"Don't give him any warning, but we're going to head over that way and see if we can help."
Aiden sounded relieved as he thanked her and hung up.
Maybe this was a mistake. She shouldn't keep the kids out late on a school night. Then again, if it snowed a lot, school might be cancelled.
She trudged up the stairs, flicking the hall light on as she went. There was instant silence from the boys. Lindsey hadn't made a peep the whole night, and Jilly hesitated at the girl's doorway.
Lindsey’s meltdown at school had been caused by a little girl who’d made an unkind comment about Lindsey not having a real mom. Jilly had had a long talk with the girl after school. Obviously, Lindsey’s emotional day had worn her out. Jilly hated to wake her.
She was reaching for the knob when she heard something from the boy's room. A thump, like something had fallen.
Suspicion roared its head like a dragon waking. She left Lindsey's door and went to the boys' room, opening their door with a rush, the light from the hall falling in a triangle inside. The smell hit her nose like always—sweaty boy with a side of stale socks.
She flipped on the light to see Casey on all fours, reaching for a bundle of black-and-brown fur crouched behind a basketball and hissing. PJ was halfway out of his bed, one leg tangled in the blankets.
Her heart sank.
"You stole Noah's kitten?"
"We didn't steal her. We just borrowed her." PJ spoke quickly from his bed, raising his hands placatingly.
She used her finger and the force of her mom-stare to point Casey back to his bed. He didn't move.
She stepped into the room and scooped up Honey, who calmed from her frazzled state, though little claws like little needles pricked Jilly's skin through her sweater.
"What were you thinking? How could you do that to Noah? He's your friend."
Casey stood by the edge of his bed, his arms crossed over his thin chest. He wore a belligerent scowl. "The only reason he tolerates us is to get with you."
"He made us paint his house," PJ said, his tone an echo of his cousin's. She saw a hint of something in his eyes, as if maybe he didn't entirely believe the words. Maybe he was parroting what he'd heard Casey say.
"Imade you paint his house. He didn't even want us there."
"He didn't even want us there," Casey repeated. "And now he's all interested in you. He probably got the cat to keep us distracted while he worked his charms on you."
Noah didn't have any charm. The wayward thought almost brought a smirk, but the circumstances quashed the insane moment of amusement.
PJ's voice was more subdued now, quieter. "He probably doesn't even want Honey anymore. Just like you won't want us when you and Noah get together and then get married and start having babies."
She saw the shine of tears in the young boy's eyes. That, combined with his words, hit like an arrow, deflating her anger. She folded onto the end of his bed, the kitten in her lap.
The boys had taken everything out of context and twisted it all around.
"There's a lot of stuff we need to talk about," she said. "Starting with the fact that you guys are stuck with me. I...I don't know what's going to happen with me and Noah." Two weeks ago, she would've said definitively that there was nothing between them. Nothing for the boys to worry about. But now, between his gruff nature and his gentleness with the kids, he had snuck past the walls she'd tried to keep up. He’d snuck into her heart.
"Even if we decide that we want to start dating, even if our relationship gets more serious, it won’t change how I feel about the two of you. Or about Lindsey. I love you guys."
PJs face crumpled, and she held out one arm. The too-skinny boy leaned into her side, allowing her to put her arm around him. His head fell on her shoulder, and she felt tiny trembles go through him, though she didn't think he was actually crying.
Casey still stood stoically next to his bed. His expression hadn't changed. If anything, he looked more stubbornly separate.
"You say that now," he said. "But you don't know what's going to happen after Christmas. Or in a few months."
"No, I don't. Nobody else does either. All I can do is try to do my best to be your mom." She hadn't told him yet that the wheels were in motion for an adoption. It was still early, and so many things could go wrong. The system was broken, but she was praying hard that the right doors would open.
"You guys have to do your best, too," she said. "And I don't think that's what happened tonight with Noah and the kitty."
PJ buried his face into her shoulder. Casey had the grace to look a little ashamed.
