I sigh. “It’s for the best,” I say as convincingly as I can. “I need to figure out what to do with my own life before I can add someone else to my life, don’t you think?”
“Nah. I think you need to add more chaos. I think you tell Dax you love him, buy this place, get married, and have a kid or two.”
“Not an option.”
“How about just that last part then? Because Nicholas really wants a cousin,” she jokes, standing as she glances at her watch. Then she calls to the back, “Nicholas, we really need to get going if we’re going to make it there by dark.”
I frown. “It feels like you just got here,” I say, hugging her.
“That’s because wedidjust get here. Next time, we’ll definitely stay longer.”
“Promise?”
“Promise. Miss you already, Sis,” she says.
I love how she calls meSisso easily.
I’ve never been as close to my sister as I wanted. We keep in touch, and I’d give her my kidney if she ever needed it. But we can’t really relate to each other. Conversations with her always feel stilted, as though I’m talking to her as she gazes down at me from that upper echelon where people of extraordinary talent reside.
She’s just not normal enough to relate to me.
But Ava is so easy to be around. I feel grateful to my brother for bringing her into the family.
And even more grateful that I got an automatic nephew in the deal, I think as Nicholas comes from the kitchen and gives me a hug.
“What have you got there?” Ava asks, eyeing the take-out box Nicholas is holding.
“Something Bo and I baked. He says I’m a really good baker.”
“Nicholas, you’re really good ateverythingyou do,” I tell him. “You have a ton of fun in Orlando, okay? Say hi to Mickey for me.”
He shrugs. “More like the Transformers. I can’t wait to get my picture with Megatron.”
I look at Ava and slice my hand above me as though what he’s saying went right over my head.
“It’s one of the characters at Universal Studios,” Ava explains. “See? If you had a kid of your own with Dax, you’d learn all this important stuff. Just saying.” She gives me a wink as she heads toward the door.
After walking them to their car and swallowing the lump in my throat as their car disappears around a corner, I head back into the diner.
There are a few people eating their burgers, but Penny and Janet look like they can handle it, so I go into the kitchen to see if Bo needs any help.
“What are those?” I ask, spotting a tray of baked goods that aren’t on the menu.
“Raspberry turnovers. Just another thing Harriet won’t let me put on the menu,” he chuckles. “Here. Try one. I was making them with Nicholas. He wanted to learn how to make pie, but they take too long to bake. So I showed him how to make turnovers.” He slides one off the pan and onto a plate.
I take a bite. Sweetness blends with a taste I can’t quite place. “Oh, these are amazing. What is that I taste in the raspberries?”
“Bourbon.”
My eyes bug out. “Bourbon? You gave my precious,onlynephew bourbon?”
He snorts. “I heat the filling. The alcohol’s burned off, I swear.” He gives me an incredulous look. “Andthisis coming from a woman who puts vodka in pie crusts?”
My eyes widen. “You know the secret ingredient?”
“Kiddo, your grandma wasn’t the first person to put vodka in a pie crust. Besides, I might have even poured myself a shot of it after a particularly long day.”
“You didn’t!”