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He looked at the ground for a moment. “I, um…okay. I’m sorry.”

“You need to apologize to him.”

“I will.”

“He’s great with Caleb.”

“I can see that.”

She took a moment to understand the realization that had just come over her. “I’m in love with him.”

Mathias sighed. “Okay.”

She cocked her head. “Okay?”

“I’m happy for you.”

She moved closer to him and took his hand. “I hope that’s true.”

“It is.” He sighed. “I’m…slightly…jealous, I guess. Not jealous, more…I don’t know. Feeling like you don’t need me anymore.”

Wilda hugged him. “I’ll always need you, Mathias. Caleb will always need you.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. You have been…you’re my rock, and you always will be.”

“I should’ve seen this coming. When you put his phone number written in crayon on the fridge, I should’ve known.”

She smiled. “That was pretty cute.”

Mathias shook his head, then hugged her. “I love you, sis.”

“I know. I love you, too.”

“So, I suppose you’re going to marry this school teacher at some point.”

She patted his chest, then stepped back. “It’s a little too soon to make that assumption.”

“No. It’s inevitable. Written in crayon on the proverbial wall.”

Chapter twenty-seven

“It seems it was a fluke.”

The card table lay on its side, and Milo was clicking the legs into place when Mathias entered the parlor. He walked over and took a side of the table as Milo set it upright.

Mathias stepped back from it. “I owe you an apology.”

“Nah. You were just trying to protect your sister.”

“Still.”

“Okay, I accept.”

“What are we doing with the table?”

“With seven of us, I figured a few more chairs wouldn’t hurt. Plus, we can put the food on the table.”