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“Makes sense.” Ivy nodded. “So, remind me again, you and Mike spent time there for a bit, correct?”
“Yes, and my Nan is there, and they’re really close, but I never should have left him. God,” he smacked his forehead, “will I ever get things right?” He was nearly at his breaking point, and Ivy put a hand on his arm.
“Does Brandon—”
Keith shot out of his seat when his phone rang, and we all waited to see who it was.
“Okay, thanks.” Keith closed his eyes, and his shoulders sagged with relief. “Put him on the phone, will you? Please.” He waited for a moment, then without having said a word he handed the phone to Ivy. “He, ah, wants to talk to you.”
She took the phone and muted it. “This is good, Keith. It means he’s looking for help. Let me talk to him, but I won’t hang up until you hear his voice.”
“All right.” Keith watched her as she tugged open the sliding glass doors. I followed her out, and as she turned with a question on her face, I shrugged off my jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. She gave me a small smile before she did what she did best. I stepped back inside and closed the door behind me.
“I just heard.” Cole came racing into the room. “Where was he?”
“In a tree.” Keith shook his head slowly. “He only went a few miles from the house, then I guess he climbed a tree and hunkered down. Quinn said he just needed to think.”
“How’d he sound?” It was evident that every child in this house was loved by every adult as if they were their own. It was incredible, and for a moment it made me think of my own parents and how much I insisted on keeping my space from them. I had a moment of clarity as I accepted my part in that relationship.
“No clue,” Keith muttered, hurt evident in his voice. “He wanted to talk to Ivy.”
“Oh,” Cole gave me an impressed look, “well, that’s good.”
“It is.” Keith snatched up the map of Dusk’s grounds.
“It’s a vagina thing.” Mark shrugged from the doorway where he stood with a fist full of cookies, and to my surprise, Keith burst out in a full-blown belly laugh.
“The shit you say, Lopez.” He laughed harder, and it immediately evaporated the tension in the room. Keith could have gone two ways right then—burst into tears from emotional exhaustion, which no one would blame him for, or laugh to the point of tears. I, for one, was glad he chose the latter.
“It’s true. It’s a scientific fact.” Mark went on like Keith’s laughter didn’t faze him at all. “Women have a strong maternal instinct, and when kids are struggling inside, they know a woman’s the one who knows how to pull out what’s wrong with them and make it better.” He happily chomped on another cookie, oblivious of the crumbs that fell around him. “Mia does that shit to the twins all the time. It’s like friggin’ witchcraft or something.”
“Mm, and don’t you forget it.” Mia pushed by him with a platter of steaming carrots, potatoes, and ham and placed it on the table. She pushed up on her toes and gave Keith a kiss on the cheek as Mark snagged a slice of ham. “Glad that B is back at the house. Let Ivy work her magic.” She glanced at Mark and gave him an I dare you look, as his fingers reached for the plate again. “And he’ll be looking for his dad in no time. Now, clear away that stuff,” she eyed the maps and pencils in front of Keith, “and let’s get some good solid food into all of you.”
I grinned at Moore and could tell he saw what I did about this place. It was warm and comforting at the hardest of times. Everyone had each other’s back, and we were all part of a big family, not just a military unit. Rank meant something here, but it was never used as a power trip, and no one disrespected orders. I could see myself here long term, and I knew it was time I used what little downtime I had here to search harder for the perfect team. I knew more than ever it was what I wanted.
“You’re wrong.” Mark shrugged from the doorway of the kitchen. “Cookies all go to the same place, my belly. So, putting them neatly in a tin or a box or lining them up on top of each other in a Ziploc bag like you did is just a waste of your time.”
“Marcus,” June sighed as she came into the dining room and rolled her eyes.
“This is me helping, June. I’m here to make your life easier.”
“Are you, though?” She dripped with sarcasm.
“Yes.” He snagged another cookie off the dessert table near where he always sat. That’s convenient and makes sense. “Cookies don’t need to be stacked neatly. That’s a myth. Toss them in a bag and call it a day. But,” he got in her way again, “they should really be hidden away for me, and only me. None of this ‘save some for the grandkids’ crap. If I knew my kids were going to get in the way of my cookies, I would have—”
“Would have what?” Mia piped in.
“I would have had more, sweetheart.” He smiled widely, and when she looked away, he looked at June and mouthed, “Thought twice about having the little monsters.”
“I heard that.”
“My apologies.” June placed both hands on his shoulders and smiled. “I won’t waste my time stacking them neatly.”
“That’s all I’m asking for.”
“Done. Now, is there anything else I can do to make you feel better?” June asked him in a serious voice. Savannah chuckled from where she sat, and Cole shook his head at the rest of us.
“Yes, as a matter of fact.” He put his hands on his hips. “Three times now you’ve left the house at nine p.m. and returned twice at two a.m., and another time in the morning. I want to know where you’re going.” June looked at her sister Abigail and then over at Doc Roberts, and Mark looked around at all three of them.
