He nods. “It’s so very bad!”
When I walk through to the dining room carrying a silver jug of mint sauce, Alara looks up and notices the grin still spread over my face.
“What has you so happy?” she asks, smiling.
“Roger thinks he might be out of a job. He’s worried the family isn’t going to need him anymore,” I smirk.
Isaak can barely keep himself together, and Josiah quickly blurts out, “I got a taste of Alara’s duck before all of you,when I snuck in there to check on it while Roger was busy tidying up. It was…special.”
“I think we should get her a cooking course as a gift. If she’s this good now, imagine what she’ll do after a few lessons!” I suggest. “Everyone should follow their passions and try to grow them.”
“Nowthatis abrilliantidea,” Isaak says, looking so horribly relieved that it’s making me want to burst out laughing. “Idefinitelythink Alara should take a cooking course. What a great idea!”
“Really? You think I’m good enough that it would be worth taking a class?” Alara asks, beaming.
“Absolutely!” Isaak nods, smiling from ear to ear.
Dinner is amazing. The duck Roger made was amazing.
And I strangely feel very at home and comfortable around his brother and sister, who have been more welcoming than I ever could have expected.
After dinner, I help Alara carry the plates through to the kitchen. Josiah scolds us both and says we have cleaners for that, but Alara scoffs and dismisses him with a wave of her hand. “Not everything needs to be done for us,” she scolds him in return.
Alara is busy putting away the leftovers when I wander out of the kitchen to find the twins.
Walking towards the living room, I pause, hearing my name being whispered. I stand closer to the wall to listen.
Josiah is speaking to Isaak in hushed tones.
“I can’t believe you kept this from us,” Isaak complains.
“I didn’t. I only found out about them recently. A week ago. I had no idea before that!” Josiah insists. “I feel like I’vemissed out on a world of wonder that I can never get back. It must have been incredible watching them grow up. They are such beautiful little girls. So full of character. And even though they’re twins, it’s absolutely amazing how different they are. You know, Kelsey and I are very similar. She has a quiet way about her that I understand. And Kira. Well, that little monster is just a raging ball of sunshine,” he laughs.
I listen quietly with a smile on my face and my heart softening.
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to stay angry with him, the same way it was almost impossible to keep my defensive walls up tonight after meeting his brother and sister again.
It's clear they had nothing to do with Josiah breaking up with me. Their warmth and kindness are too genuine.
Walking away from their conversation, I find the twins in the living room playing with the basket of toys. They deserve to have a father. They deserve a whole family of people who care about them. I need to give him a chance. At least for them. Not another chance with my heart. That will never happen. He might deserve a chance to be their father, though.
It’s getting late.
The twins are starting to yawn. I nudge Josiah. “They need to get to bed,” I whisper.
He nods. As he stands up, though, his phone rings.
“Sorry, I’ll just be a minute,” he tells me.
He walks a bit away from us and answers the call. His voice immediately becomes stiff and aggressive. He keeps his words quiet, and I can’t make out what he’s saying, but he sounds angry.
The call ends. Isaak is standing now, too, watching him.
“What is it?” his brother asks.
“We need to go to the warehouse,” he snaps.
“Alright, let me grab my phone,” Isaak says.
