“You look well,” Dale said, closing the door after Connor walked through it.
“Thank you. I’m trying to work out more and drink less. So far, so good.”
“I have the same goal,” his father said as he joined them. Close to his height, Sean Sutton had also undergone a transformation since meeting the Barringtons. He looked relaxed in his tailored Italian suit, but Connor wondered if he also longed for simpler days.
“Dad, thanks for coming.”
“Always. You know that. I’m glad you didn’t ask Dylan to come. He would have, but he’s deep in filming. I spoke to him yesterday and he sounded happy, but stressed.”
“I spoke to him before he left. I’ll have to call him. This week has been nuts.”
Sophie linked an arm with Connor and guided him farther into the house. “All my boys are here except Andrew. He’s still down in Florida because Helene has an exam. He said we could call him if we need him to chime in.”
“No, don’t bother him.”
“Okay. Then I thought we’d talk before we eat.”
“Sounds good,” Connor said despite the audible rumble in his stomach. At nearly seven feet, his body required regular fueling.
Sophie chuckled. “We’ll make it quick.”
As they entered the living room, conversations stopped and all eyes turned toward them. Grant was the first to walk over with a sleeping Sean bundled tightly against him in a baby carrier. He gave Connor a warm back-thumping hug for a greeting. I taught him that . . . well, without the baby between us. When they stepped back he studied Connor’s face for a moment before saying, “I’m always here for you, Connor. Whatever’s going on, I should have been your first call.”
Connor took a moment to appreciate the perfection of his nephew’s sleeping face, then shrugged. “I would have called you, but it’s about a woman.”
Asher, the eldest Barrington son and the one everyone called “the hammer” joined them with a huge smile on his face. “That was some serious shade. Granted, deserved, but must still sting.” He shook Connor’s hand. “This is about a woman? It sounded more complicated when Mom described it.”
“It is complicated. Or I wouldn’t be here. I’ve never had problems knowing what to do with women,” Connor said.
Lance, the most easygoing of the Barrington boys, laughed as he joined the group. “No one can accuse you of having low self-esteem, Connor. Good to see you.”
Connor shook his hand and asked about his twin daughters. “How are Wendy and Laney?”
“Not much different than the last time you saw them,” Lance said with a huge smile. “I don’t know why we thought we should teach them to speak. All they do is talk now. And want to play dolls. Save me.”
Connor chuckled and felt his pants leg being tugged. Asher’s son, Joe, was nearly three and so damn adorable he’d be a heartbreaker for sure. Connor crouched down to greet him. “Hey Big Man, are you here to help me decide what to do?”
Joe threw himself into Connor’s arms and gave him a tight hug. “I go to preschool, Uncle Connor. I know everything.”
“I’m sure you do, Big Man.” After hugging him back, Connor pointed toward his shoulders. “Get on up there.”
Sitting on Connor’s shoulders was something Joe often asked to do. He was so light it was an easy request to grant. When Connor rose back to his full height, Joe clung to his head.
Child on board, Connor greeted Ian, Kade, Dax, and Clay.
Smiling in approval, Asher nodded toward his son. “If the topic isn’t appropriate for his ears he can have a snack with the cook, but he wanted to see you.”
“Did you, Big Man?” Connor asked the boy on his shoulders.
Joe ruffled his hair. “I missed you, Uncle Connor. Can we go fishing?”
“Next time I come up, how’s that?”
Joe stuck out his bottom lip. “Take me right now.”
Dale reprimanded him in that quiet tone of his. “Joseph Dale Barrington.” With Dale, a lecture wasn’t required and even at his young age Joe had already learned that.
“Sorry, Uncle Connor.”
“It’s okay, Big Man. If I could take you tonight, I would. First, I have to get some good advice, then I need to eat. When I get hungry I become a bear.” He hunched down a bit and made a growl. “And you don’t want that. I might accidentally eat you.”
“Noooooo.” Joe giggled and hung on tighter.
Asher stepped closer. “I have a feeling we’re not going to get much done with him in the conversation.” He held out his arms for his son. “Come on, Joe. The cook made you those little dinosaur sandwiches you like.”
It was enough to get Joe sliding off Connor and into his father’s arms. “I love dinosaurs.”
“We know,” Asher said lightly. To the room in general he said, “I’ll be right back.”
Sophie patted Connor’s arm. “Why don’t we all sit down? Are you thirsty? Can I get your anything?”
“I’m all set, thanks Sophie.” He settled on a couch and sat forward, hands between his knees as he planned what he’d say. Speaking had been a whole lot simpler when no one had paid much attention to what he was saying, and lately he’d gotten used to Claire dictating most things he said.
Asher returned before Connor had figured out what to say. He stood off to the side and looked Connor over. “I’m sorry, I have to say this. Do you ever look in the mirror and not recognize yourself?”
Connor straightened and flexed his shoulders. Then sighed. “All the time.”
“I almost miss the plaid shirts.”
“Me too. Every day.” Connor hadn’t meant to reveal as much, but the catch in his voice changed the expressions on the faces around him. Suddenly they looked concerned. He forced a smile. “I’m fine. That’s not what I’m here for.”
Clay pulled a chair closer. He was an interesting man. Difficult to like at first. Insanely rich. Rumor was he could buy and sell even the Barringtons without making a dent in his fortune. None of it he’d worked for. Dax, his best friend, said he became bored easily and warned Connor to not confuse any favors from him as proof that he cared. Outside of his wife and the Landon Veteran Foundation he’s established, there wasn’t much that moved Clay.
Connor had a different impression of him. He felt that Clay was a man without a family of his own, seeking connections, while fearing rejection. His indifference was too practiced. Under all that bravado and posturing, Connor was pretty sure there was a man whose feelings were hurt more often than people realized.
And he did care. Sure, he’d tossed money at Connor to “spit shine” him, but he’d also made trips to upper New York with his wife, Lexi. More than anyone else in the room, outside of Grant, Clay knew what Connor had left behind to join the Barrington family. He was the only one who understood that life before them hadn’t been bad at all. “Start at the beginning and tell us everything. And don’t leave out any part of what Ian’s friend Bradford has been doing for you. If it was big enough to bring him back from Bulgaria, consider me fascinated.”
“Me as well,” Ian said in a terse tone from beside Asher.