Page 48 of Wanting the Winger

“The kids’ room?”

Charlotte shrugs.“Dex and Mara are helping us do a craft.Mara saidmotherfuckerwhen she cut her finger on a staple gun.”

I arch my brows, amused.“And you left that to come here?”

“It’s a million, isn’t it?”Hallie blurts.“I told her it’s a million, but she doesn’t believe me.”

“I think it’s infinity,” Charlotte explains.“No one’s ever counted all of them because there are so many.”

“Those are both excellent guesses.”

“Yeah, but who’s right?”Hallie presses.

“Well, you know how we can look up at the sky at night and see stars?In the entire sky, if it’s completely clear, there are around nine thousand visible stars.”

“That’s close to a million,” Hallie says.

“No, it’s not!”Charlotte gapes at her.

I exchange a smile with Bash.

“You know how we live in a galaxy?”I say.

Both girls nod.

“Well, scientists estimate there are about two trillion galaxies in our universe.That’s a number so big we can’t really even comprehend it.And in every one of those galaxies, there are billions to trillions of stars.We don’t have a total number, but it would be very, very large if we did.”

“I want to be a star scientist,” Hallie says.

“An astronomer?You should.”

“An astromoner.”

“It’sastronomer, Hals,” Charlotte says.

Mara comes into the room, a white bandage wrapped around one of her index fingers.

“Girls, what are you doing in here?You’re supposed to be working on your posters.”She smiles at me and puts an arm around my shoulders.“Hey.I’m helping the kids make posters for the locker room.”

“Do you guys get to eat?”

“Yeah, Harry fed us before everyone else got here.I’m sure I’ll also have some of the mac and cheese they’re making for the kids.”She looks from Bash to me.“I hear we’re going out after this.”

I pinch my brows together in surprise.“We are?”

“Mara, why don’t you take the girls back to the other room?”Bash says, looking aggravated.

“Oh.Was I not supposed to say anything?”

My cheeks warm as Mara puts an arm around each of the girls and walks away.

“It’s completely okay if it’s a team thing and I’m not invited,” I say.“I’m wiped out and I want to go right home after this, anyway.”

He shakes his head.“No, you have to come.”

“We’ll see.Maybe for one drink.”

“That’s not gonna work, Lane.”

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