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“Thank you. That’s very kind of you.”

Anna scurried back out of the room. Even though my parents had asked her time and again to sit with us and eat, she said she didn’t like to interrupt our family time.

I turned my attention to my parents. “I wouldn’t have to do a lot,” I admitted, “because the owners are very hands-on. It’s something dear to my heart. Animal therapy helped me a lot when I went through the divorce. That’s why I’d like to invest in something that I know would help others.”

Mom looked at me with soft eyes. “You’ve always had a great heart.”

“By the way,” I said, “do you know Isabeau of the LeBlanc-Broussard clan?”

Dad looked up. “Of course. Everyone knows her. And Celine, too, though Isabeau is always a bit...”

“Harder to overlook,” Mom said. “Why?”

“I heard they have a store in the Quarter with natural handmade fragrances and soaps, creams, and so on. I was thinking about maybe paying them a visit, see if there’s a way we could work together.”

“That would be a smart way to restore a bit of credibility to the Deveraux name in the Quarter,” Dad said.

“That didn’t occur to me.” It was the first time I realized how important this was for him. He wanted to fix the family name in any way he could, and this collaboration would help a great deal.

“Darling,” Mom cut in, “it’s not Grace’s responsibility to repair what our sons did wrong.”

“No, no, of course not,” Dad said. “It was just a thought.”

I decided to change the subject. “So, tell me what you two have been up to.”

My parents had an amazing social life. Even though they didn’t attend as many events as they used to, they filled their time with a lot of activities such as visiting art museums and so on. I wanted to know every detail, and they were more than happy to oblige.

Chapter Nineteen

Zachary

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“This is my absolute favorite one,” Bella said, jumping off the couch the second the credits rolled onGoblet of Fire.

I was at Chad’s home, and we were all in the living room. He was sitting between us, looking like he’d just spent the most boring two hours of his life staring at the TV screen. Scarlett had put Simone down for a sleep and was in full Potterhead mode. She’d been commentating on the movie with me and Bella the entire time. I bet one of the reasons Bella loved her so much was because she was a fan of Harry Potter.

Beckett had joined us. Bailey was here, too, because she was also a fan. She hadn’t brought Xander over, though. Our brother had excused himself, saying that he needed to check some reports. I knew that was code for “you won’t catch me dead there.” He usually indulged Bella, but he probably figured that since so many of us were here anyway, it made no sense this time.

“You know what?” I said. “It’s my favorite, too, butting heads withOrder of the Phoenix.”

Chad glared at me. What did I do wrong?

It hit me the next second when Bella said, “Dad, can we watch that one too?”

Oh fuck. I should’ve said that this one is my favorite.

“I misspoke.Goblet of Fireis my favorite of them all.”

Bella narrowed her eyes. “Don’t lie, Uncle Zachary. You said it’s never good to lie.”

“True.” I knew I had to be careful with what I told her or I’d eat my words.

Bella jumped into her dad’s lap, and I knew she was getting into full-on sales mode. “Look, you already agreed to let me watchGoblet of Fire.Order of the Phoenixcan’t be much darker than that, is it? I’m not scared at all.”

Chad looked at me. “Is it darker?”

“Yes,” I said without hesitation.