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“You must miss him a lot.”
“I do,” I say quietly. “I’ve been shoved into this position of de facto head of the family, and I never thought I’d be here. It was always supposed to be Micha making the decisions.”
“That sounds like a lot of pressure.”
“It is, but I have a lot of help.”
“Other family members?”
“Quite a few of them, really. We have several businesses, and it takes everyone to keep them all running smoothly. Do you remember the guy in the bar who spilled beer on your douchebag date?”
“Yes.”
“That was Antony. He’s my cousin by blood, but he’s always felt more like a brother. We’re the same age, and he’s lived in the family house since we were kids along with his mother, Kathrine. Kathrine is Pops’ sister. Her sister-in-law, Andrea, lives at the house, too. She moved in after my Uncle Phil died. He was Andrea’s husband and my Aunt Kathrine’s husband’s brother. Andrea refused to live at the house unless she was employed, so she works as the housekeeper, but I honestly think she would constantly be cleaning whether she was paid for it or not. The woman is obsessed with germs. She came with her kids, Bailey and Dudley.”
“Dudley?” Cherry’s eyes widen.
“It’s Daniel, but he’s Dudley.” I shake my head, snickering. “As soon as you meet him, you’ll know exactly what I mean.” I glance up to find Cherry scowling at me, and I realize how it must sound. “He’s fine with it, really. He feels like he has an important nickname like Twos and Threes, so it makes him feel special. Even his mother calls him that. It’s not a dig on the little guy.”
“Twos and Threes?”
“Sorry, I got ahead of myself. The Thrace twins, Trey and Tawny have been family associates since they were kids, but everyone calls them Twos and Threes. They run the casino for the family.”
“That sounds like Thing One and Thing Two from Doctor Seuss.”
“Ha!” I shake my head. “That’s pretty accurate, really.”
“How old are the kids?”
“Bailey is eleven and Dudley is thirteen.”
“Are they the only children in the house?”
“Full time, yes. Antony has a daughter, but she doesn’t live with us. Her mother is in Cleveland, but he gets Maddy over holidays and for a month in the summer. She’s only two, though, so she doesn’t get much of a workload yet.”
I wink, and Cherry laughs, shaking her head at me. Her reddish locks bounce around on her shoulder again, and I want to reach out and stroke her hair.
“You have such a big family,” she says softly.
She goes quiet for a moment, and I suddenly realize what’s going on in that beautiful head and exactly how I can use it to my advantage.
“And you don’t have anyone,” I reply just as softly.
I see the tears welling in her eyes, and a cascade of conflicting feelings rolls over my body.
I hadn’t considered the family angle, but I should have. Cherry is alone in the world—as far as Antony was able to tell—and she needs people in her life. I can give that to her in spades. Though the course has changed, the overall plan is actually starting to work. I’ve made that connection with her on a deeper level—one that can go past the superficial physical attraction and turn into something more, and I’m elated that everything is coming together.
“Cherry?”
“Hmm?”
“Would you like to come to my place this week? We have family dinners on Wednesdays, and I’d really like you to be there. I’d like to introduce you to my sister.”
“Your sister?”
“Yeah. I think you guys might get along well, and you’re both…well, you’ve both suffered a recent loss.”
“She lost her husband, right?
