There was absolutely no way I was staving off the tears at that news. “Ell, that’s the best thing I’ve heard since these two told me they were cancer-free!”

I hugged her tight to my side, giving her a squeeze. “And you know what this means? You finally get Luci cuddles!”

“Omigod, omigod!” Ellie screamed, and I passed Luci over. Ellie immediately snuggled her, and to give Luci credit, she decided to choose affection over violence and snuggled right back.

“Can we get a photo with you, Jemma?” Harper asked, still eyeing my costume uncertainly. I wanted to tell her that she actually knew a real-life devil and that he had the heart of an angel, and she thought he was the bee’s knees. But I didn’t. I just scooped her against me, too, and let their mums snap away merrily.

“So,” I began when they finally broke away, sharing pats with Luci, “does this mean I won’t get to see any of you now?”

Ellie glanced at her mum, who nodded. “Well, we were kind of wondering, if you’d like to … um … come and do art with us at my house once a week?”

“We’d like to pay you,” Harper’s mum interjected. “What you did for our girls while they were in the hospital … it was the highlight of every week.”

More tears sprang from my eyes. “Really? I mean, I’m not … qualified … so I feel weird about taking money from you.”

“Nonsense!” Faith’s mum interjected. “You did a better job helping them through the toughest time in their lives than most of the professional therapists they saw. And you did it out of the goodness in your heart.” She reached into her bag and produced a tissue. “Dab, don’t swipe, or all that makeup is going to smear.”

“Thank you!” I blubbered, patting at my streaming eyes. “Oh, I’m going to be a mess by the time SJ gets here!”

“He’s coming?” Harper gasped, running a hand through her hair. I giggled wetly.

“He’ll be here after lunch. And I would love to keep seeing the girls—I’ve been missing these two the last month, and I just can’t imagine life without them! But I won’t let you pay me.” I held up a hand when Faith’s mum opened her mouth to protest. “I don’t feel right about being paid for something that I’m not qualified to offer. But … if you want to provide the art materials, that would be amazing!”

“You drive a hard bargain, Jemma Bliss. Alright.” Faith’s mum ushered the girls back. “We’d better let Jemma work, since she’s clearly an in-demand lady today!”

I glanced behind them, eyes widening at the line that had formed. “Holy … yes, enjoy the rest of the con, and pop back later if you want to see SJ!”