Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 91461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Once we reached Sandy and Michael's house in Winnetka, before we started up the drive, Kola stopped and just looked at the gate that slowly opened for us and then down the enormous tree-lined drive.
“Holy shit,” he said loudly.
“Did you not see this the first time we were—oh, that’s right. You’ve never been out here. Just me, Hannah, and your father.”
“This is a mansion.”
“You’ve been to Aaron’s penthouse,” I reminded him.
“I have, and yet this, with the baby lake over there and all the trees and the—is that a fountain?”
“It is a fountain, yes.”
“I say again—holy shit.”
I was enjoying him checking everything out.
When the phone rang in the van, Kola hit the button so we could talk to Hannah.
“I can hear you laughing. What’s so funny?” she asked her brother.
“I’m out here lookin’ at Pemberley.”
Inelegant snort then. “Not quite.”
“Did you not look at this place?”
“I prefer our backyard at home,” she stated, sounding a bit defensive.
“That’s very kind, B, but you know as well as I do that your uncle’s new home is jaw-dropping,” I apprised her as Kola moved us slowly down the long drive.
“It’s not for me,” she replied. “I’m much more for warm and cozy. Though the penthouse is my jam. I told Uncle Aaron that’s much more me.”
“Good, Finn and me’ll move into the house.”
“What?” She gasped. “No. It makes way more sense for me and Jake to move in with them so they can help with my kids.”
“What kids?” Kola said, like she was insane.
“The kids they’re going to help raise.”
“What makes you think I won’t have kids?”
“And when will you have time to do that, Doctor Kage?”
“Oh, I don’t know, CEO Kage, when will you?”
“I called dibs on them when you left them to go to Stanford.”
“That’s a low blow, and a lie. You wanted to travel the world.”
“I can still travel the world, especially in my plane with my parents in tow!”
“So what, you and Jake are gonna have kids?”
“Yes. Someday. Are you and Finn?”
“Yes. Same. Someday.”
They were both quiet.
“Awww,” Kola said, and he was smiling. “You and Jake would have cute kids.”
“And your surrogate will give you and Finn cute ones too.”
“Thank you.”
“And Pa can take care of all of them.”
“I can do what now?” I asked.
“They’ll live with me, and you can visit,” Hannah told her brother. “Dad and Finn might not get along.”
“How about we worry about homework for now, what do you both think?”
They were quiet.
“So you’re both having kids with these people?”
“Probably,” Hannah told me.
“Good chance,” Kola echoed.
“Does Finn want to have children?” I asked my son.
“I think so.”
“Have you asked?”
“No.”
“Hannah?”
“Yes, Pa. Jake wants to have babies with me.”
“But not tomorrow.”
“Pa, Jake couldn’t find ketchup in the refrigerator the other day because it was turned around the wrong way. You’re my emergency contact, not him, and he and I live together.”
That was true.
“He is not in fact ready to be a father.”
“You’ll be a good mother someday,” Kola told his sister. “And I was just telling Pa that your pot roast is getting really good.”
“Thank you,” she cooed. “And you’ll be a good dad yourself. You just have to be less concerned with neatness.”
“If things aren’t neat, how can you tell where something goes?”
“Tell Jake, not me.”
“I’ve been telling him that for years, and you’re right, you’re much neater than he is.”
“That’s sort of a low bar. I mean, everyone is neater than Jake.”
“That’s valid.”
She chuckled.
“Where are you?” he griped suddenly. “I don’t want it to just be me and Pa here. And you should see him. He looks like I hit him.”
“Why?’
“I made him sad about Melton Prep.”
“Why would he be—Pa, why would you be sad?” she asked me, remembering that she had us both on the phone. “Kola didn’t go there.”
“But he could have. The only reason he didn’t was because I didn’t want us to be apart.”
“Which is a legitimate reason,” she reminded me. “You can’t beat yourself up over something that didn’t even happen.”
Which was true.
“I’ll leave shortly. I’ll see you guys soon.”
“Good,” Kola said flatly.
“Now turn off the car and take a pic so I can see how bad it looks.”
At which point Kola turned off the already parked car, pulled his phone out of the breast pocket of his suit jacket—because of course we had dressed for dinner—turned to me, snapped a picture, and sent it to Hannah.
“Oh good Lord,” she muttered. “He needs a frozen bag of peas or something on his face when you get inside.”
“Because I don’t know how swelling works?”
“I could leave you there all alone with grown-ups all night,” she warned him.
He grunted.
“And our new cousins,” she added.
“Fine. Sorry.”
“What new––” I gasped. “You’re talking about Thea and Kitty. That’s not nice.”
Hannah scoffed.
“Thea hates Hannah,” Kola assured me. “And we know this because she posted her thoughts on my sister on Instagram for all the world to see.”