Crew rolled his eyes at his brother. “Not when you are an asshole or an idiot.”
“Fair point,” Bodhi conceded after glaring at him for a second. Then he turned to face me and waited until I made eye contact. “Not your fault. Could’ve happened to any of us.”
I grimaced. I didn’t know what to say.
The radio on Ennis’s hip crackled to life. “It’s six thirty-five.” Jenn. Without a call sign.
All the Harringtons made an “oops” face.
Ennis unclipped the two-way and pressed the button. “Ennis here. I’ll send them over.”
“Good.”
The sound of donkey alarm filled the evening hush outside. Then soon after we heard a car and the door opening and closing.
“That’ll be Matigan,” Russ said. “Y’all go. Ennis and I got this.”
“I’ll stay,” Bodhi said firmly. “I’ll come in later. Tell her I’m sorry.”
“Okay,” Mike acquiesced and herded Crew and me out to Bluey.
We greeted Matigan in passing, then we were off on our way to dinner. Once we were all cleaned up enough for Jenn to deem us fit to eat, we were fifteen minutes late, but who was counting. Except her.
“Daddy! What happened to the baby?” Payton ran to me as soon as I came out of the bathroom.
I’d dodged him in my dirty clothes because I was dusty as hell.
“Rowdy, who is exactly like his name, got into the paddock with the mares and the babies and somehow this one baby got hurt. Not badly,” I found myself saying. “She’ll be fine, but she’ll need a few stitches. The vet is helping her right now.”
“Stitches like Nana got when she cut her hand?” he asked, frowning.
I was surprised that he remembered, since it had happened when he was maybe three. “Exactly like that.”
“Okay!” He directed his attention to the table. “We’re having pasta and meatballs!”
“Yay!” I matched his tone.
Every adult in the room either chuckled or smiled. They all knew by now what I was feeling, and their sympathy meant a lot. They also understood me, because everyone in this room had messed up one way or another.
I tried to take comfort in that as I helped Payton with his plate.
“Why not spaghetti?” I asked as I scooped some fusilli on his plate.
“You try having ten kids eat spaghetti at the same time even once and then tell me it’s a good idea.” Jenn’s tone was one that told me this wasn’t a new question.
Everyone chuckled.
“What does that mean?” Payton asked.
“Spaghetti is messier to eat,” Mike explained. “We had a lot of kids and most of them were little at the same time. It was a circusto get everyone fed and cleaned after. Not to mention the state of the kitchen.” He whistled to Payton’s delight.
“A circus.” Payton snickered.
After dinner, Crew, Payton, and I left the house and started toward the cabins.
“Bud?” I waited for Payton to look at me. “Do you mind if Crew stays over tonight?”
He squinted a little. “Like a… an adult sleepover because you’re boyfriends?”
