I bit back a smile. “What else did you guess?”

“I did vanilla cake and vanilla icing, fudge cake, sprinkle cake, and my personal favorite, triple berry creation.”

I gave one of her curls a tug. “I’m going to have to do some scientific research to make sure I know which is my favorite.”

“It’s the only responsible thing to do.”

Mia and Ava hollered for us to come join them in some sort of lawn game. The afternoon passed in a sea of food, laughter, and as startling as it was, good friends. No photographers popped up to ruin our day. No surprise threats or visits from the sheriff. We simply got to enjoy being together.

I eased back into one of the Adirondack chairs on the deck. As I took in the scene before me, I could think of only one thing: my family would’ve loved this. It was everything my mom wished this house could be. It wasn’t about having the perfect restoration of the building itself. It was about the life that swirled within and around it.

“Griffin?”

I turned to see Ava approaching hesitantly, a small, wrapped package in her hands. “Hey, Avs.” She hovered a few steps away, and I patted the chair next to me.

As she lowered herself into the seat, she handed me the gift. “Happy Birthday.”

My chest swelled and constricted at the same time. “Thank you. Should I open this now?”

“If you want. You don’t have to.”

“I want to open it right now.”

A tiny smile curved Ava’s mouth. “It’s just something small.”

I met her gaze. “It’s from you. Whatever it is, I’m going to love it.”

She nibbled on her bottom lip but nodded. I slipped a finger under the seam of the wrapping, careful not to damage the contents. As the paper fell away, I saw a handmade book. There was a drawing of the farmhouse on the front that was incredibly realistic. “Did you draw this?”

Ava blushed. “Yeah. I couldn’t get everything just right, but I tried.”

“It’s amazing. You’re so talented.” I couldn’t help but wonder what else this little girl was hiding away from the world. Her siblings were so bold with their talents, putting them on display for everyone to see and not thinking twice. But Ava kept so many things just for herself.

I slowly opened the front cover. A photo of me, Caelyn, and the kids was pasted to the first page. It was from one of our potluck dinners. Will had taken me down in a game of faux tackle football, and the girls had charged, piling on top of us. We were a mess of tangled limbs and laughter.