“That you loved someone, lost them and acted out?” Lawr asked. “MeeMee, I know Mom and Dad wanted us both to be perfectly programmed automatons, but you’re human. Give yourself a break. This guy sounds like a good dad. He sounds like he’s responsible. He sounds like his ex-wife put him through the wringer and he made it to the other side while guiding his kids there. He sounds like he knows practically nothing about your situation and has a better lock on it than you do. Give him a break too. Life is life and it’s happened to this guy just like it’s happened to you. He’s going to get it. But I’ll tell you this, if he learns that about you and runs a mile, that says more about him than it does about you.”

“I wish you were closer,” I blurted, and I really did.

I loved my brother, my kids loved their uncle, he was the only real family I had (outside my kids), and I wanted to be in a position to see him happy and do something about it.

This would mean me conniving to break him up with the witch he called a wife but I wasn’t above that, absolutely not.

I’d proved I’d do anything in the name of love.

In fact, I’d wanted to fix him up with Robin for a long time. When she wasn’t being scary and wreaking vengeance, she was sweet, funny, and above all, loyal. And whenever Robin and Lawrie were together, he was always being droll and hilarious, this aimed often at Robin, and she was always laughing and being suggestive, and this was aimed at Lawr but mostly it was aimed at the witch because Robin hated Lawrie’s wife just as much as me.

Hmm.

“I’ll come out and visit,” Lawr told me.

“Thanksgiving,” I said instantly.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Leave the witch, bring the boys,” I said with no hesitancy.

I was straight with Lawr, Lawr was straight with me. He knew I didn’t like her. He also knew (since he told me) that their marriage was over and he was holding it together, supposedly for the boys.

But I suspected, after telling my father to shove his billion dollar company up his ass and going into the law (a profession Lawr had always been fascinated with), he’d exhausted his rebellion, so divorce was out of the question.

“I’ll think about that too.”

I blinked.

Lawr had never considered something like that.

“Really?” I asked.

“Maybe experiencing my little sister fighting for happy is teaching me something.”

Oh God.

That would be wonderful.

“I won’t jump on that, push it and do it while flipping cartwheels,” I promised.