Page 71 of Romeo

I loved it, even when it made my head hurt.

I was setting down the last fork when the front door opened.

“Granny!”

Jasper and Jasmine came barreling into the kitchen and wrapped themselves around Granny’s legs.

“Careful, careful!” Josie followed behind them with a casserole dish balanced in her arms.

Georgie walked in right behind her, carrying a bottle of wine.

His eyes found mine and his smile came a second too late.

There it was again. Whatever had been sitting between us since Valentine’s Day.

“They’ve been asking about dessert since we left the house,” Josie said while the twins disappeared toward the stairs. “I swear they get louder every day.”

“That’s what happens when you feed them,” I said.

Georgie set the wine on the counter and crossed the kitchen toward me. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head.

Usually, I sank into his hugs without thinking. This time I noticed how tight his shoulders were. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one pretending everything was normal.

Josie grinned at me. “How was your day?”

“Fine.”

Jasper’s text immediately flashed through my head.

Stop doing that.

I sighed. “Busy. Lots of homework.”

“Senior year,” Josie said sympathetically. “It’ll be over before you know it.”

I nodded, though lately graduation felt less like a finish line and more like the edge of something I couldn’t quite see over.

“Fee! Fee!”

Charlie saved me from thinking about it.

I scooped him up and kissed his soft hair. “Hey, buddy. Did you miss me?”

He babbled something only he understood and grabbed a fistful of my hair.

“Charlie, gentle,” Claudia said as she came into the kitchen.

I loosened his fingers while Frank followed her in with Theodore and Benedict strapped against his chest in a double carrier. Both twins were asleep despite the noise.

I stared at him. “How do you do it? Three kids under two?”

“Caffeine,” Frank said dryly. “And denial.”

Claudia laughed. “And a lot of help from family.”

I held Charlie a little closer before setting him into his highchair.

Family.