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“Oh, no. They’re not twins. Gabby’s older than Mickey just like Gabe was older than Michael.”
“Was?” Zander frowned and Zoey’s smile faded a little, her tone going serious.
“Gabe was Rafe’s twin brother but… he died.”
“Jeez, I’m sorry.” Zander apologized. “I wouldn’t have brought it up if I’d known.”
“It’s okay. It happened a long time ago.”
Zander took another drink of his coffee and watched as Zoey plated the bacon she’d been cooking. She opened the oven, checking on what looked to be biscuits that were baking. She shut it again, adjusted the temperature and then put more bacon in the skillet. As it sizzled, Zander swallowed past the lump in his throat that their conversation had caused.
“Seems like you and Rafe have a lot in common. Is that what drew you two together?”
“Hmm?” Zoey was distracted with the skillet and didn’t look at him.
“He had two siblings. One is dead now. You have two siblings. Only, one is…” He trailed off when Zoey jerked her head up and looked at him, face pale and eyes wide.
“Oh my God.” She put her free hand to her mouth, “You’re right. I didn’t even realize that.”
“No?” he asked, genuinely curious.
“No.” Zoey shook her head. “I mean, I’ve always considered myself an only child but I’m not, am I?”
“Not unless you want to be.”
“I don’t.” Zoey left the bacon sizzling on the stove and moved so that she was across the bar from him, reaching out to touch his hand. “You have no idea how happy I am that you’re here, Zander. You tracked me down after all this time and getting to know you would be such a gift unto itself but you also brought Violet into my life. My niece.” Her eyes looked watery, “I have a niece and my daughters have a cousin we didn’t even know about. It’s just… a miracle.”
Zander squeezed her hand in return, “I’m glad you think that because I wasn’t sure if coming here was the right decision or not. To be completely honest, I only found out about Violet myself when I got to the hospital in Boulder and Zenia was already gone by then. It’s been… a big adjustment, for both of us.”
“Well, if it helps at all, she seems to be doing really well considering everything she’s gone through.”
Zander watched as the kids giggled and traded colors, “She seems to like your girls a lot.”
“They like her too.” Zoey was smiling softly when he looked back. “They were so excited this morning when I told them about you and Violet. They think having an older cousin is really cool and to be honest, having a big brother is pretty cool for me too.”
Zander’s heart went a little soft at the edges but before he had a chance to respond the glass door that led to the backyard opened and the girls squealed with delight as Rafe stepped inside.
“Daddy!” They went running for him and Zander could only watch as he scooped them up, laughing and twirling them around.
He shot a look over to where Violet still sat at the table, alone now, watching the girls with their father, and his heart ached anew at the fact she’d never experienced that kind of connection. He hadn’t known a love like that with a father either but at least he’d known who the man was. Violet didn’t even have that and he couldn’t be sure if that would make it better or worse for her in the long run.
“Rafe! Put them down. They’re going to spew orange juice if you keep spinning them.” Zoey warned her husband but the love she felt for him was clear in her eyes and her smile was unmistakable.
Yes, Zoey had made a good life for herself, just like Zander had hoped. She had a beautiful family. She was well taken care of and loved. She had friends and a life here and he knew without question that if he asked her to take in Violet, she would do so without a moment’s hesitation. But despite all his big plans to do just that when he had packed up the Bronco and headed for Louisiana, he couldn’t convince himself it was the right thing to do anymore.
Rafe released the girls, carefully placing them back on their feet and then glancing up, seeing Zander at the bar for the first time. His smile faded a little, not disappearing but becoming more guarded. He looked Zander over and then glanced at his wife, as if checking everything was okay, and when he finally looked back at him, Zander gave a nod of acknowledgement.
“Morning.” he offered with a nod.
“Morning.” Rafe returned the greeting as he moved to where Zoey was pulling the last of the bacon off the stove. He pulled her to him and gave her a quick kiss. He nuzzled the top of her head and then glanced back at Zander. “You sleep okay in the guest room?”
“Yeah. Definitely.” He nodded, though the dream of Maya DeLuca still lurked in the back of his mind.
“Good.” Rafe stole a piece of bacon off the plate and Zoey smacked at his hand playfully.
“Thanks again for letting us stay.”
“You’re family.” Rafe shrugged as he chewed. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you want.”
