoulders, trying to reassure them. He was such a sucker for tears.
“That was antique crystal, Gilly! From Europe.” I glared at her, and then closed my eyes, hearing the crash and seeing the horrified looks of everyone in the museum when Gilly chased Max through the dining room, under the velvet ropes, and into the table. Thank goodness only two glasses had actually broken. The docent had been furious, but she’d said their insurance would cover the damages. Mostly she’d just wanted us to leave.