“But what are you going to get?” he asks.
“Oh, I’m good. The brownies are enough.”
He shrugs. “If you say so.”
Noah helps the lady bag the few groceries we have and even thanks her as we’re leaving. We get back into the truck, and I glance at him in the rearview mirror.
“Hey, Noah?”
“Yeah?” he says, looking up and finding my gaze in the mirror.
“You’re a good kid. Don’t ever change, okay?”
He smiles. “Okay.”
Chapter 25
Miles
We can’t do much without the flour since the crust is the first thing we have to make, so Audrey and I have a beer and chat while we wait for JJ and Noah to get back.
“You okay?” I ask.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because you let your kid go with a stranger.”
Her brows raise. “You trust him, so I assumed I should.”
I chuckle. “Youcantrust him.”
“Then I’m fine. They won’t be long. The store isn’t far.”
“You’re right,” I say as I bring the can to my mouth for a sip. “Did you get Noah everything he needs for his costume?”
“Yeah, we got it all the other day.”
“Even the new bucket?”
“That was the first thing he went for.”
Audrey sighs, leaning against the counter, tapping her beer mindlessly.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, moving beside her.
My sister and I have always been close, and we tell each other everything. We never fight the way most other siblings do. Even when we were teenagers, we got along. She’s always been my best friend.
“I just hate that I haven’t spent a Halloween with him in five years.”
“I keep telling you to switch your position to days, Audrey.”
“I know, but… I don’t want to wake him up at the ass crack of dawn just because I have to get ready.”
“He’s getting older, and I’m right upstairs. Put a camera in his room and give me one. I know we have different apartments, but it’s basically one big house, and he knows it.”
“He’s only seven, Miles.”
“How is this any different from a two-floor house? I’ll even leave my door open, if it’ll make you feel better. Or who knows—maybe he’ll want to wake up early and come upstairs to have breakfast with Uncle Miles.”
