She emerges from the bedroom, purse in hand. “I guess it’s time for me to go.”
“I’ll walk you out.” With her coffee in hand, I open the front door and wait for her to go ahead of me.
She turns when she gets to her car door and throws her arms around my neck. “Thank you for an amazing weekend.”
“Anytime.” I give her a quick kiss before backing up. “You are going to be late.”
“Probably.” She opens the door and slides into the driver's seat.
“Here, I made this for the road.”
She looks up at me, eyes wide, and smiles. “A girl could get used to this.”
“Play your cards right and it could be an everyday thing.” I close the car door and watch her back out of the driveway. She’s my forever, even if she doesn’t realize it yet.
20
Joan
It’s beena week since my weekend with Eric. This may be the most I’ve ever texted and called someone in my life. While I’m good with technology, I much prefer face to face interactions. Things don’t get lost in translation that way.
“Have you talked to Isaac, yet?” Keith is sitting beside me in the bleachers while we watch our son play.
My dad, on the other side of me, interjects the conversation. “No, she hasn’t.”
“I thought you were going to do it Monday night?” Keith stares at me in confusion. “The longer you put it off, the more likely it’s not going to go well. Especially if he thinks you’ve been lying to him.”
“I know.” I wish the two of them would stop. “It’s hard because what if things don’t work out between us and then it's a heartbreak for them as well as me?”
Dad pats my shoulder. “That’s part of life, Bug. You can’t shelter yourself or them. All you can do is be there for them if things don’t go as planned.”
If anyone is an expert in this, it’s him. He handled things like a pro when Mom split. I barely even remember her now. This is different, though. It’s not someone leaving the family, never to be seen again. This is me potentially adding someone to our group. And if I have it my way, it’ll be forever. What if they can’t come to terms with that?
“Will it make you feel better if I’m there when you talk to them?” Keith asks.
“Maybe?” Honestly, at this point it’s probably the only way it’s going to happen.
“She’s off work tomorrow.” Dad points out. “Y’all can tell him at lunch so you have the rest of the day to talk it over if you need to.”
“Fine.” I pout even though I know I’m being ridiculous. “Tomorrow at lunch. I’ll order pizza or something to make it less traumatizing for the kids.”
“I’ll bring the pizza,” Keith says. “You just figure out what you’re going to say.”
“Okay.” There’s no point arguing. Both of them have given reasonable responses, and even though neither of them are excited about the age difference, they trust my judgment.
I can only hope Isaac takes it well. If he doesn’t, I’m not sure what I’m going to do. Eric makes me happy. I mean, I was happy before, but he adds to the small joys in life. Things I didn’t realize I missed so much. He gets excited when I tell him how Isaac is doing in baseball. He’s the optimistic side to my realistic personality. It’s not because he’s never seen hardship. He’s shared some of his childhood. He may get it more than anyone I’ve dated.
“Do the kids have anyone staying over tonight?” Dad bumps into my shoulder.
“Not that I know of, but I wouldn’t rule it out.” Both Isaac and Abby are horrible about having people come over at the last minute.
“I’ll stop by the grocery store and get some snacks just in case.” All of our eyes are on Isaac as he walks to the plate to bat. “But I’ll be sure to tell them nobody can stay the night. Their friends need to be picked up tonight.”
“Sounds good. Or you can just tell them no when they ask.”
“Grandparent's perk is I don’t have to tell them no.” He points to me and Keith, “that’s your job.”
Good ol’ Dad. Doing anything and everything to keep from being the bad guy. Isaac swings and misses. The pitcher throws the ball and he gets a hit off it. It’s not enough to get him past second base, but one of his teammates is able to run in. We all stand and cheer.
