Page 117 of Nothing to This

JD folded his arms.“Might come back.”

“Not tonight it won’t,” she said, smiling at her child even as she felt his grin burning into her.“You want to go back to bed, sweetpea?”

“Mm,” Sky said, nodding.

Rather than retreat, their daughter went past her parents to climb up on her father’s bed.

“Looks like you won’t be sleeping alone after all.”

Sky pulled back the covers to lie right in the middle.

“Daddy has to have a shower and get ready for bed,” he said.

Their daughter yawned and turned to bury her face in the pillow.

“Sleep well,” she said.

He blocked her route out.“Siren—”

“I’m okay.Look after our girl.”

When he raised her hand to his lips, she rested a hand on his abdomen for a second and then departed.

Time for bed.Alone.Was that what any of them wanted?

***

Was it what she wanted?Breakfast simmered away, coffee dripped through the machine, and the thought just kept coming back.What did she want?Mores the point, what was she waiting for?It should be a simple decision.

“We’ll ask Grama, okay?”

Spinning around, her smile automatically shone at the sight of JD with Kye on his back and Sky clinging to his neck at the front, like a pair of monkeys hanging onto a tree.

“And I thought there would be three separate entities joining me.”

“Don’t worry, I’m bigger and stronger than these two tearaways,” JD said, plucking Sky from him to sit her down.

“We’re gonna ask Grama,” Sky said, wriggling in her seat.

“We’re going to ask Grama what?”

JD poured milk for the kids.“They missed her this weekend.I said we’d invite her over for dinner.”

“Okay.”Did he read her tone?Still pouring, his questioning gaze ascended to hers.“Or they could eat at Grama’s.”

He winked and put down the jug.“Or that.”

“Baird is supposed to call from Italy at three.”

“His time or our time?”

“Our time.”

He stopped spreading jelly on toast to frown at her.“What’s he doing calling you at midnight?”

“You’d have to ask him.”

“I will ask him,” he said and finished the spreading to cut the toast in triangles, giving two quarters to each of the kids.“Mommy made your snacks already, but you’ll have lunch upstairs with us.”