“What does ‘all those good things’ mean?”
“What do you girls have on Christmas?” I ask them.
“Whatever Grandma and Dad make.”
“Wait,” I say, setting my fork on my plate to be dramatic. “Lemme guess…steak and potatoes.”
Wylder nods, letting a little laugh slip. It takes me back for a second. The man has a perpetual scowl, but when he lets that mask down, he’s stunning. “But I could get behind seven fishes too.”
“Well, my mother’s always happy to feed the masses,” I say, not really thinking about how I just invited them to Christmas without a second thought.
“We could come to your house on Christmas?” Hazel says excitedly.
“Baby, we’re far away from Christmas. We’ll see what happens. Things change.”
Hazel’s little shoulders sag forward as she stabs at her tofu like she’s trying to murder it. “Oh. Okay.”
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?” Wylder asks, changing the subject when he realizes he’s crushed Hazel’s excitement.
“I do. I have two brothers, Mason and Braxton.”
“I’d like to have a brother,” Hazel says casually as she inspects her egg roll.
“They’re not all they’re cracked up to be, kid. Boys are kind of smelly.” I glance up, finding Wylder staring at me. “No offense.”
“None taken,” he mumbles, still pushing around the tofu on his plate.
“Are they older or younger?” Maddy asks.
“Both are younger. When my dad got remarried, they had Mason, so he’s much younger than me.”
“So, you have a different mom?” Hazel asks.
I nod. “Yeah, but I don’t think of him any differently. He’s my brother, through and through.”
“You think if our mom has a baby boy, they’ll be our brother too?”
“Of course.” But this time when I look at Wylder, he’s not smiling. A mask of agitation has covered his face.
“We’ll never see him anyway, so it won’t matter,” Maddy says without looking at anyone.
Damn.
Any happiness evaporates quickly around these kids because Katie’s such a twat. I can’t imagine my life without Brax and Mason, even if they are complete pains in the ass.
“They’ll always be your brother,” I explain, trying to take their sadness away.
“I’ll make sure you see him, if that ever happens,” Wylder tells the girls. “Don’t worry.”
Maddox peers up from her half-eaten plate of food. “You’d do that, Dad?”
“I’ll always do what’s best for you, and knowing your brother or sister is one of those things.”
“Do you have any siblings, Wylder?” I ask.
“One sister and two brothers.”
“Uncle Thumper is so much fun,” Hazel says, and I glance at her with my eyebrows high.
