any tiger shifter traits yet, thank goodness, or she would really be a handful. But Noah had said that shifter traits usually manifested at puberty.
“Besides, she’s only one quarter shifter,” he added. “She might not even display the trait at all.”
Karen lifted the little girl up. “Now what did I tell you about destroying other people’s things?”
“Bad,” Kitty agreed. “Bad things.”
“That’s right. It’s a bad thing to destroy other people’s things. Especially when it took them a long time to build those sandcastles.” Karen felt guilty for not getting up sooner, but she really was fat and unwieldy.
Well, I’m a big, beautiful woman again, she thought. Just as nature intended.
“Now you have to say sorry to these nice children.”
She put Kitty down. Kitty stuck her thumb into her mouth.
“Say ‘sorry’,” Karen prompted.
The other kids waited.
Kitty shook her head.
Karen sighed. Well, she would have to work on that.
“Sorry,” she said to the kids.
“Sheesh.”
“Take better care of her next time, will ya?”
Yeah. Easier said that done.
*
After a nice lunch, they went home.
Home was a lovely bungalow in Ubud, a prosperous and touristy sector of Bali island. Noah made quite a lot of money from his writing, and the US dollar went very far in Indonesia. Karen supplemented the family income by doing taxes and some contract accounting work for some expatriates. It was strange to think that accounting was what she was trained for, because she never had a job in the field for very long, until now.
Noah was at home. She went up to him and put her arms around his neck. He was at the computer, dictating into the voice convertor. She would read over what he wrote afterwards and correct anything, if needed. Voice convertors weren’t perfect tools any more than autocorrect on phone text messages were.
“Hello, handsome,” she said in a seductive voice.
He looked every bit as good as the first day she met him.
“Hello, sexy.” He leaned back in his chair.
“Whoops. Typo here. There. Everywhere.”
“No worries. I’ve got you to correct them.”
“Careful. My grammar isn’t superb.”
“You mean like your cooking?”
She punched him in the arm. “Careful I don’t feed you grass stalks and brown rice for dinner.”
He was a tiger, and therefore, a carnivore. He didn’t usually like vegetables of any sort.
“Ow,” he said. “That hurts.”
They both laughed. Then he grew serious as he caressed her swollen belly. He lifted her maternity dress and kissed the stretched skin.
“Can you feel the baby kicking?” she asked.
He laid his ear on her belly.
“He’s going to kick you in the side of the head if you’re not careful.”
“How do you know it’s a he? Kitty wants a little sister.”
“And I just want a healthy baby.” She caressed her husband’s head as well as her belly. “As do you.”
He smiled. “So what will you do the rest of the afternoon, my lady of leisure?”
“I don’t know. Go shopping in Kuta with Kitty.”
“Kuta Kitty. Sounds like the next heroine for my novel. Remember, don’t spoil her.”
“I should be telling you that. You’re the one who spoils her rotten.”
“But she’s so cute.”
“That’s no excuse.”
They kissed goodbye. Then she went to give Kitty a change of clothes.
It was another afternoon out for the girls.
*
Karen and Kitty went to the Discovery Shopping Mall in Kuta. It was a super-modern, air-conditioned shopping mall with plenty of interesting shops and restaurants, as well as spas, manicure centers, and a gym.
As usual, going out with Kitty entailed a whole typhoon of packing – a push-buggy just in case she got tired, her bottles, her toys, her special jacket just in case she got cold, her pillows, her special blanket. It was an entire family vacation’s worth of packing in itself. Karen contrasted this to the time she and Noah arrived in Bali. They literally
“Besides, she’s only one quarter shifter,” he added. “She might not even display the trait at all.”
Karen lifted the little girl up. “Now what did I tell you about destroying other people’s things?”
“Bad,” Kitty agreed. “Bad things.”
“That’s right. It’s a bad thing to destroy other people’s things. Especially when it took them a long time to build those sandcastles.” Karen felt guilty for not getting up sooner, but she really was fat and unwieldy.
Well, I’m a big, beautiful woman again, she thought. Just as nature intended.
“Now you have to say sorry to these nice children.”
She put Kitty down. Kitty stuck her thumb into her mouth.
“Say ‘sorry’,” Karen prompted.
The other kids waited.
Kitty shook her head.
Karen sighed. Well, she would have to work on that.
“Sorry,” she said to the kids.
“Sheesh.”
“Take better care of her next time, will ya?”
Yeah. Easier said that done.
*
After a nice lunch, they went home.
Home was a lovely bungalow in Ubud, a prosperous and touristy sector of Bali island. Noah made quite a lot of money from his writing, and the US dollar went very far in Indonesia. Karen supplemented the family income by doing taxes and some contract accounting work for some expatriates. It was strange to think that accounting was what she was trained for, because she never had a job in the field for very long, until now.
Noah was at home. She went up to him and put her arms around his neck. He was at the computer, dictating into the voice convertor. She would read over what he wrote afterwards and correct anything, if needed. Voice convertors weren’t perfect tools any more than autocorrect on phone text messages were.
“Hello, handsome,” she said in a seductive voice.
He looked every bit as good as the first day she met him.
“Hello, sexy.” He leaned back in his chair.
“Whoops. Typo here. There. Everywhere.”
“No worries. I’ve got you to correct them.”
“Careful. My grammar isn’t superb.”
“You mean like your cooking?”
She punched him in the arm. “Careful I don’t feed you grass stalks and brown rice for dinner.”
He was a tiger, and therefore, a carnivore. He didn’t usually like vegetables of any sort.
“Ow,” he said. “That hurts.”
They both laughed. Then he grew serious as he caressed her swollen belly. He lifted her maternity dress and kissed the stretched skin.
“Can you feel the baby kicking?” she asked.
He laid his ear on her belly.
“He’s going to kick you in the side of the head if you’re not careful.”
“How do you know it’s a he? Kitty wants a little sister.”
“And I just want a healthy baby.” She caressed her husband’s head as well as her belly. “As do you.”
He smiled. “So what will you do the rest of the afternoon, my lady of leisure?”
“I don’t know. Go shopping in Kuta with Kitty.”
“Kuta Kitty. Sounds like the next heroine for my novel. Remember, don’t spoil her.”
“I should be telling you that. You’re the one who spoils her rotten.”
“But she’s so cute.”
“That’s no excuse.”
They kissed goodbye. Then she went to give Kitty a change of clothes.
It was another afternoon out for the girls.
*
Karen and Kitty went to the Discovery Shopping Mall in Kuta. It was a super-modern, air-conditioned shopping mall with plenty of interesting shops and restaurants, as well as spas, manicure centers, and a gym.
As usual, going out with Kitty entailed a whole typhoon of packing – a push-buggy just in case she got tired, her bottles, her toys, her special jacket just in case she got cold, her pillows, her special blanket. It was an entire family vacation’s worth of packing in itself. Karen contrasted this to the time she and Noah arrived in Bali. They literally
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