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“Of course they are.” After sharing a few details to help Abby with the winding down of the reception, I exited out the small side door for staff only.
I wasn’t more than a few steps outside before I spotted Avery crouched down, petting Miss Fluffypants’s belly as the black cat rolled around in the dirt.
Once I was close enough, Avery looked up at me and grinned. “She let me pet her belly again, Millie.”
“Why wouldn’t she? After all, you helped with her babies and found good homes for them.”
I’d found the cat in my barn months ago, with five kittens. When the little girl had learned about it, she’d begged to help care for them. At first, I’d said no because she was West’s daughter, and I didn’t want to see him.
But Avery was hard to resist and probably the most opposite of her father as a person could get, and we’d bonded a little.
I looked over and saw Wyatt playing with the boy kitten I’d adopted, Flynn. Avery had named him after the hero in the Disney movie, saying the cat was just as adventurous and a tad mischievous.
I asked Wyatt, “Did you have to get him out of the tree again?”
Wyatt shook his head. “Not today.”
He went back to playing with the cat. In some ways, Wyatt very much resembled his father. And not just because they both shared the same dark hair and blue eyes either.
Avery bounded up to me, the fluffy black cat in her arms. “We’ve been too busy teaching Flynn to fetch. He’s actually getting pretty good at it.”
“You do know he’s not a dog, right?”
Avery stood taller. “You can train cats. It just takes more work.”
Before I could askwhyshe was determined to train my cats, I saw the tall form of Weston Wolfe striding up the path—the one that connected between my land and his—with a scowl on his face.
Of course he’d arrive after Abby had switched out with me. It was going to take every bit of patience I had to be nice to him in front of his kids. I may not like what he’d done to his family, but I couldn’t deny how much he loved his children.
When West met my gaze, I kept my reaction to his strong jaw, delicious scruff, and broad shoulders to myself. Yes, he was handsome, and I’d dreamed a few times of running my hands over his chest and strong arms.
Okay, maybe touching even more than that. But he’d still been an asshole to his family, and that fueled my anger, erasing any attraction. “West.”
“Emilia.”
I gritted my teeth. I didn’t like being called by my full name any longer. He knew that. And still, he ignored my wishes to probably irritate the crap out of me on purpose.
I decided to focus on his kids instead. “Your dad’s here, which means it’s time for you two to go home.”
Avery frowned. “Are you coming to dinner at the big house tonight?”
“No, sweetie. I have another wedding tomorrow, and I need to get ready for it.”
Wyatt stood, crossed his arms, and kicked a rock away. “Everyone’s always too busy for us.”
I blinked. The boy had rarely said anything, and now he dropped something like that?
I couldn’t resist glancing over to West. For the briefest moment, pain flashed in his eyes, but it was gone before I could blink. A very small part of me wondered why.
But then I remembered how he’d turned his back on his family, and I pushed my curiosity aside. After going over to Wyatt, I placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s not because I don’t want to see you, Wyatt. But people hired me a long time ago to help with their wedding, to make their day special, and I can’t let them down.” He said nothing. I crouched a little until we were eye to eye. “Besides, don’t you want to help out your dad this summer? He could teach you the family business, like his dad probably taught him at your age.”
Even if West had never told me that, I’d moved in with the Wolfe family after my parents died when I was ten and had heard plenty of stories about their childhood.
Wyatt kicked another rock. “No, I don’t want to help Dad.” He hesitated and then asked, “Can we come back tomorrow? We won’t be any trouble and we’ll stay out of the way, I promise.”
The boy’s words made my heart hurt because I had a feeling he’d had to use them with his mom. I didn’t know much about his late mother, but the bits and pieces I’d heard from the Wolfe family hinted at addiction problems and not wanting anything to do with her children.
As much as I wanted to say yes, they could come over, it wasn’t my call. I looked up at West. “If you give them your permission, they know the rules and can play here anytime they want. Even when there’s a wedding on, they can stay in the kids’ play area I have for my clients’ children. Or they can explore the old pastureland that’s basically an overgrown meadow these days.”
