“Nothing against you,” he said, “but not exactly what I had in mind.

Mom’s just being old-fashioned.”

“Not until you’re married,” Christy said. Then she explained to me,

“Mom won’t let couples sleep together until they’re married.”

“There’s a simple solution,” Sabrina said.

He glared at her in the mirror.

“Everyone loves her, even Rich.”

“Yes, Daniel,” Sabrina teased, “why haven’t you married me yet? My family keeps asking the same thing.”

“Can we change the subject?”

Sabrina smiled fondly at him.

“So, Paul,” he said, “are you ready for your trial by fire? Meeting all of us at once?”

“Can we change the subject?” I joked.

“Nah, you’ll do fine,” he said. “Mom already likes you. Dad’s a tougher nut to crack, but he’ll come around. Everyone else is pretty laid-back. Just don’t stand too close to Rich. Don’t make eye contact, either. And don’t stick anything through the bars of the cage.”

“Danny!” Christy cried.

Sabrina laughed. “Oh, Danny, be nice. Rich is a big softie. You just have to know how to handle him.”

“He wasn’t mean,” Christy said. “Laurence said it was ’cause you and your friends made fun of him.”

“Yeah, ’cause he was a little troll.” He grumbled, “Now he’s a big troll, with weapons and hand-to-hand combat training.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Christy said to me. “You’ll get along fine with Rich. He’s just very protective.”

“And me,” Sabrina said.

“And Mom,” Christy added.

“Okay, so he’s protective of women,” Danny said. To me, “Those of us with testicles are on our own.”

“Roger that,” I said.

“Ah, Rich isn’t that bad,” he said. “He’s got a friend with him, so I’m sure he’ll be on his best behavior.”

“Rich is here?” Christy said, surprised.

“Yeah, he decided to spend a couple of days at the ol’ homestead.

Brought a friend with him. Their unit’s on standby to standby ’cause of the whole Beirut thing, so they can’t leave town.”

“Mom didn’t know if he was gonna make it,” Christy said. “He thought he’d be deployed.”

“He still might be. Dad doesn’t think so, but the scuttlebutt is above our pay grade.” He glanced at me as he slowed to turn into a neighborhood. “Still time to bail.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Christy said. She hugged my arm. “Everyone will love you.”

“Last chance,” Danny said before he turned into a driveway.

I grinned. “Faint heart never won fair lady.”

He laughed, and Christy beamed up at me.

“You girls head inside,” Danny said as he maneuvered the big car into the garage. “Paul and I can handle the luggage.”

We climbed out of the car, and I got my first good look at Sabrina. For a moment I thought I might have to put my eyes back in my head. She looked like a brunette Christie Brinkley, only close enough to touch. I managed to recover before she noticed, but only just. I distracted myself by helping Christy out of the car.

“I’ll see you inside,” she said. “I can’t wait for you to meet everyone.”

I smiled and watched her and Sabrina walk into the house. Then I glanced at Danny, who was doing the same.

Danny waited till the girls shut the door behind them. Then he raised the trunk lid and gestured me behind it.

“All right,” he said quickly, his voice low, “here’s the tactical situation before you roll in.” He stopped and chuckled to himself. “You probably—”

“I got it. Pilot’s kid. Remember? I speak the lingo.”

“Yeah, right, sorry. Anyway, I like you,” he said earnestly, “so I want you to stick around. Here’s what you should expect. Mom’s already on your side.

He grinned at the word. “Right, so… You’ll figure out Harry and Marianne when you meet them tomorrow. He’s a real hotshot, like Dad.

Gonna be an admiral one day. She’s a sweetheart. You’ll love her. James and Lynne are here already. He’s pretty mellow. She’s nice enough but quiet and a bit of a fussbudget. Rich is… a good guy. But he’s disagreeable. Best word I can think of. He won’t like you, but it isn’t personal. He’s just wired different than the rest of us.”

“Got it. Your mom’s on my side. Call your dad ‘sir,’ but only when she isn’t around. Figure out the rest when I meet them.”

“Yep. That’s about it. The kids are all little versions of their parents, some more than others. Did Birdy—?”

The door from the house opened and a man’s voice said, “You guys need help?”

Danny raised his head over the lid of the trunk. He relaxed when he saw who it was.

“Mom sent me,” the man said as he joined us. He was shorter than Danny, but with the same build and the same blue eyes. He wore his dark hair short and sported a mustache. “You must be Paul,” he said as he extended his hand. “Nice to meet you. Jim Carmichael.”

“Paul Hughes. Nice to meet you.