Down Too Deep (Dirty Deeds, #4)(60)

Jenna and I stayed quiet after that. We watched Marley, waiting for her to fall asleep. We occasionally watched each other. And when Jenna’s eyes slipped closed, I watched her until I couldn’t. Without meaning to, I passed out sometime after Marley dozed off. I realized this the next morning when something nudged my foot, and I opened my eyes to Oliver and Olivia standing over me, smiling.

Over us. Jenna was still asleep with her head on my shoulder.





Chapter Fifteen





JENNA




Nathan decided to stay home with Marley the next day in case she started feeling bad again, which freed up our Sunday evening, giving the kids and me the opportunity to attend family dinner at my brother’s house.

It had been more than a month since we last went. Family dinners were always a good time, in terms of company and food. You never knew who was going to show up. Attendance varied week to week, depending on everyone’s work schedules. Before I started watching Marley, my Sundays were always free, meaning the kids and I always showed up at Brian’s for dinner. So our recent absences had stood out a little more than anyone else’s.

“We were beginning to forget what you guys looked like,” Syd teased from where she stood at the oven.

“Yeah, Jenna. Way to ditch us,” Jamie added. He leaned back in his chair and smirked.

I peered around the table. Brian, Jamie, and Cole were already seated. Cole worked with my brother and Jamie at Wax.

“Okay, Cole hasn’t been to one of these in months,” I pointed out. “I don’t hear you ragging on him.”

“Throw me under the bus, why don’t you,” Cole mumbled, acting offended, but I knew him well enough to know he was joking around.

“I’m just saying,” I returned. “Tori misses. She’s missing tonight, along with Shay, Stitch, Kali, who I understand couldn’t make it last minute. Still, she isn’t here. Jamie, you miss when you have a meet.”

“When I’m kickin’ ass at a meet is what you meant to say.”

Oliver and Olivia snickered from their seats.

I glared across the table. “Language. Don’t make me stab you with my fork.”

My brother slid my utensils closer to me. Everyone, aside from Jamie, started laughing.

“We’re only kidding, Jenna.” Syd walked over to the table, carrying a large casserole dish. Steam wafted into the air. “We just missed you guys, that’s all.” She placed the dish in the center of the table. Enchiladas, by the looks of it.

“That smells amazing,” I said.

Syd grinned proudly, taking a seat beside my brother. “Thank you.”

Conversation came to a halt while everyone dished out helpings onto their plates and refilled their drinks, resuming once we began to eat.

“We should invite Nate to these,” Syd proposed. “Him and Marley. Problem solved. We’d all be together then.”

I smiled at her suggestion. I wanted them included in this too.

“Nate’s the best,” Olivia announced. “Right, Ollie?”

My son nodded through his bite. “Yeah, he’s real cool.”

“We spent the night at his house yesterday.”

Syd gasped. Coughing started in the general direction of my brother. My fork hovered in the air an inch away from my face.

“Oh, really?” Jamie asked, sounding more than pleased to be on the receiving end of this information.

Great. Here we go. “It was not…how it sounds,” I began to explain. “We fell asleep by accident.” I brought the fork to my mouth and pulled off the bite.

“Aw. I love accidental sleepovers,” Syd said.

“Marley got sick,” I added. “I didn’t want to leave until her fever went down.”

“Oh no. I hope she’s okay.”

“She felt better this morning. No fever.”

“That’s good.”

“Nate’s couch is super comfy,” Olivia shared, lips smacking as she chewed. “It’s like a big, fluffy cloud. Too bad we can’t all fit. That’s why Mama and Nate had to sleep in Marley’s room.”

“Together?” Brian asked.

I quickly shook my head as Oliver spoke up.

“Yep. We found them this morning.”

“Again, not how it sounds—we were sitting with Marley and we both fell asleep. Everyone remained vertical.”

I looked down at my children’s plates, grabbed the serving spoon, and gave them each another enchilada when they were both nearly finished with their first.

“Do you guys want more?” I asked, but I wasn’t waiting for an answer. And too bad if they didn’t. Maybe if they had another helping, they’d quit oversharing.

“What’s vertical mean?” Olivia asked.

“Up and down,” Syd answered.

“Oh.” My daughter nodded as she processed that. “Well, Mama, your head wasn’t up and down. Not really.”

I quickly looked at her. “Olivia, yes, it was.”

“No, it wasn’t. It was sideways.”

“That’s called horizontal,” Oliver said.

“Yeah, it was horizontal!” Olivia punched the air. “I knew that.”