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“Good point,” Jenna said. “Zeke, why don’t you and Jeremiah finish setting the table?”
Before Jeremiah could complain, Zeke nudged his shoulder and gestured to the vegetable tray. To my surprise, the kid picked it up and followed Zeke into the dining room.
“Zeke and Rylan earned his trust pretty quickly,” Jenna said quietly. “When it comes to men, he goes by first impressions. He tends to be more skeptical of women, always watching for them to turn on him. Diana wants to trust, but she’s still waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
I nodded, understanding what she wasn’t saying. I’d never do anything to intentionally cause distrust, but I needed to be extra careful around the kids. Even if we never became close, they needed to see I was trustworthy.
At that moment, I realized what I wanted to do with Burkart Investigations. Tomorrow, I’d take a closer look at the books to see where things stood financially and if my idea was even feasible. I needed to hire a receptionist who could keep the office open while I was in the field, and then I needed to find an investigator who’d be able to take on the everyday cases of infidelity and lost pets, that sort of thing.
Once I didn’t have to deal with the majority of the paperwork and simple cases, I’d be able to focus most of my time on criminals. I’d work the cases Jenna hired me for, of course, but I’d find other scumbags who needed to be put away. Anonymous tips worked as long as they stayed anonymous. I’d look into pro bono cases too. Ones like Theo and Meka who didn’t have someone like Jalen to pay for an investigator.
I’d catch the cases that fell through the cracks.
“You okay?” Jalen asked, his question interrupting my thought process.
I nodded and smiled. “I’m good. It’s been a while since I’ve been around this many people on a holiday. Takes some getting used to.”
He reached down and squeezed my hand. “If it gets to be too much, just say the word, and we’ll go. You know Jenna and Rylan will understand.”
“Thanks.”
I appreciated the gesture, but I wasn’t going to take him up on his offer. As conflicted as my emotions were, I genuinely wanted to be there. My relationship with Adare had softened me up, and the closer I grew to Jalen and Jenna, and even Rylan, the more I wanted to be a part of a family.
I’d missed this more than I’d let myself acknowledge.
I moved over to the stove where Rylan was mixing a stick of butter into a bowl of mashed potatoes. “How can I help?”
