Rylan laughed. “Good thing. Because the back of the car is packed full of everything Zane needs for a month away from home. And we’re only planning on being here for a couple of hours.”
Mazey smiled sheepishly. “Well, you never know what he might need and I didn’t want to be without something. I know I overdid the packing but I’ll get better.”
“I’m sure you will. It takes time to get used to what they need and when. There is nothing wrong with being prepared for anything.”
“Exactly.” Mazey pointed her fork at Jacob. “Plus I learned from this guy. He always had a truckload of stuff when he visited before moving here.”
Jacob shrugged. “Visiting here needed a truckload. We were hours from home. You’re just around the corner.”
Mazey huffed, “Whatever.” Then poked her tongue out.
Both men laughed.
After that lunch was less strained and Mallory found herself enjoying the conversation and the company. How her stepsister could have done what she had made no sense to her. Jacob, Rylan, and Mazey were so nice. Especially considering she was a virtual stranger to all of them.
Sure she had spent some time with Jacob yesterday and she had shared some of her history—her career and schooling, the fact her parents were both dead but her stepmother alive; the one thing she had not shared however was who her stepmother was to Maddox. Or that his mother was her stepsister.
And she would not be sharing those pieces of information. Not yet. While she felt as though she was making a connection with Jacob, she did not think he would want anything to do with her if she divulged that connection now.
No. She needed to wait until she had spoken to her lawyer and Detective Malone again. Once she had a bit more of an idea of how what Renee had done fit in with the trust funds left for her and any of her future children, Mallory would be able to determine the best way to tell Jacob about Maddox’s grandmother.
“You’ve gone quiet.” Jacob nudged her arm with his.
Smiling she glanced at Maddox. “I was just watching Maddox fight sleep.”
Jacob grinned at his son. “Yeah, I give him another minute and he’ll be out.”
“Don’t you want to clean him up before he falls asleep?”
“Nah. I’ve got to change his sheets today so I’ll do it after he’s had his nap. Besides, it’s not like having spaghetti all over his face bothers him.”
“Well, no, but maybe the cookie crumbs will be uncomfortable to sleep with.”
“What crumbs? Other than a small smear of chocolate on his chin, there’s nothing left of the two he had.” Jacob shook his head. “That boy doesn’t waste any part of a cookie.”
“We’ll get going now that I’ve changed and fed Zane,” Mazey said as she returned to the dining room, Zane asleep in her arms. “Where’s Ry?”
“He took your stuff out to the car. He figured you’d want to head home when you were finished.”
Mazey smiled. “God, I love that man. He never misses a thing.”
“The car seat is in the foyer.” Jacob pushed his chair back.
“No. No. Stay where you are. I know my way out.” She bent over and placed a kiss on Maddox’s head. Grinning, she said, “I see this guy still goes out like a light. I hope Zane is this easy when he’s older.”
“He’s pretty laid back now.” Jacob had gotten up and moved around to where Mazey stood. “And no arguing from you. I’ll see you and Zane out to Ry.”
“It was nice to meet you, Mallory. Maybe we can do this again some time,” Mazey said with a hopeful smile.
“Ah, sure.” Mallory’s chest hurt with a stab of guilt. “That would be lovely.”
Over his shoulder Jacob said, “I’ll be back in a minute.”
As they left the room chatting about people Mallory didn’t know, she took a deep breath and thought about what she was doing.
She’d lied by omission. And the longer she continued to keep the real reason she was in Sunnyville a secret, the more of a betrayal it would be to Jacob.
She needed to sort things out as quickly as she could. Starting with the trust funds. Davis had emailed all the information—the clauses, distribution details, along with the amounts in each one—but she hadn’t gone over them yet.
