“Yep,” Izzie said. “I’m pretty sure he meant me.”
“He is right here and he is your father, not he,” Jack said. “They are our guests and will be spending some time with us. We’ve granted them as much time as they need to decide what they want next, including the possibility of joining our Pride if they may happen to have the desire to do so.”
“He means sanctrurary,” Izzie said to Bella.
Jack and Bonnie tried not to laugh as she mispronounced it.
Izzie’s entire demeanor changed and she grinned at him, really laying on the charm. “So, they’re going to be here for a while, right?”
“Yes,” Jack said.
“So, like a really long sleepover,” Izzie said.
“More or less. But we’re going to find other places for some to stay if they’d like to have some privacy,” Bonnie said.
“Like the new houses,” Izzie said.
Jack looked at Bonnie. “She misses nothing.”
“I’m smart,” Izzie said.
“You’re a smart…”
“Girl!” Bonnie said. “You’re a smart girl.”
“Yeah, that’s exactly what I was going to say,” Jack said with a smirk.
“Well, since they’re going to be here, we could have pool parties. And we could have barbecues, and we could have lots and lots of sleepovers,” Izzie said.
“I can swim!” one of the boys lying on the sofa in the family room said, lifting his head and looking over toward the kitchen table.
“See?” Izzie said.
“As long as your mom says it’s okay, you’re more than welcome to swim. As long as there is an adult to watch over you guys. More than one if there are even a couple of kids who don’t know how to swim,” Jack said.
“This is going to be fun,” Izzie said.
“Is that a splash pad out there, too?” the boy asked.
“It is,” Bonnie said. “What’s your name, baby?”
“I’m Griffin. Everybody calls me Griff.”
“Hi, Griff. After your mom wakes up, if it’s okay with her, you can play out there as long as you want.”
“Thank you, ma’am. Can I get up?”
“You don’t feel like sleeping?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Of course, you can get up. Are you hungry? Want some more to eat?” Bonnie asked.
“I’m really thirsty.”
“Drinks coming up,” Jack said, getting up to get some more drinks.
Griffin followed him to the kitchen to look in the fridge. “Can I have that?” he asked, pointing at a bottle of grape juice while he looked up at Jack.
