“Sorry, Daddy, I have to be here over the weekend to pet my new goat, or she won’t know me when she goes out to pasture,” Holly said. Then there was a long silence while she listened to him. “Well, if it’s only one night, and I can pet her before we leave and you’ll have us back home before four on Saturday, that would be all right, I guess. But you better talk to Mama before you reserve a hotel room for us.” She laid the phone down on the counter and went back to the table.

“It’s Daddy, and he wants to talk to you,” she told Lily, and then nudged Braden with her elbow. “I told him we could only be gone from tomorrow evening until Saturday. If you don’t back me up, I’m going to strangle you.”

“I don’t want to go at all,” Braden said. “I’d rather be here.”

Lily took her time pushing away from the table and going to the phone. “Hello, Wyatt,” she said. “We haven’t heard from you in a month. Did you lose the number to the house here in Comfort?”

“I’ve been too busy to call, but I want the kids for the weekend. I’ll pick them up tomorrow and bring them home Sunday evening. Have them ready at four,” he said.

She turned toward the table. “Sure you don’t want to stay over until Sunday?”

Both kids shook their heads.

“The kids have projects they’re working on, so they’ll have to be home Saturday evening fairly early,” she said in a businesslike tone.

“Victoria and I want to take them to a couple of museums on Saturday, and then to the Alamo on Sunday. From what Holly just told me, they could use some culture,” he almost growled.

She relayed the message to the kids.

Braden pretended to gag.

Holly shook her head. “I’m not even going if Victoria is going to be there.”

Braden raised his hand in agreement.

“They’ll go, but for one day only,” Lily said. “How about if you go to the Alamo and then to the shopping mall?”

“No museums,” Braden said.

“Only if we get to go to the mall.” Holly got up for the second time and held out her hand for the phone. “It’s me again, Daddy. Here’s the deal. We’ll go if you pick us up tomorrow, and we can go to the Alamo and the shopping mall Saturday. We want to eat at the barbecue place in the food court, not some fancy place with cloth napkins, and then we want to be home before four so we can take care of our goats. Deal?”