Page 50 of Playing With Forever

I glanced over at Evan to see him smiling. His, too, warmed my heart. But seeing it aimed at my son did wondrous things to my belly.

Evan tugged me farther into the dining room but let go of my hand when we hit the kitchen area and offered it to Kane. “Nice to meet you.”

Kane took Evan’s hand and shook it. “Good to meet you, too.”

“I’ll start coffee, you say hello to your son, baby.”

Since I was staring at Kane, I didn’t miss the way his left eye twitched. I’d never seen that kind of response from him, so I didn’t know what it meant. But now that my shock had worn off and my son had thus far behaved more or less like an adult, I was over my freakout and happy to see him.

“Should we call Lindy and see if she wants to come over for breakfast and meet Kane, or is it too early?” I asked Evan on my way to my son.

“Call her, Josie, if she’s awake, she’ll answer. And I know she won’t want to miss family breakfast.”

There was that twitch of the eye again.

“Who’s Lindy?”

“Can I get a hug first?”

My son leaned down to hug me, and still, after all these years, it made my heart squeeze. Both my boys had been taller than me by the time they hit thirteen. It was a long time ago, but I could still vividly remember swinging them up into my arms for a cuddle.

“Lindy’s my daughter,” Evan answered from in front of the coffee pot.

Kane’s arms flexed at the news Evan had a daughter.

“You’ll love her, she an absolute doll.”

My son gave me a kiss on the cheek before he let me go. “Then call her and let’s get this show on the road. I drove straight here after my shift, and I wasn’t lying, I’m starved.”

“You work CID down in Camden, right?” Evan asked.

“Yeah. What is it you do?”

Oh boy, that sounded awfully like the beginning of, Deputy Lark reporting for duty.

“Hollow Point PD. I work in the gun unit.”

“A cop.” Kane sounded shocked. Then he smiled. “You must know Echo Kent.”

“He’s my partner.”

Kane’s smile grew, and he added a nod.

“Good partner to have; the man’s the next size up human.”

“You’re not wrong on both accounts.”

“I’ll let you two talk cop. I’m going to find my phone and call Lindy.”

I made it to my bedroom but stopped to listen.

I couldn’t make out exactly what they were saying, just two distinct male voices.

Kane and Evan.

And suddenly, I wished DJ had come along with his younger brother to surprise me.

“THESE ARE the best pancakes I’ve ever had,” Lindy declared around a mouthful.