Kendrick blinked. "What?"
"No! Not with me... with them..." Zara rushed out, cheeks warming as she realized how it might've sounded.
"I understand what you meant," he replied calmly, his voice steady.
"Oh..." she whispered, her gaze dropping as a crimson blush flushed her cheeks. She bit her lip, trying to hide her embarrassment.
"I mean, you can't just give in to their tantrums," he clarified, eyes steady on hers. "Don't worry, I can talk them out of it."
He moved to walk toward the house, but Zara reached out and caught his hand.
"I know how to raise my children," she said, a defensive edge in her tone.
"I'm sorry," he offered quickly.
She didn't let go.
"They might call you uncle, but they don't really understand what it means that you're their grandpa's stepbrother," she continued, her voice softer now. "They see you as their father's sibling... as a father figure."
Kendrick listened, his gaze never wavering.
