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"Oh--that's so nice. Really, though, it's all good," she said, just as William wrestled Madison to the ground and the two of them began rolling down the hill toward the ocean.
"No--no--no--come back!" Mara cried.
"Don't worry, they won't get far," Ryan promised as he picked up the picnic basket. "Hey, cool, you brought the Scrabble," he said when he spied the board game among the Tupperware.
"I thought it might be fun, you know, to teach Zoe about letters." Mara shrugged. "I found it in the closet in our room."
"You any good?"
"I'm not bad." Mara smiled.
"Bet I can beat you."
"Oh, I don't know--I do a mean triple-triple. I know all the words that begin with x."
"All of them?" Ryan cocked an eyebrow.
"Try me."
"I'll take you up on that challenge."
"Deal." Mara smiled even more broadly.
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Ryan tucked the box under his arm along with his skateboard and began to push Cody's stroller. He lifted Zoe on his shoulders. "Giddyap, Ryan!" Zoe said.
"Hang on, Zo."
The four of them walked down the hill toward the mini death-match.
"WILLIAM ADDISON PERRY! MADISON ALEXANDRA PERRY!" Ryan roared.
William and Madison immediately froze.
"That's enough of that!" Ryan scolded.
"You're not really mad, are you, Ryan?" Madison asked, releasing her hold on William and getting up to take his free hand.
"Me! Me! Me!" William whined, trying to find something of Ryan's to hold on to. With no available hand in sight, he grabbed the edge of his big brother's T-shirt.
"Easy, big guy," Ryan said.
They headed back to the Range Rover. Ryan stashed his skateboard in the back and they drove the half mile back to the house.
"Sorry they're so out of control. It's really not their fault. No one's ever taught them any boundaries."
"The kids?" Mara asked. "Don't worry, I've taken care of worse."
Mara told Ryan about the neighborhood nightmare--eightyear-old Tommy Baker, who was famous for locking himself in the bathroom for hours, only to emerge as his parents were pulling back into the driveway. He'd pee on the floor just as they were walking in.
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"It happened every time I babysat him and his parents never even tipped!"
"Bastards," Ryan said.
"Look," Mara whispered, turning to look at the backseat, where the children were all sleeping. "Like angels. You'd never think--" But she cut herself off--they were still his siblings.
