That has to be it. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself.
“What’s for dinner?” Charlie asks, sidling up next to me.
“Rice bowls. I figure I can make cookies later before we make our sweaters.”
Charlie groans. “I love you, Brooks, but I cannot eat another cookie.”
“Hey!” I’m indignant. “What do you have against my cookies?”
“Nothing.” He smirks, rubbing his stomach. “But I cannot keep eating cookies every night.”
I wave him off, ignoring the way my eyes dart down to his stomach.Again, why am I noticing these things?“It’s the holidays. You should get to eat all the cookies you want.”
“I feel like that’s not something you’d hear a parent say.”
“Speaking of. My mom called today and asked when your parents would be in town for the holidays. They want to get together for dinner with us.”
Charlie grabs a sparkling water from the fridge and opens his drink, taking a long gulp. “They’re coming in the week before Christmas, I think. Maybe we can do something around then.”
I nod. “Sounds good. I’ll let her know. They still have no desire to come back to Maine?”
“No. My mom is done with the cold weather and wants the beach.”
I spoon two cups of rice into the bowls and start piling toppings onto each. “I don’t know if you could ever get me to leave Moose Falls.”
“There’s nowhere else you’d want to live?”
“Been there, done that.” Having gone to college in New York, I realized that the only place I want to live is Moose Falls. “I’m a lifer. Just like you.”
“Worse places to be stuck,” Charlie tells me, accepting his dinner from me. “Not that I think I’m stuck.”
“Cheers to that.” I grab my water and clink my glass with his.
“How’s work going with Hunter?”
“Good.” I take a bite of dinner and chew. “Really good, actually.”
“Yeah?” Charlie asks.
I nod. “He needs more help than I thought, so it’s nice to feel needed.”
Charlie gives me a warm smile. I don’t need to ask what it’s about. For the first time since I moved in with Charlie and the divorce was finalized, I feel like things are looking up.
“If you can even get him a functioning website, it will be better than anything else he currently has. I know he wants to expand.”
I nod, taking another bite. “We’ve talked about ways he can expand using it as a platform. I’m excited about his ideas.”
“I’m glad you can help him.”
After eating the rest of our meals in a companionable silence, I grab our bowls—now empty—and drop them into the sink.
“Are you ready?”
Charlie rubs his hands together with a gleeful smile on his face. “I am. Are you?”
“You bet.”
Charlie hops off the stool at the island and walks over to the dining room table where tonight’s activity is all laid out.
