Jake bursts through the back door, Bronson trotting along behind him, and I jump back from Miles. I don’t have any illusions that Jake is completely clueless that something’s going on with Miles and me. I’m just not ready for him to walk in on anything, and that kiss was quickly turning into something more than anything.
“Mom, did Miles tell you our secret?” Excitement shines in his eyes as he takes in what is obviously an embrace.
My concern over how Jake might react to seeing me with someone other than his dad skitters away. I slide my hands from Miles’s sides, where I was pulling him to me, to his grooved abs where I’m playfully pushing him away. “Secret? Someone once told me that those don’t make friends.”
Miles lets out anoof, taking a step back and wrapping his arms loosely around his middle. It’s apparent to all of us that he’s faking the effects of being shoved. Hopefully, Jake misses the adjustment Miles makes to his erection, which was just pressedhardagainst me.
“Good thing we don’t have to worry about that,” he mutters through a smirk.
Jake cocks his head like a puppy. “Wait, I don’t get it. Aren’t you guys friends? Does that mean… What about the secret?” he asks.
“What secret, Jake? Go ahead and tell me.”
I reach into the fridge and pull out ingredients for dinner. Baby potatoes, fresh green beans, and a pork tenderloin coated in cracked black pepper. While I wash the potatoes and prep them to roast, Jake looks to Miles, his brows arched high, a silent conversation marked with wild, exaggerated facial expressions and flailing hands. And when I glance over my shoulder at Miles, I’m relieved to see he looks as clueless as I feel.
“Jake, just spill it already. It’s not like we’re going to be able to hide it from her until Mother’s Day.” A deep belly laugh tumbles from Miles.
“Okay, so, Mom, listen to this, just listen.Oh my glorb, it was so flipping crazy.” Jake jumps into his story, and now, it’s Miles’s turn to tilt his head from side to side, trying to figure out where this story is going. “So, we went and picked up that bench you wanted, so we could surprise you for Mother’s Day because you’re the best mom in the entire world—I’m not even joking. And?—”
“Wait, you guys went to that neighborhood that you said was sketchy—too sketchy for me to go to?” I glare at Miles, who shrugs almost apologetically.
Jake continues. “Yeah, but that’s ’cause we’re the men and being chiva…”
“Chivalrous,” Miles finishes for him.
“Right, chivalrous. That’s it. We were being chivalrous, and that’s one of the rules, so it’s okay. So, we got it and the extra table that the guy had, too. And then we stopped and got flowersand dirt and stuff. And then, Miles said we could go get a drink from the fainting store, and?—”
“Really?” I ask. “That’s what we’re calling it?”
“It fits.” Miles grins, nodding toward the back door. “We should show your mom how nice it looks.”
“Yeah, sure. But then, when we were leaving and getting in the truck, this kid runs out of the store with a lady’s bag—her, um… her…”
“Purse?” I tense, my knuckles turning white around the handle of my knife. I don’t like where this story is headed.
“Yeah, her purse. And so, people run out, yelling, and Miles jumps out of the truck and takes off running after the guy. And Miles is fast, Mom—like, really fast.”
Jake’s gesturing wildly, and I’ve already lost count of how many times he’s saidlike, and,andso, but I’m not at all excited with the direction this story is taking.
“And I stayed in the truck, just like Miles told me to. I stayed there, and I stuck my head out and talked to the lady. Told her that Miles would get her stuff back ’cause he’s like a hero and stuff. And?—”
“You… wait… you…” I can’t even begin to wrap my head around the fact that my child was not just at a convenience store without me—something I have been adamant about not happeningever—but he was also there during a robbery.
“And then police cars came, and one went flying past—like, really fast. And the other one pulled in, and he—that cop—talked to the lady and the store manager and then, and then, and then he came over to Miles’s truck and waited with me and the lady, and we all waited until Miles came running back. And the police guy, he said…”
As my eyes slam shut, I raise my hand, palm out, wanting nothing more than to stop everything—the words, the story, the worst of my fears playing out in a nightmare come to life. Myheart races, my breaths come in shallow pants, and though I’m home, and I know we’re all safe, the wave of panic pulls at me. I open my eyes, needing to orient myself.
One.Deep breath in.
Two.Hold it.
Three…
My vision tunnels, blackness closing in on me at an alarming rate, and I feel the floor slipping away beneath me.
A faint echo of, “Goddamn it. Stay with?—”
And then it all goes blank.
