Page 52 of Get Lost with You
“That looks fantastic,” Jillian said.
Levi looked at the clock on the stove. “These biscuits are the last bit. The spaghetti and meatballs are ready and so is the vegetable medley salad.”
“We made the salad,” Christopher said. The kid swiped a cloth across the counter and forgot to catch the crumbs in his hands.
Jillian smirked as they went all over the floor. Christopher shrugged and went back to circling the dishcloth.
“Glad I’m not on cleanup,” she said quietly.
“Unless I tell you no dinner if you don’t help,” Levi said, grinning at her.
“You have to help, Ms. Keller. It’s part of being a team,” one of the other kids—remembering all their names was hard—told her.
Jillian laughed right along with Levi. “You’re absolutely right. I’ll go let the craft station know that it’s time to clean up.”
He winked at her, wishing he could give her even a quick kiss. Or a longer one. Or something more. He’d have to steal some alone time once the kids were in bed. While the biscuits baked and the kids carted place settings to the dining table, Levi smiled, listening to some rather interesting conversations.
“I don’t know why we’re setting the table. We’re in the wilderness. We should eat with our hands,” one of the girls said.
“We should catch our own food,” another added.
“I went hunting with my dad but we didn’t come home with anything because I didn’t like it.” This from one of the boys.
“We could just skip the dishes. That’s what my dad does when I go to his house on the weekend,” another boy said.
Levi covered a laugh with a cough. When the timer went, Levi told the kids to wash up and go get settled. Grayson came into the kitchen with Ollie on his heels.
“Dinner’s ready?” he asked.
Ollie pulled on her uncle’s hand. “I helped make it!”
He ran a hand over her hair. “I heard. I can’t wait to eat it.”
“Your timing is perfect,” he said, handing each of them some of the food to carry out to the waiting campers.
As they sat around the table, Levi couldn’t help stealing glances at Jilly and Ollie as they laughed and redirected the kids, asked questions, and heard so many stories. He hadn’t thought about having kids. He’d always just focused on tackling what was in front of him. He’d had his teen/youth years. When it was time for school, he was solely focused on that, and then his career. And now, even though he loved cooking and was excited, full of new ideas, his thoughts consistently returned to Jilly. Ollie. Them. What it might be like to have a family. To be a family.
Grayson raised his plastic cup. “I just want to say thank you to our wonderful chefs for the evening. You all did a great job, and as soon as you’re old enough, I’m happy to hire you for summer employment.”
Levi laughed along with everyone else as ideas and thoughts crisscrossed in his brain about ways to have it all.
Levi was every bit as invested as the young campers in the ghost story one of the dads—Zane—was telling. Some of the kids were so engrossed, their little mouths hung open, their eyes wide in the campfire light. Zane was an excellent storyteller and a really coolguy. Levi could have easily gone home and come back in the morning, but he wasn’t missing a perfect opportunity to hang with Jilly and Ollie. And he was finding that even though he didn’t have kids, it was nice to connect with some other Smileys, as Gramps liked to call the locals.
He leaned back on the log, reached for the bag of marshmallows, popping one onto a roasting fork before extending it over the flames. When he looked up, Jilly was looking at him from across the flames. The inky black sky was bursting with shimmery stars, real twinkle lights hovering above the ones Grayson had strung around the trees. Even in the low light, Levi couldfeelJilly’s stare like a touch. One he wanted very much.
“Levi,” she said quietly.
His muscles tightened, his hands aching to touch her. “Hmm?”
She grinned, then pointed. “Your marshmallow’s on fire.”
Shit.He pulled it back, blew on it, and accepted the chocolate graham cookies a kid passed him.
“Well done, Chef,” she said with a laugh.
“I’ll eat it! I like ’em burnt,” Ollie said from across the fire.
Levi glanced at Jillian to make sure that was okay. She nodded. After passing the treat to Ollie, he set the stick down, tried to focus on the new story Zane started. He stared up at the sky, remembering how they used to wish on stars when they were kids. They made millions of wishes because they could always see the stars. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d taken a moment just to stare at them. Not exactly something he did a lot in the city. And it just wasn’t the same.
