Chapter 149

Iglance at my watch and realize I need to get going. My nephew has very different ideas, though, and is repeatedly hitting me on the head with a Jenga block. Every single time he makes contact, Luke laughs hysterically. He sits up on his mat like a sturdy Buddha statue, shrieking with delight, his arms waving in the air. It’s one of the best sounds in the entire world. Few things could tempt me away from this spot, but Amber is one of them. I let Luke take one final slug, and he lands a whopper right on my nose, then laughs so hard he actually falls over. On his back now, he rolls around, kicking and gurgling, and tries to get his foot into his mouth. I tickle his tummy, and by the time I sit him up again, he has tears of laughter streaming down his round, ruddy cheeks. “Little dude, you are the coolest person I know,” I say, climbing to my feet. Nathan and Melanie are in the kitchen, and they’ve been missing for a suspiciously long time. I make sure I knock first and find them looking