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It was bathtime. Everly Erin O’Mara’s favorite time of the night. Except for story time, which was also her favorite time of the night. Oh, and funny video time was also her favorite time of the night. Everly had lots of favorite times, especially where her dad, Ronan, was concerned.

Ronan was the easy parent. Everly had learned at an early age that a smile, a trembling bottom lip, and even a few tears would score her everything she ever wanted, with the exception of one thing. At least so far, but the night was young and so was Everly.

Born with psychic and mediumistic abilities, Everly spent a lot of her days dealing with spirits who needed her help with something or other and with trying to figure out what her psychic visions were actually telling her. It wasn’t easy being a six-year-old psychic. She was learning more and more about the world around her every day. Not just school lessons either.

Life lessons.

Everly picked out several books for her father to read after bath time. All of the books were her favorites. Both of the Dragons Love Tacos books were added to the pile. Like the dragons in the books, tacos were her favorite too. Next was Never Let a Unicorn Wear a Tutu. Everly and her best friend, Aurora, had gotten this book for Christmas, along with several unicorn stuffies. Everly had so many now that there wasn’t a lot of room left on the bed for her. Her father always made a big deal when he sat on one of her unicorns. He’d yell and scream that the unicorn stabbed him in the ass . Everly wasn’t supposed to say that word, but what her parents didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them.

“Everly! Bath time!” Ronan called from across the hall.

“One sec!” Everly raced to her pajama drawer and grabbed her favorite unicorn nightgown and a pink pair of underpants to match. She crossed the hall to see Ronan sitting on the toilet. “Ewwww! Gross!” she shrieked.

“I’m wearing pants, goofball!” Ronan reached out to tickle his daughter. “Your father’s an old man and I need to take a load off sometimes.”

“You’re not old, Dad.” He was totally old. The one thing her father, Tennyson, had been working on with her was editing herself. There were certain thoughts, feelings, and psychic messages that shouldn’t be said out loud. It was hard not to blurt out everything that was on her mind. Talking was one of Everly’s favorite things too.

Shrugging out of her clothes, Everly climbed carefully into the bathtub. She grabbed her mermaid toys and splashed around a bit, making waves. Her favorite was when the waves went so high that they sloshed over the edge of the tub. Ronan would call out for everyone to, “man the lifeboats,” which Everly hadn’t understood the first time, but then he’d showed her a video from a movie where a giant ship was sinking and people were trying to escape. Spoiler alert, they didn’t . Almost everyone died.

Ronan should never have shown that particular movie to Everly, but she’d worked on her editing and hadn’t told Tennyson about Titanic or the cute boy who died at the end, making Ronan cry. Jack was cute, but not worth crying over.

“Okay, little miss. Time to wash up!”

Everly sighed. It was tough being little. All she wanted to do was play, but she grabbed her bath puff and her favorite soap that smelled like coconuts. It reminded her of being in Florida with her cousin Brooke. “Dad? Can I ask you a question?” This was it, the moment when she’d finally get her heart’s desire.

“You just did!” Ronan laughed as if it were the funniest joke in the world.

It wasn’t.

Everly grumbled and scrubbed the soapy puff over her arms and stomach. “I’ll ask a second question then.” She plowed on, not wanting to give Ronan the chance to interrupt. Ronan was always interrupting. In Everly’s opinion, her father could do with a little editing himself, but she’d keep that to herself. For now. “Can I have a goat?”

Ronan stopped laughing. “You already have a GOAT.”

Everly rolled her eyes. “Dad, I don’t have a goat. Not a stuffie. Not a book about goats. Not an actual goat. Or the pajamas for the goat.

“Like I said, you already have a GOAT. Me!” Ronan laughed again.

Everly was starting to lose her temper. She took a deep breath, like Ten taught her. Boy, he’d really be proud of her tonight, she was acing her editing. “You are stinky like a goat.” Everly giggled. “And you cry like a goat. You eat like a goat too.” Okay, maybe that last bit was too much. More editing was definitely needed.

“Hmm,” Ronan mumbled. “That’s not what I meant.”

Everly could feel Ronan roll his eyes, but stayed calm. “What did you mean?” She tried to sound bright and curious, but had a feeling she failed.

“I’m the Greatest Of All Time. G-O-A-T Get it?” Ronan slapped his knee and laughed again.

There were days when she wished her gift didn’t tell her everything going on in her father’s head. He had several more goat jokes lined up. It was his fence mechanism, so Everly would lose her train of thought. She didn’t know what fences had to do with not getting a goat. Maybe goats liked fences.

Taking a deep breath, Everly tried again. “Yes, Dad, you are the greatest.” She succeeded in sounding like she meant every word she was saying. It was true. Ronan was the bestest father in the world. Most of the time. When he wasn’t being totally annoying, which was a lot. “You would even be greater-er if you got me a goat and pink pajamas for her to wear.”

“So you think I’m the greatest?” Ronan asked.

Everly was going to need to edit again. “Yup!” She laid back in the tub and wet her hair and then grabbed her strawberry shampoo, which was her favorite because it was magic. When she used it, her hair didn’t get tangled. She hated tangles.

“Why do you want a goat?” Ronan sounded truly curious.

“Well, because they’re cute!” They totally were. “And they’re cuddly.” Totally cuddly. She’d met baby goats at the Happy Hooters Petting Zoo and cuddled five different goats. They’d all run to her like she had a pork chop in her pocket. At least that’s what Uncle Jude said. Everly didn’t think goats ate pork chops, but if goats did, they could have hers!

“Dixie and Luna are totally cute and cuddly.” Ronan snickered, referring to their Yorkie and cat.

“Grrrrrrrr!” Everly splashed her hands into the water. Rinsing out her hair, Everly wrung it out and hopped out of the tub. She grabbed her Little Mermaid towel and wrapped herself up in it like a butterfly in a cocoon. Everly marched toward the hallway, when Ronan tapped her shoulder. “You’re a dream killer,” she muttered.

“Hey, come here.” Ronan reached out a hand.

Everly climbed into Ronan’s lap. She looked up at him and gave her best bottom lip wobble. She could feel the tears coming too.

“You know who would be crying real tears? The baby goat when you left every day to go to school. She’d be here all alone with no goat friends to talk to or play with or who would worship me as their goat king.”

Everly giggled. Her father would make a good goat king. “You’re right. The goat would be lonely, so we’ll get two! Yippee!” Everly hopped off his lap and ran toward her bedroom.

“Wait! What? ” Ronan sounded completely confused.

“Ezzie, we’re getting baby goats!” Everly shouted to her little brother, who was climbing the stairs with Tennyson.

Ezra clapped and baaed loudly. Twice.

“We’re getting what ?” Ten asked, sounding gobsmacked.

“I asked Dad for a pink pajama-wearing baby goat and he said that it would be all alone when I went to school, so we’re getting two so they won’t be lonely!”

Ten’s lips twisted into what Everly called the frown of doom. No good ever came from that. “Uh, Ronan, can I speak to you alone for a minute?”

Ronan muttered to himself as he followed behind Ten. He winked at Everly before walking into his bedroom and closing the door.

She’d once again lost the goat battle, but she wouldn’t lose the goat war. Sooner or later, she’d get the baby goat of her dreams and pink pajamas to dress her in.

Everly didn’t need her gift to tell her that. What her gift wasn’t telling her was what her parents were talking about in their room. She ran for their door and put her ear up against the wood. There was no shouting, but there was kissing. She banged on the door with her little fist. “UGH! Stop kissing! We’ve got books to read!”

To be honest, Everly didn’t mind when her daddies kissed each other, but she wished their kissing wouldn’t get in the way of her story time.

The bedroom door popped open and out came Ronan. “Who’s ready to read about taco-loving dragons?”

“Me!” Everly shouted.

Ronan sat on the edge of the bed and yelped. “Hey, that unicorn stabbed me in the ass!”

Everly laughed along with Ronan. He really was the greatest of all time, but she wasn’t going to tell him.

Not until she got a goat of her own.