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Roe followed the sound and stopped in the entry. Pizza boxes covered the counters, and the delicious smell made his stomach growl. Mack and the kids were gathered around the table with a familiar gameboard laid out in front of them. Benji sat on Mack’s lap, clearly providing his expert help onMunchkin, the family’s favorite game.
“Okay, I can totally take a potted plant,” Daphne said, grinning. “I have fifteen strength against its one. No one can mess this up for me. Iwillget to level nine.”
“Oh, my dearest sister,” Tris said, smirking, “How wrong you are. I have three cards to play here to increase that potted plant’s power to sixteen.”
He laid them on the table, crowing with joy.
Daphne groaned. “Seriously? I can’t even take a potted plant?”
“Should we help, Benji?” Mack asked.
The little boy scrunched up his face, thinking hard. “Daffy makes cookies.”
Tris scowled. “I’ll make you cookies if you don’t help her, Benji.”
“Tris burn cookies.” Benji shook his head, looking immensely sad. “Poor cookies.”
Mack snickered. “That decides it. Add our twenty-six strength to her fifteen.”
Daphne pumped her fist while Tris groaned, flopping back in his seat.
“I hope you draw the plutonium dragon on your next turn,” Tris said, glaring at Daphne. “I’m winning this time, darn it.”
Roe shook his head and started looking through the cabinets. It appeared cookies were needed to keep the peace.
Chapter 5
Later that evening, after the kids were in bed and Wally was doing one last patrol of the property, Mack looked through Roe’s sketchbook. The man was talented and had an intriguing imagination.
“This is beautiful,” Mack said, shaking his head in awe. “I can almost guarantee that Harper will enjoy helping create it.”
Roe lounged back in the chair Mack had dug out of the attic, his long fingers wrapped around a mug of chamomile tea.
A sweet, slightly shy smile lit Roe from the inside out. “Thank you for today. It’s been a while since I’ve been that into my art. I’m glad I got to finish the sketch. Harper is about to become my new best friend. That’s just how it’s going to be.”
Mack snorted a laugh and sat on the ottoman next to Roe’s feet. “I think he’ll enjoy that—or at least tolerate it.”
Roe chuckled for a moment and then settled back in his chair with a contented sigh. “This is the most relaxed I’ve been in two years. That’s nuts, right?”
“Not at all.” Mack fought back a scowl as he thought of Roe’s ex. “Have James and Gabriel been like this since the divorce?”
Roe shook his head. “Nope. At first, everything was okay. James got what he wanted: the company. He and Gabriel married as soon as the divorce was final, and I thought I’d never hear from them again. That should have been it. Hell, James kept my name, so he’s even a Dorsey running Dorsey Investments.”
“I’m sorry you lost the family business.”
“It’s not so bad.” Roe’s eyes grew soft. “I never wanted to work there. Grandpa Ben encouraged me to focus on my art. All I ever wanted were children and my art. My parents and Grandpa Roland understood. They loved the business, but it was because they built it together. Family was always the priority.”
“That sounds about right.” Mack nodded. “Darren and I had that focus, too. Our parents didn’t, for one reason or another, but we wanted to build our family with that principle as a foundation. Family and unconditional love.”
A slightly calloused hand came to rest on top of his own. “How long has he been gone?”
“Almost fifteen years now.” Mack leaned forward, bracing his arms on his knees. “He got sick, cancer. One day he seemed good, and a few weeks later, he was gone.”
Roe squeezed Mack’s hand. “Tell me about him?”
Mack grinned. “He was a pistol. Adventurous and wild, but loyal to a fault. Fierce and protective. He knew how to love with every bit of his heart.”
“I wish I could have met him,” Roe said softly. “I’d beg him to teach me that whole heart thing.”
