He tilted his head and studied his brothers, who all became far more engrossed in the charcuterie than they were prior.
“For fuck’s sake,” Jackson muttered. “What did you do?”
“I may have encouraged him to ask her out,” Noah said.
“Why?”
“Youweren’t interested, and she deserves to be with someone nice.”
Jackson felt like he had been slapped. Of course Mia deserved someone nice. She deserved the world. But could Jeff give it to her? Could he treat her the way she deserved to be treated? Like a queen?
He sure as fuck couldn’t. Only Jackson could treat her like a queen. He was the only person who knew what books she liked to read: steamy, friends-to-lovers, small town romance. And her favorite food: French toast. Her favorite thing to do in the summer: hike. Her favorite animal: cats.
“I’m going to get her a cat!” Jackson yelled as he slammed his fist on the table, making all the guys jump.
Miles glared. “Shh. Emma is sleeping.”
“A cat?” Noah and Ethan said in unison.
“She loves cats. I’m getting her a cat.”
“A cat? You’re getting her a cat as your grand gesture?” Noah asked.
“It’s genius. She’ll love it.”
His brothers exchanged looks.
“Um, as much as I’m sure she’d love a cat, I think you should probably just tell her how you feel,” Miles said.
“You guys just told me I need a grand gesture.”
“Yes, of letting her knowhow you feel.”
Jackson blinked. “Getting her a cat shows how much I care about her.”
“Daddy.”
All four guys turned toward the little girl at the end of the hallway, rubbing her eyes.
“Hey, peanut,” Miles said. He stood and walked to her, easily picking her up. “What are you doing awake?”
“I heard something loud,” Emma said.
Miles threw a glare at Jackson, who looked sheepish. “Sorry.”
“We’re just talking to Uncle Jackson about something, and he got overly excited,” Miles said. He carried Emma over to the table and sat in his chair with her on his lap.
“What are you excited about?” she asked.
Jackson leaned forward in his seat and whispered. “Can you keep a secret?”
She perked up and leaned forward. “Yes.”
“I’m thinking about getting Mia a cat.”
Emma’s eyes lit up. “Can I come over and pet it?”
“Of course you can.” Jackson looked smugly at the guys. “See? It’s a great idea.”
