Words From The Heart (Spring-Summer Romance Book 2) by Alex Greenville

said.
    “One pancake rabbit coming up.”
    “An’ make August a mouse.”
    Again, Bennett agreed. “One mouse for August. What about Audrey? Should we make her something?”
    “A flower.”
    The heated pan in his grip, Bennett paused, his gaze on his son’s face. “I can do that,” he said softly. “Hey, listen …” He captured the bowl from Jeff. “That’s stirred perfectly. Why don’t you go in Daddy’s office and get a notepad and a pen. You can draw Audrey a nice picture.”
    Jeff, without comment, hopped down from his stool and dashed out the far doorway. He returned minutes later, a yellow notepad in hand, and remounting the stool, poked a pen to the page. Bennett cooked the pancakes, one eye on his son’s intent face.
    His gaze downward, the pen tight in his grip, Jeff made long strokes, his tongue working at the corner of his mouth.
    The steaming pancakes lined up on the counter, minutes later, Bennett shut the stove off and made his way around behind his son. Leaning over the boy’s shoulder, he eyed the image Jeff had drawn, his throat tight. “Who’s that?” he asked, nodding at the drawing.
    Jeff, his feet tucked beneath his bottom, tapped one finger on the image. “That’s you an’ me an’ August, an’ that’s Audrey an’ June.”
    He’d drawn Bennett as the tallest person, holding Jeff’s hand on one side and August’s on the other. Audrey stood to their left, the baby, two small swirling circles, crosswise on her chest.
    “And who’s that?” he asked, nodding at a sixth figure drawn above the others.
    “That’s Mommy,” Jeff said. “She’s happy because we have Audrey.”
    Bennett couldn’t speak. His eyes moist, he bent down and kissed his son’s head.
    He was happy because they had Audrey. The best day of his life, following Beth’s passing, was the day he drove to the library. He swallowed the knot in his throat. “Let’s put that on the refrigerator, so she’ll see it. Then we’ll find the syrup.”
    “I know where it is,” Jeff said. Dropping the pen, once more, he hopped down from the stool.
     

     
    Audrey climbed over Bennett’s legs to a seat at his side on the bed, conscious of his gaze on her breasts. The thin fabric of her t-shirt didn’t hide anything, but, she’d figured, what was the point? He’d seen most of her already. Besides, being truthful, she liked the heightened interest on his face.
    Unlike Cale, who’d only shown his attraction at the start and not been very adept at giving compliments.
    “My face is up here,” she said.
    Bennett grinned and tilted his chin upward. “They are marvelous.”
    Audrey’s smile expanded. “So I’m told, but I’m asking you to concentrate.”
    “I am …” he replied, “on those.”
    Laughter spread between them, and she fell down at his side, tucking herself beneath his arm, her cheek to his chest. “Jeff knows you’re in here,” she said.
    Bennett exhaled. “Yeah, he does.”
    “It bothers you?”
    He didn’t respond for a minute. “ Yes and no , but neither one has anything to do with you.”
    That was like him, to relieve her of any guilt. Or to try. Though they hadn’t talked about it, his moving into her bedroom she understood entirely. His was too full of Beth, and he wanted what she and he had to be free of his memories. They crept in anyhow. Like tonight.
    “I should talk to him about it.”
    “And say what?” She twisted her face to glimpse his. “If he has questions, he’ll ask them. Besides, he’s full of talk about school.”
    School was going really well. He’d blossomed under Mrs. Werthe’s care, was always a chatterbox when he came home. He’d made several friends, but one boy in particular had become close.
    “He wants to invite Bobby over,” she said. “I told him he had to ask you.”
    “He asked. I said it was all right, maybe this weekend. I’m sure the kid’s parents will want to meet us and talk first.”
    Us. They’d become an us . She and Bennett a