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He grimaced. “How about we don’t tell Troy about that. He won’t think I’m the best influence.”
She stuck out her pinky. “Pinky swear.”
As much as it went against every fiber in his gruff, manly being, he wrapped his own pinky up with hers and completed the ritual. If there was one thing that went against his grain more than entering into the kind of pact sealed with his smallest finger and favored by junior high school girls, it was disappointing his sister.
Mila took a sip of her hot cocoa. “Mmmm. It’s good. Spicy or something.”
“Cinnamon.”
“It’s yum. Better than Troy’s, but don’t tell him I said that.”
He gave her a half smile. “Now we both have a secret from Troy.”
She returned his half smile with one of her own. “Don’t kid yourself. Mine’s better.”
He laughed, although he kept it quiet to avoid waking Troy. “I’ll give you that one.”
“You know, you’re laughing more.” She inclined her head as she studied him. “And smiling.”
He shrugged. “That’s good, right?”
“Sure. But weird. I mean, with the whole flying thing. Which sucks. Hard. You should be super bummed.”
“Trust me, I am. Super bummed doesn’t even begin to cover it.”
“Right, but you actually seem happier than just on a normal visit. Which is weird.”
He reached across the island and ruffled her hair. “Maybe I’m just happy to see you.”
She rolled her eyes, and he thought, Damn, no one can do derision like a thirteen-year-old girl. They’ve got that shit down pat.
“Nice try. But I’m here, like, every visit? Nope. This is something else.”
They drank their cocoa in silence, the dim quiet in the kitchen making him feel like he was in a safe cocoon with his sister.
His little sister’s voice interrupted his reverie. “Maybe it’s because of Genevieve.”
“Wait…what?” It took him a second to even process what she’d said, he’d been so lost in his own thoughts. His heart beat faster at the thought that people might know what was going on. Shit, she’d kill him!
“Genevieve. Ella’s friend. You guys hang out, right? You always seem happy when you’re going to see her. You laugh more.”
He thought about that for a moment, casting his mind back over the years. He heard her voice in his mind, saw her smile, pictured her biting wit and animated way of expressing herself.
“See!” Mila insisted, breaking him out of yet another reverie. “You’re doing it again!”
He nodded, smile still firmly in place. “You’re right, kid. I guess I am.”
