Ben gave them a flat look. “She didn’t shoot him.”
For one second she and Vander went still as Ben continued shoveling most of a banana into his mouth.
Then Vander barked out a laugh so sudden and rough it startled her into laughing too. Even Ben cracked up at himself.
The sound filled the air, warm and easy, and for a heart-swelling moment Summer forgot to brace herself against happiness.
After a short time, Vander pushed his empty ice cream bowl away. “There’s something important we want to talk to you about, buddy.”
Ben’s eyes fixed on him, wide, his lips smeared with chocolate syrup.
“I said I’d like to date your mom, but that’s not really why I’m hanging around your place.” He darted a look at Summer. She nodded, and he continued, “You know how we put up the cameras?”
Ben nodded.
“We want to keep an eye on things in the neighborhood. Some weird things have happened.”
“What kind of weird things?”
Oh no. Not a question she wanted to answer.
“It’s kind of a mystery. Like the groceries someone dropped off on your porch. No one saw who left them there.”
Ben nodded as if all that made sense to him. “Yeah, that was weird. But I like the cereal.”
She issued a laugh that sounded a bit too watery. Under the table, Vander’s hand found hers, and he gave it a squeeze.
Vander was good at this—reallygood at not only knowing what to say to a seven-year-old, but how to comfort her.
“If Jeremiah McCauley asks, you can say Vander’s helping us out,” she told Ben.
He crossed his arms. “Can I say you’re dating?”
“We’re not dating, buddy,” she said even though her heart told her this felt too much like dating to put much conviction into it.
Ben laughed and slurped down some ice cream that had melted in the bottom of his bowl.
After they finished, they climbed back in the car and she drove home. The afternoon sunlight stretched across the Wyoming roads. Summer studied the mountains in the distance and felt old worries creeping back in around the edges of her thoughts.
Money.
Hours.
Tips.
What if she couldn’t keep juggling everything?
She’d lived like this for seven years now with no safety net. Just her and Ben.
When they reached the duplex, Ben unbuckled and climbed out before Summer could even grab her purse.
Vander came around to stand by her door. Suddenly, Ben turned around on the sidewalk and pointed directly at Vander.
“You forgot.”
Vander blinked. “Forgot what?”
“You’re supposed to kiss Mom. You always kiss after a date.”
