“You love my sister. Don’t you?”
Rohan would admit that he was a little taken aback by the question. In the time that he and Jalen had been dating, hewould admit that he cared deeply for her. He’d never put a word to it, hadn’t had a need to because he knew what he felt, and when they were both ready for what the next emotional step entailed, he was ready for it. But he was never one to lie. So, he answered her honestly.
“I believe you’re right, Kodi.”
She nodded at him. “That’s good and all, but I need you to understand something. She’s the only mother figure that the twins have ever had. We all need her. Which means you don’t need to make it hard on her when she can’t spend time with you because she is taking care of them. I’m not saying you’re going to, but the one time she really tried to date, when she first started taking care of us, it went that way. You’re a nice guy, Rohan. Jalen enjoys spending time with you, and my sisters like you.”
“What about you?” he asked her. “Do you like me?”
She pulled her knees up to her chest and laid her cheek on them, looking at him. “I do. So, don’t make her choose, because you’ll lose...okay?”
Rohan nodded at the teenager before smiling and bumping her lightly. He could respect the fact that she was looking out for her sister. Looking out for all of them, really, but he knew he would never ask her to choose. He would accommodate as any real man should. He was, however, confused about where this had come from.
“What brought this on?” he asked.
“I heard you telling her she needed to make your relationship a priority. Which she does, by the way,” Kodi responded.
He couldn’t help but chuckle. Realizing that she had caught the tail end of their conversation earlier, and had guessed what they were talking about. He could see how it could have sounded that way when the rest of the conversation wasn’t heard.
“That wasn’t what I was telling her to prioritize.”
“It...it wasn’t?” Kodi questioned in confusion.
Rohan shook his head. “I was telling her to prioritize herself. Even if that meant she had less time for us.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I completely misunderstood.”
“Don’t worry about it. I get you want what’s best for all of your sisters. I do too.”
“I believe you.”
He nodded. “Now, let’s go see if we can out-push your sister.”
They got off the table and went to the swings. They spent the rest of the time at the park playing with the youngest four.
26
Jalen looked over at the twins to ensure they were okay as they bounced in the blow-up house. The park was filled with laughs and screams of joy, and Jalen was making sure that was exactly what it was when she heard a scream come from any direction.
Kodi was manning the photo area where kids could get their pictures taken in their costumes. Vivian had a Polaroid camera she’d brought as a backup in case Mikal wanted to use hers to take pictures as she played. About half an hour into the party, Landon started doing caricature drawings of a few people.
Trenton was supervising kids on the jump swing, ensuring they were strapped in correctly and taking turns. Vivian was manning the food table, serving the kids as they decided they wanted to eat. Maria was helping with an obstacle course that they’d rented.
Vega had also returned to town for the party and was helping. Jalen had simply introduced him as a friend. She hadn’t told her sisters, aside from Kodi, who knew he was her father, that he might be their father. They planned on having the conversation the following evening at dinner, and she knew that he and Kodi were communicating.
Jalen and Rohan were moving about the park, monitoring all the kids that had been invited. There was a turnout of fifteen kids from school along with Alynn, and Maria’s kids. Some parents had stayed for a bit, stating they’d be back when the party was over, but then there were some that didn’t even try to pretend they weren’t getting a free babysitter. Jalen hadn’t expected it to be much different.
They’d decided they would let the kids eat whenever they felt like it, but they would do the cake and gifts in the last forty-five minutes of the party. That way, the kids had ample time to play, and if some didn’t want to eat, they didn’t have to and could play the entire time without having to wait on everyone else.
Mikal was doing a good job of playing the perfect little hostess and splitting her time evenly among the kids in attendance. They were an hour and a half in and had another hour for the kids to play before they would cut the cake and open presents.
Jalen went over to where Vivian was sitting. The older woman smiled at her when she saw her approaching.
“Hey, are you finally ready for some food?” Vivian questioned.
“I am. I think most of the kids have eaten at this point.”
She made herself a cheeseburger. They’d rented two separate warmers to keep the patties and wieners warm and another one for the cookies she’d made. Grabbing a bag of chips, she sat down beside Vivian and watched Mikal run over to Trent with a few kids behind her.
