"What?" I asked, drying my hands on the towel lying on the counter.
"You came to cheer me up, didn't you?" he asked.
I shrugged but didn't answer aloud.
"Burgers, snacks, ice cream, and movies? Total formula to help a depressed friend. I remember the ritual well from high school. I'd come over to visit J.J. and one of your friends would be on the couch with you, moping, eating junk food, and watching movies. Usually right after they got dumped. Though there was the occasional fight with a friend or just plain ole PMS."
"Wow, spend a lot of time in the nineteen-fifties?" I asked him.
He had the temerity to laugh in the face of my irritation. "I didn't say all women performed that ritual. Just that I've seen you do it." He came toward me, the smile still on his face but there was some deeper emotion there. Tenderness, maybe. "And I'm grateful to be on the receiving end of it tonight because I wasn't sure what I was going to do when you didn't answer your door earlier."
He wrapped his arms around my waist and bent to press a kiss to my neck. I returned his embrace, tucking my face against his chest.
"I brought Burger Barn," I said. "You hungry?"
Brody squeezed me. "I could eat."
We settled at the bar with Styrofoam containers full of cheeseburgers and curly fries.
"How did it go?" I asked him between bites.
"The usual," he answered with a shrug. "Icy greeting, veiled hostility, and negative comments about Jacks' cheap clothing and luggage."
My eyes widened. "She says stuff in front of Jacks?"
Brody shook his head. "No, just when she's out of earshot."
"Also, I'm stuck on the cheap clothes and luggage. Jacks is six-years-old. She's going to outgrow everything in a few months anyway. Including her luggage. Why spend a ton of money on it?"
"I agree with that philosophy," Brody answered with a sigh. "Unfortunately, Monica and my mother share the same viewpoint and think I should dress Jacks according to her 'station' in Farley."
I rolled my eyes. "Six-year-old girls have stations? Are they like fire departments now?"
"See? This is why I spend time with you. You get me."
"Do you think she's going to try to take Jacks to France anyway?" I asked.
"I doubt it. But if she does, the private investigation firm I hired should be able to intervene. Or at least stall her until I can call the police to handle the situation."
The burger in my stomach suddenly felt like a lead ball. How was Brody walking around like a normal human being? Jacks wasn't even my daughter and I was stressed out.
I was also doing a shitty job of distracting him.
I turned, put my feet on the floor, and essentially stood between his thighs. Then I put my arms around his waist and gave him a hug. I didn't say anything else, letting my embrace speak for me.
"Okay, so I brought three movies," I said, pulling away so I could see his face. "A comedy, an action flick, and a thriller. Which one do you want to watch first?"
"The thriller," he answered.
"Um, are you sure? I mean, won't that put ideas and worries in your head?" I asked.
"Why did you bring it if you weren't going to let me watch it?" he asked with a disbelieving laugh.
"Well, I didn't think about it at the time! I just wanted to distract you from missing Jacks."
"Having you jump into my lap the first time something scary happens will definitely do that," he murmured, tugging my body back toward his.
I shook off his hold and marched around the island so that it stood between us. "That's it. We're watching the comedy."
