Page 19 of The Edge of Summer
I fight my own grin. I don’t love the idea of her going against the rules, but I also can’t fight the satisfaction I get knowing that Gabe is going to be paid back in kind for his younger self’s smart mouth.
My brother crosses his arms. “Well, maybeLukeycan explain why you should leave the doors to the adults, then.”
I finish climbing the porch steps, then pick Abbie up and throw her over my shoulder. She giggles as I move through the house. Riot yips, hot on my heels.
When I set my niece down in the living room, I level her with a serious look. “Listen to your dad, Abbs. No answering the door unless one of us says it’s okay. Safety is the number one priority, right?”
She cocks her head. “What’s a prior-ery?”
I chuckle. “Priority. It means something that is very important. Something you do first before anything else. Okay?”
She nods. “Okay.”
I hold out my hand for a high five. Abbie gives my palm a hard slap, and then she takes off with my dog. Her laughter and his excited barking trail after them.
Gabe sighs as he leans in the doorway. “Why the hell does she listen to you so well?”
I shoot him a smug grin. “Because I’m her favourite.” When Gabe’s expression doesn’t lighten, I sober. “She pushes your buttons because she can. Because she knows that no matter how much shit she gives you, you’re still going to be there every night to tell her you love her.”
He sighs again. “I guess.”
I point a finger at him. “Don’t act like you didn’t pull the same shit with our parents. As far as I’m concerned, this is your payback.”
Gabe flips his middle finger up in response.
When Gabe announced, at eighteen, that he wanted to become a firefighter, Mom just about shit a brick. Don’t get me wrong, she was worried about me when I decided tofollow in our dad’s footsteps, but Gabe is her baby. She has mostly accepted it now, but about once a year she tries to convince him to pick a different career path. Knowing my brother, that will never happen.
In the kitchen, Mom has already gotten a head start on breakfast. Our Sunday morning ritual started when Clara and Gabe both moved out, leaving our parents with an empty nest. To compensate, Mom instated weekly brunch. And when brunch still wasn’t enough to occupy her, she convinced Dad to open a bed and breakfast.
With mine and Gabe’s jobs being what they are, we can’t always make it to brunch, but we do our best. Both of my siblings and I would do just about anything for that woman.
“Morning, Mom,” I call over the music. It’s not a Bowman family meal without the speakers being cranked just a touch too loud. “Where’s Clarebear?”
Usually my sister is the first to arrive at Haven House. Like every Sunday is an unspoken race between the three of us that she is determined to win.
Mom smiles at me over her shoulder. While my sister is undeniably her twin, I have been told that I have her smile. Hers is on display a lot more than mine is, though.
“Morning, sweetie!” she says. “Your sister is around here somewhere. Sorry, she still got here first.”
Footsteps stampede on the floorboards as Riot bounds into the room, Abbie hot on his heels. Those two could chase each other for hours, and quite often, they do. By the time we head home, my dog will be tuckered out and ready for a nap on the couch he’s not supposed to be on.
“Hi, Lukey!” Abbie calls, greeting me a second time.
I chuckle. “Hi, Abbs.”
A hand lands on my shoulder. “Morning, son.”
“Hey, Dad.”
John Bowman is a man of few words. We are a lot alike in that way. While Mom loves to entertain—whether bed and breakfasts guests or friends—Dad is content to sit back and observe the chaos. Most of the time, he doesn’t speak unless spoken to, choosing to listen instead. He was one of the best in the KIFD before he retired.
I may have gotten Mom’s smile, but everything else is all Dad. I have a couple inches on him and the sets of our shoulders are broad. More than that, though, he’s someone I’ve always looked up to.
“I see you finally decided to join us,” Clara teases as she enters the room.
“Hey, I’ve been here. Where wereyou?”
“Being a good host and giving my new bestie a tour,thank you very much.”
