It's Been A Long Time... [Desperate Measures Sequel]

Forty.

My evening was filled with many different things, the girls were very demanding and their Uncle was more than happy to indulge their every whim. Before 8 PM we'd already ate popcorn, watched Finding Nemo and painted our nails. 

"My mommy won't let us wear makeup at home," Cassidy confided as she leaned against me as we sat on the floor on a blanket, I was sitting between Dean's legs who was on the sofa and she was sitting between mine. 

I reached for her hair and stroked it as I smiled, "I'm sure she has her reasons. You don't want to grow up too quickly darling."

Cassidy sat forward before turning and looking at me, "Can you do my hair please?" I watched as her little eyes lit up thinking about it. 

Nodding my head I laughed, "Of course I can." 

She leaned forward as she tucked her hair behind her ears. "I want french plaits. Scarlett always has them at school and they are very pretty."

"Scarlett is stupid," Aubrey spoke up as she shook her head when I looked up at her. She was sitting on the sofa in the crook of Dean's arm, her eyes narrowed and her blanket covering her legs. "She thinks she is better than everyone else."

"No, she doesn't!" Cassidy argued with her sister as she turned and looked at her. 

Aubrey snuggled closer to Dean before she wrinkled her nose in her sister's direction. "She's mean to me."

Cassidy turned around before handing her hair bobble to me. "Scarlett is my best friend," she told me as she waited for me to style her hair. 

Reaching for her long blonde hair I ran my fingers through it as I smiled, "Who is your best friend, Aubrey?" I asked as I kept my eyes on her sister's hair as I started to do the groundwork to start the french plait. 

"It's none of your business."

I listened as Dean spoke to her. "Come on Aubrey, Tasha is just asking you a question, you don't need to be rude." His voice was calm and understanding. Honestly, he would make such a great father, no wonder they looked up to him so much. 

"I don't want to talk to her," she replied in a blunt fashion. 

Biting my lip I concentrated on my task at hand, Cassidy was being particularly quiet, maybe she was just listening in and deciding not to get involved. In the past three hours, I had come to learn the girls may have been twins but they were very different personality wise. 

Cassidy was a happy girl, confident and enjoyed all the girlier things. She was happy to give anyone a chance and didn't need much encouragement when it came to being friendly. Aubrey, on the other hand, she was the total opposite. When I had first met her she seemed confident like her sister, but the truth was her mother had made her confident like that. As soon as Katherine wasn't around she turned into someone else. She was moody, rude and didn't seem to care much for others feelings when she spoke her mind. 

"Can we watch Tangled?" Cassidy asked trying to change the subject, trying to deflect from the situation in hand. 

I continued to work on the plait as Dean spoke, "Tangled again?"

"Please, it's my favourite!" Cassidy begged as she turned her head to look at him, pulling her own hair. "Oww," she complained before turning back to the telly. 

"We can watch Tangled in the morning before your mom picks you up," Dean said making a compromise. "What about Lilo and Stitch?"

"It's so old!" Aubrey complained, "Can we watch Moana?"