The Sweetest Devotion

Behind Closed Doors

Ella watched in amazement as Sarah posed in various different ways. Sure, she had been to work with her mom before, but usually she wasn't allowed to leave her mother's desk. Watching Sarah had turned into a treat, which only meant one thing.

Her mother was pissed.

Anytime there was a short break Sarah would turn to look at her. Throwing her a wink, making a silly face or just giving her a genuine smile. At one point the lights needed to be readjusted and they told Sarah to take five minutes. Sarah had walked over to Ella, picked her up off the chair, sat down, and then sat Ella on her lap. She had pulled out her phone and began scrolling, resting her chin on Ella's shoulder as if they had known each other forever.

Ella was stunned, her eyes quickly snapping up to her mother's. If she thought her mom had been pissed before, she was really pissed now.

Ella gulped and shrunk down into her seat. Only her seat wasn't actually a seat, she remembered. It was Sarah.

"You okay, little duck?" Sarah asked her quietly, locking her phone and giving Ella her full attention.

Ella finally tore her gaze away from her mom, nodding her head and choosing to deflect.

"Why do you call me little duck?" She asked. "And why are you being so nice to me?" She said, this time her voice softer.

Sarah smiled at her, resting her chin back down on Ella's shoulder and kept her voice at a low murmur. "Well," she started, "when I saw you in the bathroom you looked so cute and tiny, like a little duck." She laughed. "And I'm being nice to you because I think you're awesome, duh."

Ella turned her head and eyed her skeptically. She knew what this was.

"You pity me." She said softly. "Because of what you heard in the bathroom."

"Oh, sweetheart, that's not the case at all. I-

"Ms. Paulson," Patricia shouted, "we're ready for you."

Sarah sighed and gently placed Ella on the ground so she could stand. "We can talk more later." She said gently before walking back over to the cameras.

But Ella knew that they wouldn't have the chance. Because after today, she probably wouldn't ever see Sarah again. So she sat back down in the chair and continued to watch Sarah. Soaking up every minute she had left with her.

Her attention was pulled away from the older woman when she saw her mom and her boss talking. Her mom was gesturing her hands wildly, something she often did when she became mad, and her boss's face was getting red.

"You can't keep bringing her here, Patricia. Especially not tomorrow when we have our biggest presentation of the year!"

"Well it's not my fault you keep scheduling meetings on the weekends, when you know I don't have a sitter!" Her mom yelled back.

"And whose fault is that? You're her mother you should have childcare figured out by now. Christ, the girl is almost ten, let her stay by herself a couple hours."

Her mother pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "You know I can't leave her alone, and I can't get a sitter for tomorrow this last minute. She'll be fine sitting at my desk."

Mr. Steele opened his mouth to respond, his face angry and red, but someone else beat him too it.

"I could watch her." Sarah called, halting her pose.

"Oh no." My mother said sternly. "Trust me, you don't want to do that. She's a handful."

"Oh, it's no trouble at all. She reminds me of my niece and I have nothing to do tomorrow."