“You’re welcome.” She leaned over to Paul, and he kissed her cheek. “When’s the first installment of the tuition due, Paul?”

Paul turned red. “Three weeks, Mom.”

“We should have this will thing straightened out by then. Send me the papers. Dad made you a promise, I’ll honor it.”

“Thank you very much, Mom.”

She patted his cheek. To Michael, she said, “Walk me up to my room, pumpkin.”

“Of course.” Michael shook hands with Decker. “Anything you need, we’re here to help. Right, Mom?”

“Right.” She started walking, then her knees folded. Michael grabbed her arm. “Lean on me, Mom.”

Decker followed them up the stairs until they disappeared. A moment later, he heard a door close.

Paul said, “She’s exhausted.”

“Can’t say I blame her.” Decker smoothed his mustache. “She seems to have an inner strength. Guess you’d have to have energy to raise six children, especially triplet boys.”

Paul nodded.

“You get along well with your brothers?”

Paul shrugged. “Not too bad. Being as Luke and Bram are identical, it was hard to compete with that genetic bond.”

“They were close growing up?”

“Yes.”

“Competitive?”

“Not really. Luke figured out pretty early on he couldn’t compete.”

“You were the outsider.”

Paul stared at Decker, his eyes still and calm. “Why are you interested in us?”

“Like Michael said, I’m interested in all facets of your family. I find it fascinating that Luke and Bram dated the same women.”

“You mean woman. As far as I know, Dana was the only girl Bram ever dated.”

“What happened between them?”

Paul’s eyes twitched. “A long story…it’s all past. They were kids…not even seventeen.”

“Your mother mentioned something about Dana seducing Bram. What happened? Did he get her pregnant?”

Paul didn’t answer right away. Then he said, “Not exactly. Luke got her pregnant. While she was Bram’s girl.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah, it was…” Paul scratched his head. “Bram took the fall, told our parents it was his. He covered, not for Dana’s sake and certainly not for Luke’s, but for his own ego. He didn’t want to look like a dupe.”

“How’d he find out it wasn’t his kid?”

Paul laughed, but it held sadness. “Only one way for a guy to know proof positive that the kid isn’t his.”

“He never had sex with her.”