More Than Words - Jerry Cole Page 0,10
her tone. He had promised to go for dinner at his parents’ home and he’d completely forgotten. You’re such a poor excuse for a son!
“I’m sorry, Mom, I just stepped out of the shower. I’ll be there in half an hour.”
“Your brothers are already here. Try to get here before either of them has an emergency and has to leave. I’d actually love to have my three sons home together at my dinner table again.” Bennett heard the teasing note in her voice before she added “See you soon, honey.”
The porch light was on when Bennett drove his car up the short driveway to the manse where his dad and mom still lived, where he, Aidan and Adam had lived for more than half their lives. Just seeing the bungalow made his heart squeeze in a pleasant way. He took the bottle of wine he’d brought with him around to the back of the house where he knew everyone was gathering. As soon as he rounded the corner, Aidan immediately jumped him, landing a playful punch to the arm not holding the bottle.
“Long time no see, li’l bro,” he said, pulling him into a tight brotherly hug.
Bennett hugged his brothers, grateful that he had them. He placed the bottle on the kitchen counter and then turned to hug and kiss his mother who stood back to look him over with a critical eye, holding her granddaughter in her arms.
“You’re looking peaky, honey. Are you feeling okay?”
Bennett chuckled, taking the baby girl from her. “I’m fine, Mom. Just tired. I promise.”
Turning his attention to the cherub in his arms, he said, “And how’s my sweet li’l angel this evening?”
“Nova is fine. Daddy says so.”
Bennett looked over at her dad, his brother Adam, who grinned as he laughed and kissed her chubby cheeks. She had taken to speaking about herself in the third person recently, much to everyone’s amusement.
His father appeared as he was hugging her again and Bennett noted the vestments he wore, which told him that his dad had just finished some official function as the priest for their parish.
“Hey, Dad,” he said, walking over to hug him. “Good to see you.”
The Reverend Barrington Kincaid returned his youngest son’s hug and held him an extra beat, squeezing him to his chest. Bennett had always loved his father’s hugs. They never failed to make him feel protected, and for whatever reason, he needed that just now, though he had no idea why.
“Son, how are you?”
“I’m good, Dad. I’m good.” He looked his father over and asked, “Why the duds?”
“I had a wedding earlier and have just come from the reception.” He turned to his wife. “Don’t worry, Anna, it was a cocktail reception, so there wasn’t much in the way of food I could use.”
They all laughed at that. Reverend Kincaid was known for his healthy appetite, as his six-foot-four, truck-wide frame clearly indicated.
“Was it any good, even if it wasn’t filling?” His wife chuckled.
“Yes, it was, actually. They had some little shrimp ball things that were spicy and delicious. And some pork dim sum…yummy! And what would a cocktail party be without those miniature sandwiches that you can gobble up in one bite?”
Bennett’s amusement mounted as he watched his father’s face light up at the recollection of the food he’d had. The Kincaid boys had all learned early on to eat whatever they were given, and thankfully, nothing they’d ever been fed as children had been bad. But their parents were adventurous eaters, and his mother was always looking for new ways to tempt her family’s palate. He loved their family dinners even now for that reason as much as for the way they kept them connected, even if these days it only happened once a week when he was home.
“Let’s eat,” his mother said. “Dinner’s ready. Boys, please lay the table. It’ll give your dad time to change into something more comfortable.”
Dinner was as boisterous as it had always been, full of laughter and loud arguments about nothing important.
“Aid, are you finally going to take that vacation?”
Aidan, Bennett’s detective brother, looked up from his apple pie. “I’m in the middle of a case right now, but yeah, Dad. As soon as I’ve finished all the paperwork on it, I’ll be off. But in the meantime, I have some unfinished business from the last case as well. That’s what I’m going in to do tomorrow morning.”
“Where are you planning on going this time?” his twin, Adam, asked him.
“Don’t know yet.