Wyatt exhaled and obviously made a conscious effort to relax. “Okay. What else?”
“What do you mean?” Justin asked.
Wyatt looked at Del. “What else, Dad?”
“Well, I may have had Paul come up with some names for helpful people. You get to vet everyone yourself of course, to find the people you work with the best.”
“Paul is our family lawyer,” Wyatt explained to Izzy. Then he looked at Del again. “What. Else.”
Del coughed awkwardly, avoided looking at Wyatt for a moment, and finally confessed, “I may have put down a deposit for the property I think you’ll like the most. It’s in downtown Redlands.”
Justin said “Del!” at the same time Wyatt groaned, “Dad…”
“I know, I know, and I’m sorry! But it was honestly the one I think you’ll like the most and it has room for growth. If you want to say, add a café later or just expand the business. And it has an apartment above it, too.”
“A whole building, Dad?” Wyatt made another groan-y sound and let his temple thump against Izzy’s shoulder.
“It was too good to not put a deposit in. They’re keeping it for two weeks. Well, one and a half now. But it’s too good of a building to let go to someone else.”
“And what if I don’t want it?”
“Then I’ll take the loss of that deposit.”
“It’s not like Dad can’t afford it,” Lettie said calmly, before eating some more of the Stew.
“Fine.Fine.Butyou’rethe one who calls Harper after dinner and tells her what you’ve done,” Wyatt said, his tone snappish enough to make something in Izzy perk up.
As much as he loved the timid yet brave Wyatt, there was something about the assertive moments that made Izzy’s stomach clench pleasantly.
Del took in a deep breath, then looked at Wyatt and said, “Fair. I deserve it.”
Justin chuckled and looked at Izzy, and he looked genuinely warm for once. “Did I say ‘welcome to the family’ yet?”
