“You may need to be a bit more specific,” Ink said.
“Anything from khakis and a polo shirt to dress slacks, a button-down shirt, and a tie. I usually wear dress slacks and a nice blouse.”
Dice’s phone dinged again and he started laughing in earnest after reading the message. “Flint said he’ll have his mom go shopping for him.”
“Oh, now I feel bad.”
“Don’t. He’s happy to help, and Annabelle will love shopping for him,” Dice said.
“Well, that was easy,” Ink said. “This was delicious, by the way.”
“Thanks, I’m glad you enjoyed it,” I said as I replayed what Dice had just said. “Hold on. Annabelle is Flint’s mom?” I asked.
“Yes,” Dice said. “And Phoenix is his dad.”
“How many kids do they have?”
Ink laughed as Dice answered. “Four. Ember and Coal are the older twins, and Blaze and Flint are the younger twins.”
“What about Nathan?” I asked.
“Nathan is Annabelle’s son, and Phoenix’s stepson. It’s their story to tell, but Octavius wreaked havoc on their family, too.”
“It’s none of my business. I just didn’t realize Flint was their son.”
“Now that we’ve got that settled, and I’ve had dinner, I guess I’ll get out of your hair.”
“You don’t have to leave on my account,” I said.
“Do you two have any plans this evening?”
“I was going to start a load of laundry, but that’s about it.”
Ink clapped his hands together and smiled. “Great! There’s a new movie I want to watch, and Dice’s TV is bigger than mine. Hey, man. You got any popcorn?”
“You can have some more pancakes if you’re still hungry,” I offered.
“He’s full, but?—”
“You can’t watch a movie without snacks, and popcorn is the best one,” Ink finished.
“Noted,” I laughed. “I’m going to go start my laundry.”
“You’re coming back for the movie, right?” Ink asked hopefully.
“Is it a horror movie?”
“No, it’s a rom-com.”
“Seriously?”
Ink laughed. “No. It’s an action movie, I guess. I don’t know. It’s about tornadoes.”
“Oh, I’ve been wanting to see that. I’ll be right back.”
11
DICE