Page 65 of Silver Lining Love

I tried to shake off the melancholy that had settled over me like a dark cloud and was going to ask how they knew each other when the girl, who I was pretty sure was named Sadie, asked, “Can I get a selfie?”

“Sure.” She pulled out her phone and we took a few snaps together as Mikey and the tall kid, who Alice called Milo, kicked the ball around on the grass.

“Thank you so much!” The girl hugged me.

“Of course, it was nice to meet you.”

After thanking me several more times, she and Milo said their goodbyes and went to find seats.

“Bye Milo,” Wyatt said as they walked away.

“Who’s Milo?” I asked, wondering if he was related to him in any way.

“He’s my friend Bryson’s bonus kid. I ran into him earlier today. He’s actually the one who suggested we come out tonight.”

“Bonus kid?” I repeated.

“It’s his wife’s little brother, but they are raising him.”

Sounded familiar.

“Oh.” I found myself searching Wyatt’s eyes for any clues as to whether or not he considered Mikey, Alice, and Benji bonus kids.

Before I had a chance to ascertain that information, he herded us across the lawn to a spot next to a large oak tree. On our way across the lawn, Wyatt waved and said hello to over a dozen people. I waved, too, even though I had no clue who anyone was.

I’d just laid down the blankets when I heard a gasp beside me. My entire body seized with alarm.

“What?!” I asked as I looked up and saw Mikey’s eyes the size of saucers. “What’s wrong?”

I turned my head and, in an instant, completely relaxed. JJ Briggs was headed in our direction.

Even if I hadn’t seen dozens of pictures of the baseball player at the Briggs farm, I would have recognized him. Mikey had a picture of him on his wall for years before moving in with me. He idolized the man.

“Hey, bro!” JJ pulled Wyatt into a huge bear hug.

“Hi, I’m Destiny, and this is Lilah,” Destiny introduced the pigtailed girl beside her at the same time the brothers greeted each other.

Dolly had told me that her granddaughter was the same age as Alice.

“Hi,” I smiled widely. “I’m Whitney, and this is Alice and Michael.”

“Hi!” Alice waved.

Mikey was totally oblivious to the introduction. He was staring up at JJ in stunned silence.

When the brothers dropped their arms to their sides, JJ immediately turned his attention to Michael. “Hey Michael, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

“Hi,” Mikey managed to breathe.

“I heard you have quite the arm. I was thinking maybe we could throw the ball around while you’re in town.”

Mikey’s only response was to nod. It filled my heart with warmth to see him speechless meeting his hero. It didn’t make up for the shit hand he’d been dealt in life, but it was at least one thing to tip the scales back to happy for him.

“I like your braids,” Lilah told Alice.

After Wyatt suggested we all go to the park tonight, he and Mikey had gone out and helped Walker. Dolly had insisted on feeding and entertaining Benji, so I’d had some one-on-one time with Alice. I’d given her two Dutch braids, and we’d painted our nails together.

She talked a lot about her trip to town with Wyatt, including the fact that they’d thrown coins into the wishing well. She said that Wyatt had wished for sushi, which I didn’t totally understand since he’d told me that he didn’t like sushi.

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