Page 80 of Can We Try?

“Yep. It has to be the extra space we added for the guest artists,” Forrest explains.

“Our books have been packed,” Maddox replies. He turns to look at Legend. “Thanks, man. We couldn’t have done all of that without you.”

Legend shrugs. “I didn’t want the money. It felt dirty, but putting it into our business, investing in our future, our families, it felt right. It was my inheritance, after all. Hopefully, a few of our kids will want to work with us and carry on the Everlasting Ink tradition.”

“He has some ideas for investing, and suggested bonuses for the owners,” Forrest tells us.

“I like the sound of that,” I tell him, and the others agree.

“Daddy!” Lilly calls out as she rushes over to Roman, and he bends to lift her into his arms.

“What’s up, sweets?”

“Cookies.” She points to the island that’s covered in snacks and sweet treats.

“That’s my girl.” I hold my hand up to Lilly for a high-five, and she slaps her little hand against mine.

“Are you corrupting my daughter?” Roman mock glares at me.

I slap my hand over my chest, pretending to be offended. “I would never.” After tossing my empty root beer can in the trash, I reach for Lilly. “Come on, girlie. Let’s get you a cookie. You want a pink one?” I ask her.

“I wike pink.” She nods.

“Pink it is.” I grab a cookie and hand it to her.

“You know she’s going to get that everywhere, right?” Roman asks.

“Don’t worry about it,” Forrest tells him. “Houses are meant to be lived in. Let my niece enjoy her pink cookie.”

Lilly holds the cookie out to Forrest, who’s standing next to me, and he pretends to take a bite. Lilly giggles. Her little body shakes in my arms as if Forrest is the funniest man she’s ever known.

“Oh, Daddy, can we have a cookie too?” River asks.

“Of course you can,” Roman answers, smirking at Forrest.

“I want a green one!” Rayne announces.

“I want a yellow one,” River says.

Forrest gets to work handing them their frosted cookie color of choice, then hands them a blue one. “Take this to Aunt Monroe and tell her it’s for Kane.”

“Okay, Daddy.” The twins rush off toward the living room, and Lilly wiggles to get down. Once she’s on her feet, she races after her cousins.

“Go fish,” Brogan tells Rayne.

“I can’t believe they’re still awake,” Forrest tells me. We’re sitting in the living room, on the dining room chairs we brought in, watching our wives, well, their wives and my fiancée, play Go Fish with River and Rayne.

“This one couldn’t hang,” Legend says, stroking Kane’s back where he sleeps on his chest.

“You can take him upstairs and put him in the Pack ’N Play in our room. We set it up just in case,” Forrest tells him.

“Nah, I got him. He won’t be this little forever.”

“Yeah,” Roman agrees. “Lilly is two and a half, going on thirteen. God help me when she’s a teenager.” He chuckles.

“Where is Lilly?” Maddox asks him.

“She’s conked out in the twins’ room. I was sure with all of the cookies she consumed, she’d still be wide awake to count down the New Year, but she didn’t make the call.”

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