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Clemmy and her twin brother Remy were more like siblings than cousins, since they had grown up together. Mom and Dad had taken them in after Mom’s sister was proven an unfit mother, and Mom didn’t want her niece and nephew to wind up in foster care.
“Where is she?” Cami asked. “I want to congratulate her.”
“She and Remy ran to the store to pick up some vanilla ice cream.”
It would be a mortal sin to serve Pouding Chomeur without a side of vanilla ice cream. “You should have called me. I could have picked it up on my way.”
“Let those two do something for once.”
Cami smiled. Sometimes, she wasn’t sure if everything she did for her family was appreciated. Clemmy and Remy had been spoiled growing up, and Cami always assumed Mom was trying to make up for their own mother’s behavior.
“Is Bastien coming over?” Cami’s older brother preferred the privacy of his own home and rarely ventured out unless it was a special event. His job as a freelance graphic designer kept him cooped up in his home, and unlike Cami who thrived on the energy of others, Bastien favored solitude.
“I figured he wouldn’t come, so I didn’t even bother to call,” Mom admitted. “Maybe I should shoot him a text.”
Cami waved her hand. “I wouldn’t bother. Like you said, he probably wouldn’t come anyway.”
“I just feel bad.”
“Don’t. You’re giving him an out for having to come up with an excuse.”
“You’re right. I know.” Mom sat down at the kitchen table.
“Have you called a landscaper?” Cami asked even though she already knew the answer.
“Not yet.”
“I’ll call tomorrow and see if I can get someone over here in the next day or two.”
“You don’t have to do that. I’ll take care of it.”
They were just words. Mom said that, but she wouldn’t. And while there were three other people who lived in this house who were perfectly capable of picking up a phone, Cami knew better than to rely on them. If she wanted something done, she had to take care of it herself.
She joined Mom at the kitchen table and rested her hand on hers. “I got it.”
“If you insist.”
“Mon petit oiseau,” Dad called out her nickname. With his long arms in the air, he walked into the kitchen and toward her. His graying hair was trimmed short and swept to the side above a pair of thin-wired eyeglasses.
He kissed each cheek then gave her a big hug.
“Hi, Dad.”
“I see you have a flat tire.”
“Et tu, Brute?”
Dad’s bushy eyebrow arched above his glasses.
Cami shook her head. “Sorry, it’s just Ella’s brother, Enzo, helped change it, and he’s been on my case about getting the tire fixed ever since.”
“He’s right. You can’t drive on a donut for too long.”
“Trust me, I know all the do’s and don’ts. I’m sure Enzo hasn’t left anything out.”
“I always liked that young man,” Dad said a little too proudly.
Cami tried not to roll her eyes. Dad loved the fact that Enzo had tattled her out a few times when they were kids, and when she got older, Enzo would drive her home so Dad didn’t have to miss his shows to go pick her up.
