Molly glanced at her friend. “It doesn’t really matter. I don’t have the niece’s contact information.”
“You didn’t ask for it?”
“Do you think that was a mistake?” Molly countered. Nala scooted over and stretched out against Molly’s side.
Brooke launched another round of bubbles into the air. Hazel’s laughter burst free and Brooke chuckled along with her. “I think we need a debrief.”
“Isn’t that what this is?” Molly captured a bubble on her fingertip.
“I mean a full debrief.” Brooke laughed. “With everyone.”
The bubble popped, leaving a residue on her fingers. “Who’s everyone?”
“The usual people.” Brooke set the wand into the bottle and sealed the lid. She picked up her phone and started typing. “Leave everything to me. We’ll have it here in the backyard. Firepit turned on and the grill heated up.”
Molly raised herself up onto her elbows. “This sounds more like a dinner gathering than a debriefing.”
“S’mores,” Brooke said, ignoring Molly’s comment. “We need to make those. Everyone likes those.”
“This sounds like a lot of trouble,” Molly added.
“Trouble.” Brooke looked up from her phone and grinned at Molly. “This isn’t trouble. This is what we do.”
“What is it we’re doing exactly?”
“Eating good food with even better company.” Brooke leaned over and touched Molly’s arm. “And reminding ourselves that we’re never alone. We always have each other.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
DREW WALKED THROUGH Brooke and Dan’s house and stepped out onto the back patio. He scanned the yard until his gaze landed on his favorite redhead, then he spotted Hazel, secure in her swing. Ella and Wesley sat on either side of Hazel. Ben held a giant bubble wand and created a bubble large enough for the kids to slide through.
Satisfied that Molly and Hazel were good, he stepped over to the large table where his parents sat, immersed in what looked to be an intense card game. Evie, Dan’s dad Rick, Brad and Sophie were their opponents and each one had a more serious game face than the next.
“Get a move on, Drew,” Dan shouted from a corner of the backyard. The volleyball net had already been set up. “We’ve got a game to win.”
“I thought this was a debriefing.” Drew unbuttoned the collar on his dress shirt and directed his question to the card table. No one glanced up from their cards.
“It is.” Brooke tapped Drew affectionately on the shoulder on her way to the stairs and the backyard volleyball game. “It’s our kind of debriefing. De-stressing. And decompressing with each other.”
Brooke had been the one to text Drew earlier. Her message had been short and to the point.
Dinner at our house tonight. Food is covered, just bring yourself.
Molly had offered fewer details and a dash of uncertainty in her text.
Social worker meeting was fine. I think? See you tonight?
Molly’s text had prompted a quick phone call to her between his meetings about Brad’s fraud case. Drew had wanted to hear her voice to know for sure she was fine. And he’d learned about Brooke’s debriefing plans. He hadn’t needed to promise Molly he’d be there. He’d been rearranging his last meeting to leave on time. As it was, he was the last one to arrive.
Sophie looked at him over her cards. “Can’t be work all the time, Drew. There’s no fun in that.”
It hadn’t been work exactly for the past several weeks. Not for Drew. He kept that response to himself. And consulting on his brother’s case filled hours in the day, but not his entire day like his real job.
As for fun, he spotted Molly again and grinned. He supposed he had been having some of that and finally relaxing. He should thank Molly for the short respite. It would be over soon, and he’d return to work reenergized. He should be more pleased about that, shouldn’t he?
He blamed the pang of disappointment on hunger and peeked inside the grill. “Tell me these are Rick’s special recipe ribs wrapped in tinfoil and soaking in a dark ale?”
“Those are them.” Rick’s laugh boomed out across the porch. “But I don’t think you’ll be allowed to eat unless you join the volleyball game.”
Drew glanced into the backyard. Molly went over to the women’s side of the net. Her ponytail swung across her back. Her smile stretched across her face, up into her eyes. She looked happy and adorable. And Drew wanted to be beside her. Be near enough to hold her hand if he wanted. Make her laugh if he could. Just be with her. His fun hadn’t ended yet. That was for next week after his hearing. Right now, he wanted to be in the moment.
He hurried inside the house, changed into his workout clothes and running shoes. Then sped into the backyard to join Chase and Dan, his teammates.
“Chase Jacobs, I don’t care if you’re an All-Pro quarterback and married to my best friend.” Brooke stood in front of the volleyball net, her hands on her hips. “You’re in my backyard now.”
Chase grinned broadly and stretched his arms out to his sides. “Bring it, Dog Lady.”
“Get it. Dog Lady. Since you like dogs so much.” Drew high-fived Chase and restrained his laughter. “Should we play a different game like cornhole?”
“Not happening.” Molly slipped her arm around Brooke. Chase’s wife, Nichole, moved in on Brooke’s other side.
Pride filled Drew. He liked how Molly quickly defended her friends—his friends and now hers. And that felt entirely right. As if Molly had always been a part of their family. As if she’d always belonged.
Molly tossed the volleyball from one hand to the other and stared at the men. There was a challenge in her voice. “Don’t worry, height isn’t needed when you have heart.”
Molly had heart. Drew had seen it every time she interacted with Hazel. He’d witnessed it again when they spoke to Reuben Cote and his daughter. She possessed a gentle, kind and compassionate spirit behind her hard-edged attorney exterior. He’d been glimpsing
