“The point is, Becca belongs to the Donovan clan. We’ve got her back.”

“Speaking of people having her back...any word from Allen?”

He shook his head. “She’s been trying to call him.”

Jessi rolled her eyes upward and heaved a sigh. “I wish he could just give a damn.”

“Any idea where he’s at?”

“In LA maybe? That’s where the divorce papers were being forwarded.”

“When do you think you’re going to have a talk with her about her father? Don’t you think it’s time she knows the full story?”

“The full story? How explicit should I get with a twelve-year-old who still thinks her father is a hero?” she asked. “Where would I even start?”

As “Fun Uncle Johnny,” he didn’t know the answer to that question. His job was to be a goofball, but Becca didn’t seem all that receptive to his usual shenanigans. “I can’t say, but it’s going to get harder and harder to explain his silence. I know she has questions, Jess. It’s not going to take her long to start asking them.”

“I know, I know,” his stepsister said, rubbing her temple. “I’m fairly new to this too.”

They sat on the line in silence before John took a deep breath. “It’s okay. I’ll continue to treat the subject with kid gloves.”

“I’d appreciate it,” she said with a nod. “Let’s change subjects okay?”

“Yeah,” he said with a half smile. “I’ve got a long list of shit to do and I’m not doing any of it.”

“Perfect,” she said. “Have you written the list down?”

“Nope.”

“Is there something you can work on tonight?”

John chuckled. This is what his stepsister lived for. When John’s ADD made it difficult to concentrate, she always had helpful suggestions to jump-start his brain. “The library director passed a university project to me. Some internship I didn’t finish reading about.”

“Okay, so let’s finish reading the email first.”

“I think I can do that,” John said with another laugh. “Sometimes it feels like you’re patronizing me.”

“I never want it to sound like that, Johnny. I just know that it’s difficult for you to focus on more than one thing at a time. Especially if you’re stressed out. Just finish reading the email and then you can start some really broad research, nothing too in-depth.”

“It’s just the fall rush. There are more children’s activities to plan and Halloween is coming up. Plus, the budget numbers are due—”

“One thing at a time,” Jessi reminded him. “Right now, you read the email.”

“Right. Well, maybe I should let you go so I can do that.”

“I love you, bro. Good luck with my little pumpkin.”

“Love you too. Stay safe.”