It wasn’t that she was afraid to leave Alexander with Brody. Her brother was a great father and his wife Elise was a fabulous mother. They had a baby so their house was already kitted out for Alexander. And their older daughter Rennie loved playing with her baby sister and Alexander both. Alexander loved his aunt and uncle, but he adored Rennie. He’d have a great time.

But she’d never left him for more than a single night. It was hard to let go.

“I can see you making all the arguments in your head. Your mouth gets that stubborn line when you argue with yourself.” Todd took her hand. “We need this time. I need this time with you two.”

“You’re both right. I’m in.”

Chapter Three

“I didn’t think it would be this hard to leave him.” Ben said this in an undertone to Todd. They were at Brody and Elise’s, dropping Alexander off. They’d be getting on a plane in a few hours, but for that moment, Ben watched his son clap his hands, dancing around with Rennie as baby Marti hopped up and down, spinning in her little bouncer.

“We won’t break him or lose him, I promise.” Elise smiled up at Ben, taking his hand and squeezing it. They sat around Brody and Elise’s kitchen table, guzzling coffee.

“He might break you.” Erin winked at her brother, who rolled his eyes.

“Babygirl, if I can survive you and Adrian and Martine’s impromptu four A.M. wake-up calls, I can handle Alexander.”

Alexander heard his name and came over, patting Brody’s knee. “Yo! Hey, Bo.”

Alexander had nicknames for everyone. Brody was Bo because at first he couldn’t say Brody. It had stuck, and from the smile on Brody’s face, he didn’t mind that one bit. And the yo had come directly from his uncle Adrian, who always said it.

Brody bent to pick Alexander up, plopping him on a bouncing knee. “Hey, monkey. Do you want to stay here with us for a few days?”

Alexander thought a moment and then nodded, a grin on his face. “Zoo?”

“Totally. We’re going to the zoo later today with uncle Adrian and Gillian and Miles too.”

“Yes!” Alexander clapped.

Miles was another cousin, the eldest of the bunch at fourteen, and Alexander loved him with the same glee he did everything else. Miles was a quiet kid, but as all new members of the Brown family found out, Browns simply never shut up or got still. It was best to throw yourself into the experience and enjoy it. And Miles was a good example to Alexander. He worked hard in school, got good grades, had manners and cared about his family.

Erin leaned over to kiss Rennie when she came into the kitchen. “Morning, Ren.”

“Hiya, Aunt Erin. Will you take lots of pictures? I like to see the pictures you all take when you go sunny places.” She sent a hangdog look to her mother, who snorted.

“Nice one. Try looking a little wistful instead of just sad.” Erin grinned. “Brody, why do you deny your children sunny vacations? Why you gotta be so hard?”

“I’m mean that way. I have a log book I keep with all the ideas I have to be mean to my daughters.”

“Daaad.” Rennie laughed.

Ben glanced at Todd, who looked down at his watch. No use putting it off any longer. They had to get going, and the cleaner they made the break, the better. Alexander had stayed with Brody and Elise overnight a few times and he wasn’t upset in the slightest.

Didn’t mean his parents weren’t, but that was life.

Ben stood. “We should be on our way.”

Erin looked in Alexander’s direction. He was happily handing Marti blocks, which she threw down five seconds later. He laughed and started over. She laughed and threw the blocks again.

Ben watched her swallow hard as she turned back to Brody. “You have our numbers if you need anything. The medical info is—”

“In the folder you brought today, along with the resort’s information and your flight dates and times.” Brody finished his sister’s sentence. He stood and hugged her. “Babygirl, have a good time. You know he’s going to be just fine here.” He lowered his voice. “You gonna be all right?”

Being around crowds and being jostled were hard for her. They were often trigger events from a long-ago attack that nearly killed her and did kill her daughter. She was the strongest person he knew, but it wrecked them all when she had her moments.

“I promised to take half a pill once we ate a little. I’m all right. I promise.” She looked up at her big brother and he hugged her once more before stepping back.

Totally unaffected, Alexander grabbed his toast and happily shoved it into his mouth. The trouble on Erin’s features melted away at the sight.

“Thank you, guys.”

“Nothing to thank us for. We love having him here.” Brody kissed her forehead. “Enjoy this time. I’ll see you guys in ten days.”

She bent and hugged Alexander. “Remember we talked about you staying here with Brody and Elise?”

“And Nee.”

Rennie grinned.

“Yes, monkey, Rennie and Marti too. Momma, Daddy and Pop have to go to the airport now. Be good for your aunt and uncle, okay?”

Alexander nodded, his cheeks stuffed with toast. “ ’Course!”

“Love you, monkey.” She stood up to let Todd move closer.

“Should we bring you back a shark, pickle?”

Erin groaned as Todd hugged their son. “Good lord, he’s going to expect one now.”