“We don’t have any, but we can make sandwiches and watch a show on my tablet if you want,” she said, willing to let him sit in front of a cartoon if it slowed him down a little.
“No. Chicken nuggets,” he insisted, and then his bottom lip jutted out as warning a battle of wills was about to commence.
It was a battle she didn’t have it in her to wage. Oliver needed a break. She needed a break. And his whining for chicken nuggets triggered a craving for French fries Siobhan couldn’t shake. Hot, salty, fried potatoes always helped.
She’d been a good sport, joining in most of the family’s activities, so there was no reason to feel guilty about wanting one meal that wasn’t absolute chaos. The food was always plentiful and delicious, of course, but the noise level and trying to wrangle a toddler with a paper plate kept her on her toes.
“Auntie Steph said there’s a restaurant not too far up the road,” she said. “We can go see if they have chicken nuggets, but if they don’t, I bet they can make you a grilled cheese.”
She’d never been to a restaurant that couldn’t serve a child a grilled cheese sandwich, so if they couldn’t get his favorite food, they could get his second favorite. When he instantly cheered up, but quietly, without getting overexcited, she knew it was the right call. It would do them both good to get away, and after getting herself ready, she grabbed her bag and keys.
She’d just finished strapping Oliver into his car seat when Brian walked up, slightly out of breath as though he’d been hurrying but not quite running.
“Hey,” he said, trying and failing to look casual. “What’s up?”
“We’re not leaving.” She chuckled when he looked at Oliver in his car seat and then back to her. “Okay, weareleaving, but we’re coming back. We’re going off in search of chicken nuggets and French fries.”
“Ah. I’m pretty sure we have chicken nuggets in the freezer, but I think my family’s used all the potatoes in the county making potato salads, so I don’t know about rustling up French fries.”
“I think we could use a break,” she said, belatedly realizing he might take offense at her wanting to get away from them.
He smiled, his eyes warm with amused affection. “We can be a lot, for sure.”
“Your family’s wonderful, but we’re not used to so much…everything.”
“Kenzie has great popcorn chicken,” he said. “She and her dad own Corinne’s Kitchen, which isn’t far up the road. Not quite nuggets, but they’re delicious and their fries are unmatched.”
“Ooh.”She grinned. “That’s a big claim. You should know I judge people on their food recommendations.”
“Trust me. I don’t praise fries lightly. I’m bummed I’ll be here eating more potato salad instead of being there to gloat when you try one.”
“You’re welcome to join us,” Siobhan said, and then her skin prickled when she realized what she’d done.
She hadn’t been thinking at all. Instead of remembering Brian was a man best kept at arm’s length for a number of reasons, she’d gotten lost in his blue eyes and that smile. It had been almost like flirting, and she’d gone too far.
“I could go for some popcorn chicken and fries,” hesaid, his gaze returning to Oliver, who was starting to squirm with impatience in his car seat. “If you’re sure you don’t mind.”
It occurred to Siobhan then that Brian could probably use a break, too. He was as central to the current drama as she was, but his family probably didn’t need to tiptoe around the topic with him. As intense as the last several days had been for her, they’d probably been even more so for him.
“Sure.” She looked around the campground and saw that people were starting to notice her and Brian, and the open car door. “Maybe we don’t invite everybody, though?”
He looked over his shoulder and chuckled. Then he gave a hand signal to Stella, who made a woofing sound and galloped back to the group of family that included Rob and Hannah. “Okay, let’s make a run for it.”
Brian was in the passenger seat with the door closed before Siobhan even had time to ask if he was going to ride with her or take his own truck. After double-checking Oliver’s harness, she closed his door and climbed into the driver’s seat. The windows were already down because her air-conditioning wasn’t as good as it used to be, and she returned the waves of the others as she drove slowly out of the campground and took a right onto the main road.
Once she was at speed, she became very aware of the man sitting next to her. Other than Robin occasionally, the seat was usually empty, and he seemed large in her small car. If she shifted her right arm at all, there was a good chance their upper arms would brush.
She was careful not to shift her arm.
“I apologize for pushing myself on you two,” Briansaid. “I heard somebody say you were leaving and I—I don’t know. Even if you were, it wasn’t my business, so I’m sorry about that.”
“I appreciate that. I did send a text message to Steph, but she might not have told anybody yet. And as for pushing yourself on us, if you weren’t welcome, I wouldn’t have invited you.” Not that she’d invited him after careful consideration, but he didn’t need to know that.
“Thanks.”
They rode in silence broken only by Oliver occasionally describing things they passed. He was especially excited when they went by a small farm and he started yelling about the cows.
“I promise he’s seen cows before,” she said, and Brian laughed.
