“Four,” said John.

“Five, counting our father,” added Rob. “If you want to know my theory—”

“Please don’t,” said John.

“—it all started as a way to irritate Grandfather Grant after Daddy flew his plane into the sea, but then Lucy got into the serial marriage habit and she hasn’t been able to break it.”

“I think your grandfather would not have liked Lucy no matter what,” said Kai thoughtfully. To Angie she said, “He took Rob out of his will when we got married.”

“And then he died,” said Rob. “That’ll teach him.”

“I didn’t know about your grandfather,” Angie said. Her mouth worked as if she were tasting something unpleasant. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Don’t be,” Rob said. “We aren’t. Or I’m not. I can’t speak for John—who got the building on Morningside and the house on Long Island, by the way.”

“I sold the Long Island house,” John said.

Angie was looking at John, but for the moment he couldn’t meet her eye. He was too busy fighting back a swell of irritation with Rob and himself, too, for this irresistible urge to provide Angie with information that she clearly did not want.

Her attention was fixed on him, her eyes so dark and so brilliant that it looked, just for that moment, as if she were about to cry. Which was his imagination, because he had never known a woman less inclined to tears, unless it was Kai. Or his own mother.

Very slowly she said, “Jay, you still won’t admit you were angry about my hair.”

“Jay?” Kai looked between them. “I have never heard you called this before.”

“And you never will,” John said. “Angie’s always renaming people—” He paused before the rest of the thought forced its way into words: Angie renamed only the people she cared about. He cleared his throat. “She calls her father Apples and her mother Peaches. She calls her close friends winkie when she’s feeling good about them and mope when she’s not. How is your mother, Angie?”

“Fine,” Angie said, and Kai said, “Winkie?”

To Angie, John said, “I admit your timing was bad, Angie. But that’s all I’ll admit.”

“Harvey, give it up. You were angry and, oddly enough, you’re still angry.”

“This is all ancient history. And if I have any say in the matter, if I’ve got to have a nickname, I’d like to stick with Jay.”

Kai said, “John does not like to show anger, it is true. In this, he and Caroline are well matched.”

It was rare that Kai pushed him so hard that John was in danger of losing his composure, but now it took everything in him to control his tone. He said, “I don’t want to talk about Caroline.”