“Okay with it?” Linda asked with a laugh. “What do you expect me to say to that? We were both surprised—shocked—to hear your father had a daughter he never knew about. But I don’t blame him, if that’s what you’re asking. He didn’t know. If anyone is to blame, if that’s the word you want to use, it’s Mallory’s mother, who made the choice to keep your father’s daughter from him for nearly forty years. She’s gone now, though, so there’s no point tossing blame around. All we can do is manage the situation we’re in.”

“That’s very Zen of you,” Evan said. “I wouldn’t have expected you to be so chill about finding out Dad has another kid.”

“I’m sorry if I’ve disappointed you by not flipping out,” Linda said with a grin for her youngest son. “One thing I’ve learned is that life tosses you challenges you never see coming. The only thing you can control is how you react to those challenges. I choose not to make the sudden appearance of a daughter your father never knew he had into a marriage crisis.”

“You see why I love her?” Big Mac said.

Mac was slightly relieved to hear that Mallory’s appearance wasn’t going to cause a rift between his parents, who’d always been solid as a rock.

The doorbell rang, ending the moment of levity.

“I’ll get it,” Big Mac said.

They heard him exchanging greetings with her and inviting her in. Though he’d seen her yesterday, everything was different now, so Mac held his breath as anxiety flooded his entire body. This sister he’d never known he had was older than he was. If his parents planned to open their arms and welcome her into their family, as it seemed they were going to do, he would no longer be the oldest sibling. He loved being the oldest and had always embraced the responsibility he felt toward his younger siblings, even if they chafed against his need to be the boss.

Would the arrival of this woman change the entire dynamic of his family? That thought caused the kind of panic he hadn’t felt since the sailboat accident.

Their father came into the kitchen with a dark-haired woman. Knowing what he knew now, Mac took a much closer look at her than he had the day before. And then he saw it—the shocking resemblance to the picture his father kept on his desk of their grandmother as a young woman. No wonder why he hadn’t required proof.

“This is Grant, Adam, Evan and Mac,” Big Mac said. “Boys, this is Mallory Vaughn.”

Each of them shook her hand as they tried to pretend they weren’t staring at her.

“Janey couldn’t be here this morning,” Big Mac said. “You can meet her another time.”