In the end, the woman leaves them with a smile and tells Hannah, “Have a good vacation with your girls.”

She and Abbie happened to be debating where they should get cannoli’s – Abbie did lose the bet, but Caroline can’t resist the cannoli – when the reference cuts her off.

“My girls,” Hannah repeats with a smile, shaking her head at them. “Did my girls come up with a cannoli consensus?”

There’s an acute pain in her chest at the words, because Hannah just has no idea just how true her words are – just how hers Caroline is.

ix

ix

Abbie’s birthday in early August becomes its own holiday for Caroline, mostly because for the two weeks leading up to it, she’s heard of little else.

“Oh my god, whose idea was it for Abbie and her friends to have a cupcake war decoration party?” Caroline groans, using her forearm to push back her hair because her hands are busy pouring the final batch of cupcakes in the pan.

It’s one in the morning and Abbie’s party – cupcake wars in the afternoon, morphing into her first full-fledged slumber party – is tomorrow. Or, technically today? Hannah hadn’t asked for her help in making the insane amount of cupcakes the kids are going to need for their decorating competition, but Caroline knew that Hannah was going to be saddled with making hundreds of them on her own tonight.

And the relief, gratefulness, and – what she thought was – pure happiness at seeing her that took over Hannah’s face when she’d arrived at their apartment was more than worth all of this baking. Abbie had been helping when she’d arrived, but had long since been sent to bed, leaving the two of them to finish up the chocolate batches.

Hannah laughs as she crosses her arms and leans against the counter. “Oh yeah, I wonder why she wanted to do this? It couldn’t be because her idol told her about her own favorite birthday featuring a cupcake decoration party from when she was a kid.”

Caroline adopts as serious a glare as she can at Hannah. Which admittedly isn’t a good one, because Hannah has a little streak of chocolate on her cheek and her eyes look almost silver with the smile in them.

“You’re her hero. I’m merely an adult sized friend.” She instead corrects because… well, Abbie had gotten this cupcake wars idea from her, but she knows Hannah is her hero. How could she not be?

She closes the oven after sliding the final batch into it with a snap, wiping her hands on the dish towel she’s had slung over her shoulder all night. When she finally looks back at Hannah again, she halts under one of her intense looks.