Chapter 0411

Only twelve times, apparently, much to Rosie and Jesse’s glee.

Mom, Dad, Cora and Roger stay in their own tight knit little group tonight, I think reminiscing about old times – one of their favorite hobbies – while grandpa Henry and the rest of the boys sit around the couch, joking and laughing about the usual boy stuff – sports, and fighting, and daring trials of masculinity or whatever. Jesse breaks away every few minutes to send the kids on another mission, or to tackle them, or to lift one up on his shoulders and spin them around.

I grin, watching him, loving how good of a brother he is.

Seraphina, to my delight, chooses to sit on my lap, over in the quiet corner where I’m sitting with Jackson and Juniper. Junie’s reading a book – a nice, thick fantasy romance, I see, her favorite – but Jackson and I are just sitting quietly.

We were chatting quietly until Seraphina came over. But the minute she sank down in my lap Jackson fell a bit quiet, looking at my tiny cousin askance like he’s a deer that’s ready to run from the greatest predator of all time.

When I notice the tension in Jackson’s body, I burst out laughing.