Page 96 of The Baby Twist
“Banana nut?”
“Of course.” She grinned.
“Then you’re forgiven. Listen, do you hear that?”
“Hear what? I don’t hear anything.”
“Exactly. Blissful silence. We need to enjoy it before the kids come up. What time will they be here?”
“Soon, I think.”
“Is Scarlett bringing Alan?”
“I think so. I’m not sure, though.”
“I feel like I need to have a talk with that boy.”
“Leave him alone, Lucas. He’s a good kid.”
“But I think they’re getting too serious. She is only twenty-one.”
“They’ve been dating for a year. He’s her first love.”
“I’m just not sure he’s the right guy for her. Something’s off with him, and I can’t quite put my finger on it.”
“That’s her decision, not ours. Now go sit down, and I’ll bring you a cup of coffee and a muffin.”
The lake house was our special place, more special than I originally thought it would be. The kids loved it here and were joining us for part of the summer. Scarlett was now twenty-one and working for the government in a lab in New York as a Molecular Biologist. Serena and Sam were nineteen, and both were on track to graduate from Harvard in December before starting medical school in January to become neurosurgeons. As for Sebastian, our youngest child, who was now seventeen, just completed his first year of college at Columbia. Out of all four children, he was the one who took after me and would be the one to take over Thorne Tech when I retired.
As Jenna and I sat at the table enjoying our coffee and muffin, the door opened, and Scarlett and Sebastian walked in.
“Hey, princess. Hello, son.” I smiled when I saw them.
“Hi, Dad.” Scarlett kissed my cheek. “Hi, Mom.” She walked over and kissed Jenna.
“Hey, Dad.” He fist-bumped me. “Hey, Mom.” He kissed her cheek. “Are those banana nut muffins?”
“They sure are. I made them just for you.” Jenna looked at me and gave me a wink.
“You are the best mom ever! Hey, Dad, can we go fishing?”
“Of course. I already planned on it.”
“Awesome. I’m going to go take a shower first. I got in a little late last night.”
“Yeah, and I had to wake his sorry ass up this morning, or we would have missed our flight,” Scarlett said.
“I would have woken up, you nerd,” he said as he flew up the stairs.
Scarlett rolled her eyes as she grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down with us.
“So, is Alan coming?”
“Um, no.” She brought her cup up to her lips. “We broke up last week.”
“Oh, sweetheart. I’m sorry.” Jenna reached over and patted her arm.
“Please, Mom. I’m totally fine. I was the one that broke up with him.”
