“Aunt Paige can wait for a second.” I pat the empty seat next to me. “Sit down.” He sits, and I drape my arm over the back of the bench. “Thanks for helping out today.”
“It’s cool. I like hanging out with the family.”
Not so long ago, I couldn’t stand being around my family. I loved them all so much, but it hurt. I sure as hell didn’t come hang out in this corner of the garden. Everything about them just made me think of Maksim.
Now, that isn’t a bad thing.
“Your father loved this part of the garden,” I tell Ilya. “He liked to meditate here.”
“He took it up after meeting your mother. He was all fire, all the time. She made him calm down.”
Ilya grins. “Mama says the same thing about you and Aunt Paige.”
“I can’t exactly argue with that.” I pat his back. “How are things? Is school oka
