Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 99413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 398(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 398(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
“To be honest, I forgot about it until just now. Cianán takes care of the maintenance and things. I never decided what to do with it.”
“Wait, what made him gift it to you in the first place? Your best friend isn’t related to them by blood. Although I love the way the Blacks and McGowans treat each other as blood.”
“It’s a long story. It had a lot to do with Ian Black himself. One word from him and Cianán began to treat me like a son.”
“I wish I could have met him. He always sounds like such an interesting man. It’s funny how I feel like I knew him and Ellen more than I did when I’ve learned more about each of them from letters and journals, not real life,” I muse.
“You would have loved him. The man was brilliant and commanded everything in the room around him, no matter where he was.”
“Um, sounds like he rubbed off on you,” I say as I move to wrap my arms around him.
“I was lucky to know him.”
“Mommy, Karen took the puzzle I was playing with,” Paulie comes running into the kitchen to whine.
“No, I didn’t. I had it first. Stop lying on me,” Karen calls out.
“Paulie,” I groan.
He turns the corner and sees his father and stops in his tracks. I want to burst out laughing as he starts to slowly back away. He knows he’s in trouble.
“Why shouldn’t we lie, Paulie?”
“Be … because if you lie about the little things, you can’t be trusted with the really important things and people won’t believe you when it’s important,” he says in almost a whisper.
“Do you think any of us should trust you with all the lies you tell?”
“No.”
“Then why do you keep lying?”
“Because … because. Because I wanted to play with that puzzle. It’s the only one I haven’t done yet.
“Karen just got to it before me, and I wanted Mom to make her give it to me. It’s mine to play with,” he says.
“Oh no. Little boy, come—”
LaSalle places a hand on my arm as I get ready to snatch Paulie’s little butt up. I don’t do entitlement. There isn’t a toy in this house that this little boy has paid for to be talking about something being his.
“I’m going to place you in time-out: ten minutes for lying. When those ten minutes are done, you will apologize to Karen for fibbing on her. Then you will come to my office—where I work to buy toys for you and your siblings—and you will sit for another ten minutes as you write down that you, Paulie Locatelli, are a person who shares and doesn’t take things for granted.
“I will have your sheet of paper with your words when you come to see me. Once you fill the page, you will read it to me. If you want a puzzle that you can call yours, you will ask me for a job to earn your own money.
“Then I’ll take you to the store to get what you want once you’ve earned enough. For now, you live under your mother’s and my roof, so all those toys belong to us. We say first come, first served, if you don’t know how to play together. Do you understand, son?”
“Yes, Daddy. I understand.”
I turn my back to Paulie and purse my lips to keep from laughing. Paulie is four. What job is my husband going to give him? Better yet, why is this man talking to our baby like he’s one of his soldiers?
“Good, your first time-out starts now. Go to the time-out chair.”
“Okay.”
LaSalle places his hand on my hip and kisses my forehead. He then leans to whisper-chuckle in my ear. “You were going to whip his little ass, weren’t you? ‘It’s mine,’ the nerve of his little ass.” He snorts.
I burst into laughter, not able to hold it in any longer. LaSalle tightens his hold on me, laughing along with me. These kids are something else.
“Sammy,” Elijah squeals from the front of the house.
I turn and hurry to the foyer. I stop in my tracks as Sammy comes into view. He’s gotten so much taller. He’s already a tall boy for eleven years old.
He gives me the brightest smile and drops his bags to rush over to me. I embrace him and hold him tight. He inhales deeply.
“Hi, Mo-mo. I missed you.”
“Did you have fun? How was your trip?”
“I had a lot of fun. Granny McGowan flew back with us, and we played cards on the flight.”
“I heard. What did you get to do with the Blacks?”
“I learned computer hacking. I learned how their system works for their case files. I learned how they track their bounties. I wanted to know everything in case something I learned could help me later in life.
“Uncle Noah trained me in hand-to-hand and weapons. I can snipe now. I enjoyed that very much.