Billionaire Bear Shifters A Paranormal Romance Complete Series Boxset - Brittany White Page 0,114

fairly cramped. She tried to keep things as tidy as possible, an endless endeavor, so the place wouldn’t feel claustrophobic for her or the children.

“What’s for dinner!” Chris ran up to her, his blue eyes huge. He was carrying a library book about dinosaurs she’d borrowed for him. She tried to keep them stocked with books and whatever educational toys she could afford as much as possible.

The kids were not in school and she had no time to homeschool them. It was a problem that she hadn’t yet figured out how to solve but Molly was a trooper. She and the other older kids had gone to school sporadically in their old sleuth, whenever the grown-ups actually felt like taking them. So Molly did her best to teach what she knew in between playing.

Molly had way too much responsibility, in Jessie’s opinion. She didn’t know what to do about that either.

“Tamale casserole,” Jessie said, patting Chris’s messy hair. She looked him up and down. His hair was a little tangled but he looked clean and his overalls weren’t stained with anything. That was good. “Who didn’t get a bath yesterday?” Jessie said.

“Kevin and Mary need a bath,” Molly said. “And Jason.”

“No, I don’t!” Jason said, which definitely meant he did.

For the hundredth time, Jessie wished she had some help. Her feet hurt and she wanted nothing more than to crash on the couch and watch TV. But she had dinner to make and baths to administer and then dishes and at least one load of laundry...

“Okay,” Jessie said. She forced a smile and said, “Who wants to help me make tamale casserole?”

The twins were pouring over a pop-up book, Sophie was in a playpen, and Jason was coloring. Molly said, “I will!”

“No, I want you to make yourself a chocolate milk and rest,” Jessie said firmly. “Read one of your books if you want. You do too much, sweetie.”

Jessie watched Molly’s mouth collapse a little, her eyelids looking too heavy. “Okay then.” She sounded far too relieved. It made Jessie feel guilty. Molly went about making herself a glass of chocolate milk, her middle-grade library book about an adventurous mermaid already waiting on the kitchen table.

Jessie nodded at Chris, “Will you help me, please?”

“Can I mix the cornbread stuff?” Chris said.

“Sure.”

“Okay.”

Time flew by with so much to do. But the whole time, Jessie found herself daydreaming about what it would be like to live this life if she were somehow with Cody. Well, for one thing, if she were with Cody for good, they would not be living in an abandoned cabin. Jessie had no earthly clue how rich the Strauss brothers were. She had never wanted for much herself and had only started worrying about money since impulsively adopting six bear shifter children who always seemed to need new clothes and had bottomless pits for stomachs. She had heard the Strauss family was very rich. She had even heard that they didn’t need to be running the ski lodge at all... they just liked their jobs. Maybe it was all rumor. She had never bothered to ask Cody about his wealth, which seemed rude even if she were interested.

But if he was very rich, then she supposed they would all be living in a house somewhere. All the children would have nice clothes and go to good schools. Cody could be cranky and loud on occasion but she had seen his sweeter side and heard him gush about his baby niece. He would be a good dad, she decided. And on top of that, the kids would have three uncles...

They would all go on runs together in the woods and the kids could finally go out to the park and the movies and all those places she was hiding them from just in case and Cody would spoil them because they deserved it after what they’d all been through.

It was a complete fantasy. The stuff of silly dreams. But somehow it still made Jessie a little happy to think about as she went about her busy and tiring night until the seven of them were all piled on the couch and on the area rug, watching cartoons on the TV, it took up a lot of energy from the generator and she didn’t allow it during the day.

If Cody were here, he’d rub my feet, Jessie thought dreamily.

“Do you know where my kangaroo book is?” The question came from Jason who looked at her with hazel colored puppy eyes,