Demi flashes me another one of her knowing looks, and I feel ganged up on. It’s not anything new. The boys are super protective of their mother and always pick her side. I wouldn’t have it any other way though.
Henry grabs his keys from the bowl on the hall table. “I’m heading out to meet some friends. I won’t be late.”
“Will Oli be there?” Demi asks with as much subtlety as a brick.
“Mom.” Henry’s sharp tone matches his sharp gaze. “We’ve already discussed this.”
“Watch your tone with your mother,” I warn.
“I mean no disrespect, Mom, but you and Aunt Abby need to butt out.”
“He’s family, Henry, and Abby and Kai are so worried about him.”
A muscle clenches in his jaw as he yanks the front door open. “Not my problem.”
Demi opens her mouth, but I shake my head. “Let it go,” I mouth. At least for now.
“Drive carefully,” Demi calls out after our headstrong seventeen-year-old.
“Always do,” Henry shouts before getting behind the wheel of his SUV.
“Come on, honey.” I close the door. “We better get back to our guests.” Thankfully, it’s only our close friends left at this stage. It’s been a long, tiring day, and I’m ready to call it a night.
Demi wraps herself around me as we walk down the hallway toward the kitchen. Earlier, we hosted the wake between the formal living room and formal dining room, but we moved to the cozier kitchen-slash-living area a while ago.
The kitchen is at the top of the large square room with a sizable dining area in the middle, and then we have a few couches and chairs at the back of the room facing out over the rear gardens. We’re more comfortable in this space and spend most of our time in this room. While the adults are all on this level, the remaining kids are in the basement downstairs with Jamie and Charlie playing games on the Xbox.
When we reach the kitchen, Athena is vacuuming the floor, Olivia is standing beside the glistening countertops with a cloth in hand, Emery is covering all the leftover food, and Abby is putting the dishwasher on.
“You didn’t have to clean up,” Demi says.
“But we’re grateful,” I add.
“You’re family, and we’re here for you.” Olivia drops the cloth in the sink and then washes and dries her hands.
“We couldn’t have gotten through today without all your help,” Demi says. “Thank you.”
“She was a lovely woman, Charles.” Olivia clasps my cheeks in her slightly damp hands. “Taken far too early, but at least she’s with your father now. Draw comfort from that.”
“I do.”
She pulls me into a hug, and I go readily.
“I’m here when you need me,” she says, breaking our embrace. “You know how much I adore your babies. Jane, Henry, Jamie, and Charlie are as much my grandkids as any of the kids. They aren’t grandparent-less. Just remember that.”
“We love you.” Demi kisses Olivia on the cheeks. “And the kids love you to bits. We’re lucky to have you in our lives.”
“It keeps me young,” she says with a cheeky wink. “Now, I’m going to head home. I’m sure you’re exhausted, so I’ll get out of your hair.”
Darcy is having a sleepover at Grandma’s, so she rushes over carrying a backpack and wearing a big smile. All the kids lovesleeping over at Olivia’s palatial home. She has plenty of space and several guest bedrooms with bunk beds. She’s built a huge playground and obstacle course on the grounds, and she also has a tennis court and a massive outdoor pool.
Demi shows Olivia and Darcy to the door while I grab some fresh beers for Kai, Zayn, Drew, Arlo, and me and a fresh bottle of white wine for the girls. The pussy and Jane have made themselves scarce, and I hope that means Mr. Nice Guy has gone home and isn’t up to things I don’t want to think about with my daughter in her room. I drain half my beer in one go, forcing those hideous thoughts from my mind.
“To Elizabeth,” Kai says, lifting his beer in a toast.
Demi slips onto my lap with a glass of wine as we all clink glasses and celebrate my mom.
“I still can’t believe it,” I confess as we sit companionably, staring out the floor-to-ceiling windows, while sipping our drinks.
