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Wilder flashed her a quick smile. “I really like kids.”
“They’re about your level, huh?” Jay teased.
“Well, there is that,” Wilder agreed.
“Do you work with kids at the resort?” Hudson asked.
“Yes… However, they’re not usually the ones I enjoy hanging out with.”
“Why’s that?”
Wilder glanced at Hudson before focusing back on Ciara. “To be honest, they can be spoiled brats. Very entitled, and since Mommy and Daddy have paid me to work with them, they think it gives them the right to boss me around. Normally, I don’t care. But when I’m responsible for their safety on the slopes, that type of attitude can be dangerous.”
Hudson nodded. “I can see how that would be.”
“The kids I like the best are the ones I run into on my travels. I’ve made connections with some orphanages and missions that work with street children, and I volunteer with them when I’m in the vicinity. There’s nothing more fun than rocking up with candy and seeing the joy a simple piece of candy brings to these kids. I’ll play basketball or tag with them. They just soak up the love and attention.”
Huh. Kayleigh had never realized exactly how Wilder had spent his time. She had a feeling that she wasn’t the only one who had just assumed he was spending his time lounging on a beach.
“How did you get involved with them?” Gareth asked, proving Kayleigh’s assumption correct.
Wilder stared at Ciara for a moment, a frown marring his features. “A couple of weeks before I came home—not this last time, but the time before—I witnessed a… situation in Thailand that brought me in contact with an organization that worked with the street children there. I kept in contact with them, and when I left Serenity at the end of winter last year, I went back there, and they then put me in touch with other organizations in other countries where I could volunteer.”
“Why didn’t you ever share about that on your social media?” Janessa asked. “Unless I missed it.”
“No. You didn’t miss it.” Wilder leaned forward and bussed a kiss on Ciara’s cheek, which made her laugh. “My social media is for making money, and that’s become even more important now that I’ve decided that I want to contribute financially to these organizations.”
“Wilder James Halverson,” Gareth said sternly. “Why didn’t you tell us about all of this? Youknowthat we’d all chip in to help you. Do Mom and Dad know?”
“I’ve mentioned in passing that I visited a couple of orphanages.”
“They’d probably even agree to go to those places and offer health care for the kids.”
“I’d love to do that too,” Misha said.
“Do you mind if we all jump on board, Wilder?” Kayleigh asked.
“Not at all,” he said.
“Then let’s have a family meeting with Mom and Dad and discuss ways we can help before you leave again,” Gareth said.
Wilder gave them a smile before emotion seemed to wipe it away. “Thanks, guys. I appreciate it, and I know the places where I volunteer will feel the same way.”
Kayleigh hadn’t imagined the more serious turn their evening would take, and she hoped it wasn’t too much for Hudson. No doubt it was more than he would have expected to be a part of when he’d agreed to come for pizza.
Once everyone was done eating, Kayleigh got up to help clear the table and get coffee and dessert. It didn’t take long because there wasn’t any food left to clear off the table, just the plates.
“Hope you don’t mind a bit of Christmas still,” Charli said as she set a platter of cookies and bars on the table. “We have a ton of Christmas cookies in our freezer that need to be eaten.”
“You know I can eat these cookies all year round,” Will said. “As long as they’re not pity cookies.”
“Definitely not pity cookies,” Charli assured him.
“Pity cookies?” Hudson asked.
“That’s what we called all the cookies my mom made me last year to make me feel better after I went through a breakup. I got a bit sick of them then because I had to eat them every day in order to keep up with how many my mom brought me.”
“So they were pity cookies because she felt sorry for you?”
