“They were like second parents to me. Well, actually, your dad was like a father to me, but Victoria doesn’t seem like anybody’s mother.”
“She does to me,” Alix said, then her head came up. “You don’t think this makes you and me brother and sister, does it?”
At her ability to make a joke, Jared looked greatly relieved and pulled her into his arms, her face buried against his chest. Alix could hardly breathe, but she didn’t mind.
“I would have been a horrible older brother,” he said.
“Ha! You were wonderful with the Legos.”
“Come on,” Jared said. “Let’s go downstairs and talk to your father. He’ll want to go out to get some seafood for lunch.”
“Did you teach him how to clean fish?”
“I did,” Jared said. “When he first got here, he didn’t know top from tail.” He had his arm firmly around Alix, as though he was afraid to let her get even inches away from him.
Alix halted at the top of the stairs and looked up at him. “How many more huge, enormous secrets are you keeping from me?”
“Two,” he said.
“And they are …?”
Jared gave a groan of pain. “If I promise to go with you to get whatever Izzy needs for her wedding, will that make you pre-forgive me for not telling you now?”
Alix thought about that for a moment. “Are you saying that you will go with me to pick out flowers?”
“Sure. Toby can—”
“No, you and I will go to a florist together. You’ll have to look at photos of flower arrangements that I can send to Izzy.”
Jared winced but he nodded.
“And you’ll help me choose the cake to show Izzy?” she asked.
“You mean one of those tall things?”
“Yes,” she said. “It’ll have tiers.”
“Tears?” He ran his fingertip down from his eye.
She gave him a look.
“Okay. Wait! How about making a cake that looks like a Gaudi building? Or I could design something—”
“No buildings in sugar,” Alix said. “Izzy is very traditional. She’ll probably want pink and lavender roses.”
With a look of horror, he grabbed the newel post for support. “What else?”
“Tent, food, a band. A dress for me.”
“I see a ghost,” Jared blurted out as he broke under the pressure.
“Who wouldn’t, living in this house?” Alix said as she started down the stairs, then looked back up at him. “Come on, it won’t be that bad.”
“I’d rather swim in a pool of sharks,” Jared mumbled as he followed her down the stairs.
“Good idea,” she said. “Hey! Maybe we can get some reproduction lightship baskets and fill them with flowers.”