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“Why not?” Talon said. “Julia Child herself studied there. One day you’ll be cooking circles around her.”
“Paris?” Bryce said for the third time.
“You hard of hearing?” Talon jibed him.
He let out what sounded like a forced laugh. “Paris sounds great. You’ll be a smash there, Marj.”
“Nothing is set in stone,” I said.
“The hell it’s not.” Talon took a bite of salad.
Donny and Dale said nothing, just shoveled food into their mouths. My heart broke just a little more. They were still so afraid their food would be taken away.
My brothers had been hounding me to take my cooking more seriously since Ryan and Ruby’s wedding. I’d taken a few classes in Grand Junction and had loved them, but right now, I truly felt my place was with my family. They’d all been through so much. I wanted—needed—to be here for them.
And then there was Bryce…
Lord, I wanted to finish that kiss.
He’s too old for you.
The voices of all three of my brothers chanted inside my head.
Of course, Talon was ten years older than Jade. Bryce was a mere three years older than Talon, making him thirteen years older than I was. Would they really balk at a measly three years?
I jarred myself back to reality. We’d had one tiny kiss, and already I had us walking down the aisle. Truth was, I wasn’t in any hurry for marriage, even though within the past year I’d witnessed all three of my brothers find love and tie the knot.
I had to get out of my own head first.
My father had left me when I was eighteen. At the time, I’d thought he’d died. Instead, he’d faked his own death once all his children were of age. I was the youngest and the only girl, seven years younger than my youngest brother, Ryan.
Then there was my mother…
I’d always been told she’d killed herself when I was a baby. I had no memories of her. Until recently. She lived in a fantasy world where I was still a baby and Talon and Jonah were still little boys. Ryan didn’t exist in her world…because he was not her biological child.
He was the son of my father and his stalker, Wendy Madigan.
My life was a big mess.
Plus, I had God only knew how much crazy in my genes. My brothers shared the genetic crazy. In fact, Ryan probably had more. His biological mother was a true psychopath. Still, Joe and Tal were having children from their own bodies, and Melanie had assured all of us that if we weren’t exhibiting “crazy” by now, we were probably fine.
Still…I worried.
I loved children. Dale and Donny had both wormed their way into my heart in a short time, and Bryce’s son, Henry, was an adorable little mini-Bryce with a sweet disposition.
I missed him.
I hadn’t seen him since Ryan and Ruby’s wedding. Bryce had been around a few times, but always sans Henry. I wasn’t sure why.
“Right, Marj?”
I jerked toward Talon’s voice. “Huh?”
“Aren’t you listening?”
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
“No big deal,” Talon said. “I was just telling Bryce that we could use his expertise around here, but he’s dead set on a job that uses his brawn instead of his brain.”
