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Still, I loved how she’d found a new hobby and ruffled her hair. “My little Star Baker.”
She moved away. “Da-ad, don’t do that. I’m not a baby.”
“But you’ll always be my baby girl.”
Wyatt sniggered. I pulled him close and kissed the top of his head. He made a gagging sound before he wiggled away.
I couldn’t stop smiling.
Zach appeared in front of us and raised his eyebrows. “Stop it. You’re scaring me.”
Avery looked up at me and back at her uncle. “Why?”
Zach smirked. “Your dad is smiling. The world must be about to end.”
I gently shoved him and, he shoved me back.
Avery rushed between us. “Be nice, Daddy.”
I saluted her and she turned toward Zach. He tossed her up into the air a second—he wouldn’t be able to do that much longer—and set her down on the ground.
I grunted. “Is your leg even strong enough for that?”
Zach had broken his leg a few months ago and had only recently started walking on his own again.
My brother waved a hand in dismissal. “I’m fine, West. I’m not a little kid anymore.”
He was right, although it was still hard for me to accept it. Zach and his twin brother Zane hadn’t been much older than my own kids when I’d left Starry Hills.
Not wanting to go down that train of thought, I grunted. Grunting was always a good way to avoid saying too much. “Avery, Wyatt, go wash your hands before dinner.”
Begrudgingly they went, leaving me alone with my little brother. Zach stared at me and then grinned. “You’re being an ass because you had to see Millie, aren’t you?”
Rolling my eyes, I pushed past him. “Grow the fuck up, Zach.”
“Never. It’s too fun to tease you about this shit.” Zach easily kept up with my long strides. He added, “Are you still looking for someone to watch the twins? I need to go into town tomorrow, and I can ask around.”
I should say yes. It would be easier to find someone to watch the kids, someone who didn’t both stare at me with anger and turn my dick hard at the same time.
And yet, I couldn’t completely ignore what my kids wanted. So I asked Zach, “Do you trust Amber King and her family?”
Zach blinked. “Um, of course. Why?”
“Her property is on the other side of Emilia’s. If—and that’s a big if—I let them go over there to play during the day, I want to make sure I can trust everyone nearby.”
“Millie’s third neighbor is the Evans family, and of course you can trust them. Kyle is best friends with Beck, and one of the girls—Katie—is best friends with Abby and Millie. I’m sure even you remember the BFF Circle.”
“Is that thing still around?”
Zach snorted. “Yes, and going strong. I sometimes think they’re planning to take over Starry Hills, maybe even all of Sonoma, whenever they meet. Not that I know for sure. No matter how often I asked Amber to let me attend one of their meetings at the bakery, she says no.” Then he cleared his throat and added, “I asked Millie and Abby too. Katie is the only one open to it, but only because she likes to stir up shit, I think.”
I glanced over at Zach. He’d teased me, so payback was a bitch. “You still hanging out with Amber like when you were kids?”
He looked away. “No. We’re both too busy these days.”
Pretty much every sibling still in Sonoma—which was everyone but Zane and Nolan—had joked about how Amber had loved Zach since middle school. I wondered if he’d ever noticed.
However, Aunt Lori appeared out of nowhere before I could ask anything else.
