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“I hope he likes me,” he said.

“If he doesn’t, then you have to go.”Charlie chuckled, then froze and pressed her lips together in a slight grimace.I hope he knows I’m joking,she thought, then her shoulders relaxed when she saw he was snickering.

Morgan poured coffee for everyone and sat.Charlie reached into the middle of the table for the creamer at the same time as Brian did, and their hands touched.Brian’s strong hand made Charlie think about what it must’ve been like to have him hold her as a child.Brian gestured for her to use the half-and-half first.

After brunch, everyone pitched in to clean up the table.Brian insisted on washing the dishes, so Morgan dried them, and Abby put them away.Charlie shook out the tablecloth and threw it in the washing machine.

“What’s in the envelope?”Abby asked.

“Pictures of Morgan and Charlie when they were little.”

“Oh,” Abby said, trying to hide her frown.

“I wish I had some of you too, Abby.”

“It’s okay, how could you,” Abby said.

Charlie could tell Abby was trying to rally back from the disappointment.Brian opened the envelope and scattered about twenty pictures onto the table.“This is everything I have.Carla took the rest with her when she left,” Brian said.

There were a few shots from Brian and Carla’s wedding, some of Brian holding Morgan the day she was born, some of him holding Charlie, one of Brian and Morgan in the park in Brooklyn, and one of Brian holding Charlie up to help her blow out the candles at her first birthday party.When they got to the family photos of only the four of them, Charlie noticed Abby was barely glancing at them.

“Are you okay?”Charlie asked Abby.

“It hurts that you’re both in these pictures, and there aren’t any of me.”

“I hate that, too,” Brian said.“I would’ve been so proud to bring you home from the hospital when you were born.”

Morgan put her arm around Abby.“Mom has a lot of pictures of you,” Morgan said to her.“Why don’t you grab one of the photo albums in the garage so Brian can see what you looked like back then.”

“That would be great!”Brian said.

“Okay,” Abby said and went out to the garage.

“She was a cute baby,” Charlie said.

“She was.She looked just like me,” Morgan said.

“That’s so not true,” Charlie said, holding up a picture of Morgan as an infant.“Abby didn’t have your giant pumpkin head—that’s unique to you.”

“At least I didn’t have a big toe that was longer than all the rest,” Morgan said.

“You girls are a riot.I bet your mom had a blast watching you grow up.”He looked away, his eyes misting up.

Abby came back in carrying a couple of photo albums.She regaled Brian with pictures and stories of her from birth to college.

“Can I take a couple of these?I promise to give them back.I want to make copies.”

“Sure, which ones?”Abby asked.

Brian picked out all the pictures that were milestones in Abby’s life.“It’s heartbreaking knowing I wasn’t there for any of you.I couldn’t dry your tears when you were sad or laugh at your favorite jokes.And I wish I could’ve helped out financially.I would’ve happily paid for your education.”

“I still have loans from grad school,” Charlie said.

“How much?”he asked.

“I’m kidding; I paid them off a long time ago.You don’t need to give us anything,” Charlie said.

“But I have a lot to make up to you guys.”