“I did a lot of fun things. And don’t forget the year I played baseball in junior high.”
“Oh, I haven’t. I went to every game I could. You were really good at fieldstop.”
“Shortstop.” He chuckled.
“Right. Shortstop. The coach said you could have been one of the top players on the high school team.”
“But I chose to work after school instead. I don’t regret that decision.”
Mom stared into her tea. “Maybe you could have been a professional like Hayden.”
He shook his head. “Definitely not. First off, Hayden was in a class of his own. He also busted his tail to get to the pros. I like the game, but not that much. Being on the church team is satisfying enough.” When she still looked doubtful, he added, “If I’d played on the high school team, I wouldn’t have worked at McDonald’s or that restaurant in Hot Springs or any of the other food-service jobs I’ve had. I wouldn’t have realized how much I enjoy cooking, and I wouldn’t have gotten the assistant job at the diner.” And he wouldn’t have ended up owning the diner, fulfilling his dream. “Like I said, I don’t have any regrets.”
“But—”
“How was your day?” he asked, eager to move on to a different subject.
“Fine. Not much changes at the plant, and cleaning the offices has been easier lately.”
Despite her assurances, he could hear the weariness in her voice and see the shadows underneath her eyes. The light in the kitchen also showed a few new threads of gray in her hair, something he hadn’t noticed before. He didn’t say anything about her obvious fatigue, even though he was concerned she seemed constantly tired. She would just deny everything, and he would just tell her to find a physically easier job or quit altogether and enjoy an early retirement. They were the flip sides of the same broken record.
“I’m so happy you cut your hair.” His mom reached over and touched his ears. “Now when are you getting rid of these?”
Tanner touched his gauges. She’d been shocked, then angry, when he’d come home with them in high school, so much so she threatened to ground him. She’d changed her mind when she realized the pointlessness of punishing him for something he’d already done. Since then she would occasionally look at his ears and shake her head.
“Someday,” he assured her, not admitting that he’d already been thinking about taking them out and repairing his earlobes. “I’ve got a full schedule right now.”
“You always do.” She took another sip of her tea, one eyebrow raised.
He wasn’t taking the bait. “Do you know Harper Wilson?”
“Yes. I see her realty signs everywhere, and we’ve talked a bit at church. Friendly girl. Beautiful too.” Her eyes widened with excitement. “Oh, Tanner! Are youfinallydating someone?”
Oops. He hadn’t thought she would jump to that conclusion. “I’m catering her cocktail party tomorrow night, that’s all.”
“Oh.” Then she added, “Is she single?”
“I don’t know. Never asked.”
“Why not?”
Brother, how had he stepped into this? “She’s not my type.”
“Then who is your type?”
“I’m going to prepare some of AbuelaCastillo’s recipes for the party tomorrow.”
Her eyes brightened. “That’s wonderful. She would be so pleased. What are you making?”
Tanner told her the specifics of the menu, glad to get off the topic of women. When he was finished, she was beaming.
“My son the businessman.”
He tensed. Surely she had no idea about him buying Sunshine. “What do you mean?”
“You’re the one who started the catering business, and from what you’ve told me, you’re in charge of the whole thing. I’m so proud of you, Tanner. Your father would be too.”
His heart warmed at seeing the pride in her eyes. “Thanks, Mom. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
