“Time out.” Gus, dressed in flannel like always, shifted Simone on his lap and put his elbow on the table. “You’re racing a pumpkin in a river?”
Hands splayed on the table, Julian beamed. “I’m the captain.”
“He picked the pumpkin too,” Ellie said, looking at him with genuine affection that made my heart expand.
“I had to find a brave one,” Julian explained. “It had scars. And I could feel it.”
“That’s on brand,” Gus muttered.
“We used power tools,” Ellie added casually. “And I got to hold the hack saw.”
Brow furrowed, Chloe looked at me.
“Josh used them,” Maggie corrected. “Ellie got to hold if for like a second while Josh showed her how he was going to cut the top off. She’s exaggerating.”
Ellie stuck her tongue out at her sister.
“We were safe,” Julian said. “Josh loves safety rules.”
Lips pursed, Chloe sat straighter. “Josh? The landlord?”
I ignored her raised eyebrows and played with the striped straw in my water glass. “He’s… thorough.”
“And funny,” Maggie gushed. “But not like ha-ha joke funny. More…”
“Dry funny,” Ellie chimed in.
“He pretends not to smile,” Julian said. “But he does. And he’s listens really good.”
“His dog Wayne is the best,” Ellie added.
“And he packs great snacks.”
“He bought my special crackers for our trip.”
As they continued blurting out praises, my face flushed.
“He remembers that I don’t like loud noises,” Julian said. “He warns me before anything noisy happens.”
My chest tightened with an unfamiliar ache. It was strange the way they chatted about Josh so casually. Like he was just this safe, dependable presence in their lives. Yet at the same time, it felt natural.
Chloe caught my eye, and my face flamed again. Thankfully, Marco and Tony stepped out from the back, bringing our meals and rescuing me from my sister’s scrutiny.
It took several minutes to get the kids situated with slices and refill drinks, so by the time I set a slice of pizza on my plate, I was confident that I was off the hook.
I was wrong.
“I didn’t realize you were such good friends with your landlord,” Chloe said, picking up a piece of her fig andprosciutto pizza.
I chomped down on a too-big bite to delay my response and shrugged. “He and I are planning the hayrides for the festival. That’s all.”
“Sure.” Ellie snorted, studying her pepperoni.
“And he and I are going to win the pumpkin race,” Julian declared.
“With the giant pumpkin you hollowed out?” Gus asked.
Julian nodded. “The kids here race with their dads. But since my dad’s in jail and Josh’s dad died, we’re doing it together.”