Page 2 of Finding Love in the Clouds

“You look as beautiful as ever. My big brother is still taking good care of you then?” Fernando asked, already knowing the answer. His brother Anthony adored his wife, as they all did.

“Of course. That man would be lost without me, and vice versa. You, on the other hand, look exhausted. Still burning the candle at both ends, I see.” She reached up and ran a soft hand down his smooth cheek.

“Yeah, it’s been a good year but a busy one. Keeping up with all the red-carpet events, award shows, book tours, premiers, meetings, shoots… Why I ever thought it was a good idea to expand my publishing company into media is beyond me. As if writing and publishing books wasn’t enough work already. Adding streaming and movies to the mix didn’t just quadruple the work; it multiplied it by like a thousand. If I weren’t such a control freak, it wouldn’t be so bad, but I want to be on the ground floor of every project, which is exhausting. I’m managing, though.”

“The Christmas movie you released this year was awesome. It’s not one of your books, but it still has a good plot and interesting characters. I can see why it won so many awards. Will there be a sequel? The storyline seemed to lend itself to one,” she added, turning back to the counter where she was working.

“How can I help? Every year, you slave away in the kitchen while my brothers and I catch up. It’s delicious, but I feel bad you are not in on the conversations.”

“Well, the wrong ham was purchased, and I prefer mine sliced before the glaze goes on. Would you mind doing that while you tell me more about what is happening and how your Christmas was? Did you see the McKenzies?”

“Yes, this year, the McKenzies came west. I don’t remember if I told you, but Callie is at UCLA. Her parents wanted her to move in with Lesley, but she insisted on experiencing dorm life. Now that four of the six McKenzie kids live out west with me, they decided to holiday there.”

“So, are the twins and Lesley working out well in the company then? I worried that when you took them on as staff, it could get bumpy. Hiring family is not always the best idea.”

“You hired all of us boys at Chuckles. It worked out pretty well for everyone,” Fernando argued.

“There is a big difference between hiring teen boys at a fast-food chicken restaurant and hiring your father-figure’s children at your media company. If they didn’t work out, you would feel obligated to keep them on regardless. So, how are they doing?”

“Brice and Cory are amazing. Both finished their degrees in cinematography, but Brice is headed for the director’s chair, whereas Cory loves it behind the camera. Having identical twins on set sometimes gets a little tricky, but the guys are doing fantastic. Lesley runs our costume department with an iron fist. That girl always loved fashion and has been a true asset to the staff. I wasn’t worried about hiring any of Dad McKenzie’s children. Look what he did with the BBC boys. His own kids turned out even better than we did.”

“What about the oldest two? Were they able to make it to California for Christmas?” Hannah asked, peeking over Fernando’s shoulder at his neatly cut slices before resuming her work.

“Yeah, Elsie and Arabella brought their families out. I arranged for Mom and Dad McKenzie and Els’ and Ara’s families to fly on Gabe’s plane. Arabella just had her second child and didn’t feel comfortable flying commercial, so that way everyone was able to come. My new house is big enough for everyone, so it was like a family vacation. I missed you guys, but getting to spend time with them all together was amazing.”

“I bet Colin and Annabell are sad their last baby moved all the way across the country for school. They have to be close to retirement. Do you think they will move out west, too?”

“With Elsie and Arabella having grandkids in New York, and the other four kids living out west with me; they are stuck between a rock and a hard place. They know they are always welcome in my home,so they visit several times a year. If Callie hadn’t gotten cast for one of my limited series last year, they might have fought her harder on moving to Cali right out of high school, but they know that acting is in her blood and if she’s going to fulfill her dream, doing it at one of my studios is safer than anywhere else. You never know what kind of people you’ll run into in this industry. I’m not going to lie; I knew she was an amazing actress, but seeing my surrogate little sister play the lead in the mini-series for one of my books was surreal. I didn’t realize she got the starring role in my series until I walked on set and saw her there. She lost her mind at my reaction, having kept the secret for almost six months. Having Cory as lead cinematographer and Brice as assistant director kind of brought the whole thing full circle. If it weren’t for their dad saving my life the day he found me outside the firehouse and investing so much into my BBC brothers and me over the years... I would never have written the book, made the money to buy the studio, hired them, and launched a mini-series for the book. I can finally pay back all the good that was poured into me by the family. It’s amazing to see how God’s plan worked out for the good of all of us.”

Hannah’s eyes swam with tears as she turned to look at Fernando, “How do you feel when you’re with all of them? One big happy family?” She sensed an underlying emotion in his retelling.

“Yes and no. I do feel they are an extension of my family, and I love them all, but part of me also feels like an outsider looking in. It’s not in how they treat me or how I treat them. It’s just… a corner of my heart or my head, I’m not sure which, always feels… excluded, unwanted. It’s ridiculous, I know. Dad Sullivan has invested so much in me, but a tiny part of me wonders why they never adopted me if they loved me so much.” Fernando kept his eyes on the ham to avoid crying. Hannah was the only person he allowed into these darkest corners of his heart.

She swiftly wiped the tears from her eyes and laid a loving hand on Fernando’s arm. “I know you’ve struggled with being abandoned your whole life, but God blessed you with not one but two families as a result. Colin and Annabell may not have adopted you legally, but you have always been one of their kids at heart, and then you found your BBC brothers and adopted them. You have ten brothers and sisters who love you dearly. Someday, you will marry and have another family to love you. I think that perhaps God knew how much love you would pour out into the world and that you needed an extra-large family to pour that love back into you. I’m so proud of you and glad you made it home to us for our family New Year’s gathering. Soon, I’ll be riding that plane with the McKenzies to come see you, as your visits home are far too infrequent as your empire grows.”

“I have been busy, but I will work on scheduling more trips back. My nieces are growing up without me.” After pouring the glaze over the ham, Fernando wrapped it in foil.

“Well, I would love to monopolize your time and hear more about what has been happening, but my little girls do need some Uncle Fernando time. Your brothers should be finishing their business meeting soon and will want to spend some time with you, too. You better head upstairs and play dolls with Jada before Gabriel challenges you to a rousing game of billiards.”

“She officially hit the doll stage? I will have to send her some for her birthday,” Fernando said, wiping his freshly washed hands on a dishtowel.

“Ma and Pa gave the girls an enormous Victorian doll house for Christmas. Tiyanna doesn’t have an appreciation for it yet, at fifteen months, but loves to hear Jada squeal when she moves the furniture around. Jada takes after her daddy; everything has to be in its place. At almost four, she might not understand the fine details of interiordesign, but she knows the little toilet goes in the bathroom, not the kitchen, and the bed doesn’t go in the living room. It’s quite humorous watching them interact. Have fun.” Hannah turned her cheek up for Fernando to kiss as he left her to complete the final dinner preparations on her own.

Little girls were alien territory for him; thank goodness there would be a nanny upstairs to help him and no older brothers to laugh at his awkwardness. He didn’t ever plan on having kids, but he loved his nieces, and they had him wrapped around their tiny fingers.

Chapter Three

“So, this is where you’ve been hiding,” Anthony stated as he walked into the upstairs playroom and found his youngest brother sprawled on the floor with his youngest daughter sitting on his back like a horse and his oldest daughter instructing him on where the doll should go for dinner.

Fernando turned his head to look over his shoulder. “You two finally stopped yacking? Not supposed to talk business on holidays, I thought that was an unspoken rule.”

“We weren’t talking business during the family gathering but before. We are all ready to play and hang now,” Gabriel said, entering the room behind Anthony and swinging Jada up into the air when she abandoned the dollhouse for her favorite uncle.

“Hey, is this where the party is happening this year?” asked a familiar voice joining the men in the large room that was growing smaller by the minute.

“Julio, you made it!” Fernando exclaimed, getting to his feet to greet his second-oldest brother.

“I told you I wouldn’t miss it,” Julio chided, wrapping his strong arms around the younger man he owed his life to and would give his life for in an instant.

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