Bart grinned. “I splurged on a pound of Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.” He glanced at his cousin, who was grinning from ear to ear. “Yeah, I know,” he added on a chuckle. “It’s your favorite.”

“And you just became my most favorite cousin,” Cort returned with a laugh.

“No surprise,” came the drawling reply.

They sat around the small kitchen table nibbling on a pizza and drinking the delicious coffee Bart had fixed for them.

“This is really nice,” Cort said, glancing around at the modern, clean kitchen with its blue curtains and appliances.

“I love to cook,” the other man said. “So I’ve got pretty much every device known to the culinary arts.”

“I can’t boil water,” Cort sighed. “There was a notable lack of women in our lives after our father kicked our model stepmother out the back door.”

“I remember,” Bart said. He shook his head. “Amazing that a man as smart as your father could let a woman like that take him over lock, stock and barrel.”

“I guess love can be pretty inconvenient.” He fingered the coffee cup. “Our father alienated my brother, Cash, so badly that even after our stepmother left, Cash wouldn’t speak to him. He wouldn’t speak to Garon or Parker or me, either, because we sided with the mercenary woman.” He shifted in the chair. “We live and learn. Garon went up to Jacobsville, where Cash is police chief, and made peace with him. The rest of us followed. We’re still wary of each other, but we’re making progress.”

“Cash is a legend in law enforcement,” Bart pointed out. “Ask our cousin Cody Banks.” He laughed. “Cash was even a Texas Ranger for a while, until he slugged the acting officer in charge.”

“Stuff of legends, my brother,” Cort agreed, trying not to feel smaller at the comparison. Cash had done things the rest of them had never even dreamed of. He’d been a government assassin, a merc, a military man, a Texas Ranger, a cyber expert for the San Antonio D.A.’s office. And, above all that, he’d married one of the most famous actress/models in America, Tippy Moore, the Georgia Firefly. Cash and Tippy had a daughter and a baby son, and seeing them together was an experience. After all the years, they were still like newlyweds.

“You’re quiet,” Bart remarked.

Cort smiled. “I was thinking about Cash’s wife and kids. Tippy really is beautiful, even without makeup, wearing jeans and a sweatshirt around the house. God, he’s a lucky man!”

“Yes, he is. I’ve seen photos of her. Gorgeous woman.” He sipped coffee. “What’s Garon’s wife like?”