Make sure you actually get some work done instead of just staring at her like a creep.
I don’t dignify that with a response, mostly because he’s not wrong.
“Everything okay?” Parker asks, glancing up from her laptop.
“Yeah. Just Cal being Cal.”
She smiles, shaking her head, then goes back to her analysis.
We work in comfortable silence for another twenty minutes before I hear it—the sound of a car pulling into the driveway, doors opening, children’s voices approaching the house.
Parker’s head snaps up. “The boys.”
“I thought they were with Sienna until after lunch?”
“They were supposed to be.” She’s already closing her laptop, straightening papers, trying to make the living room look less like a crime family headquarters and more like a normal workspace.
The front door opens—Parker gave Sienna a key weeks ago—and suddenly the quiet house is filled with noise and energy.
“Mom! Mom, we’re back!” Noah’s voice, excited and breathless.
“We saw three dogs at the main house and Uncle Charles let us pet them!” Liam adds, his words tumbling over each other.
Parker stands just as the boys come barreling into the living room, followed by Sienna carrying a laughing Lottie on her hip, with Jimmy trailing behind looking slightly more composed but equally energetic.
“Hi babies,” Parker says, opening her arms. Noah and Liam crash into her, both talking at once about the dogs and breakfast and something about Mom teaching them a card game.
I stay on the couch, trying to look professional and uninvolved, like I’m just a colleague who happens to be working from her house.
“Uncle Jace!” Noah spots me, his face lighting up. “You’re here!”
So much for professional distance.
“Hey, buddy.” I set aside my tablet. “How was the sleepover?”
“It was awesome! We stayed up super late and watched movies and Jimmy taught us how to—” He stops abruptly, glancing at Parker. “Um. Something we’re probably not supposed to do.”
“Uh huh.” Parker’s eyebrow raises. “We’ll talk about that later.”
Sienna appears in the doorway, looking entirely too amused by the whole situation. “Sorry for the early return. The boys were getting restless, and I figured you might want them back.”
“It’s fine,” Parker says, even though I can see her mentally calculating how much work we’re not going to get done now. “Thanks for taking them.”
“Of course.” Sienna’s eyes flick between me and Parker, that knowing smirk firmly in place. “I see you’re hard at work.”
“Quarterly reports,” I say blandly.
“Mmm. Riveting.”
Liam tugs on Parker’s sleeve. “Mom, can we go to the park? Please? Auntie Sienna said we could if you said yes.”
“Yeah, please please please?” Noah adds, bouncing on his toes. “We’ve been inside all morning and we have so much energy and?—”
“And if we don’t run around we’re going to explode,” Liam finishes.
Parker laughs, the sound warm and genuine. “I don’t know, guys. I’ve got a lot of work to finish and?—”
“I’ll take them,” Sienna offers. “Lottie and Jimmy want to go too. We’ll make it a whole thing.”
