Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
“I’ll come with you.”
I have a pile of French toast staying warm in the oven, bacon on the stove, and I’ve just cracked a dozen eggs to whisk up for scrambled eggs when a sleepy Caleb pads into the kitchen, rubbing at his eyes. His dark hair is askew from sleep, and when he sees it’s me, he pauses.
“You stayed?”
“Yeah. Your mom was upset, and I didn’t want to leave her.”
He frowns, and if I’m not mistaken, it looks like the light of a new day has his conscience taking over.
Good.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask casually, whisking the eggs with a fork.
“I just wanted her to come home.” He’s sitting on a stool, tracing a line on the marble countertop with his fingertip.
“How come?”
“Because I don’t like it when she goes without me.”
“Your mom told me that she goes to New York a few times a year, for fashion week and to check on her businesses there.”
“Yeah, but that’s different.” He shrugs his little shoulders. “It’s business.”
“And why was this different?”
I set the bowl of eggs aside and lean on the counter, giving Caleb my undivided attention.
“She went with you.”
“Yeah, she did. And that made you mad.”
“I don’t see why I couldn’t go, too. We always do stuff together, and you just pushed me out. Is that how it’s going to be now? You’ll push me out because no one wants a kid hanging around when they want to bang that kid’s mom.”
“Hold up.” I raise a hand and scowl at the boy. “Where in the hell did you hear that?”
“My friend, Jacob. Same thing happened to him with his mom. He said his stepdad came in and made it so his mom doesn’t want to hang out with him anymore. All they wanna do is have sex.”
“Caleb, do you know what sex is?”
He screws up his face in confusion. “No, but they do it all the time, Jacob said. So, you were nice to me for a while, but now you’ll push me out. And that’s not fair. I was here first.”
“Yeah, you were. Caleb, it was for one night. And even if we had wanted to go for longer, your reaction wasn’t fair. I’m not trying to kick you out of anything. Hell, this is your family. I’m just trying to get to know your mom better. I really like your mom. And I like you, too. But sometimes, we need some alone time so we can have grown-up conversations and talk about you behind your back.”
That makes his lips twitch.
“It’s like when you’re with your friends. You don’t always want your mom to be hanging over your shoulder, watching everything you do, right?”
“No, but sometimes it’s fun to have her around.”
“Exactly. Although, this is a little different because we like to have you around most of the time. There will just be moments here and there when we do things without you. It doesn’t mean we don’t like you or love you or think that you shouldn’t be a part of things.”
He takes a deep breath, thinking that over.
“But what if, later, you decide that you don’t want me around anymore?”
“Not gonna happen, bud. You and your mom are a family.”
“Maybe you want to be part of our family.” It’s a whisper, and he looks up at me with hopeful eyes.
“Is that what you want? Because your actions last night said something very different.”
“If you were part of our family, it would be okay.” He’s still tracing that line on the counter, and I see London approach the kitchen, but I shake my head just a little, indicating that she should just listen. She leans against the threshold and crosses her arms over her chest. “I mean, it’s just been Mom and me and Uncle Rome forever. But if you’re not going to push me out, then I guess it’s okay.”
“Caleb, if you don’t like me, or if I’ve made you uncomfortable, you just have to say something so I can fix it.”
“That’s not it,” he rushes to assure me. “I just don’t want to be forgotten.”
“You are never forgotten,” London says, and Caleb’s head whips around to his mom. “You’re my baby, and I love you so big, even the smartest scientists can’t measure it. And there’s no need to be dramatic like you were last night to remind me that I have a child at home, Caleb.”
He winces and folds right into his mom’s arms when she hugs him close.
“I’m not raising a spoiled, entitled son,” she continues and kisses the top of his head. “You’re too smart and too sweet for that. You know better, baby.”
“I’m sorry,” he says, and his eyes fill with tears.
“I made breakfast,” I announce and then smile at Quinn when she walks into the kitchen already dressed and seemingly ready to go. Her eyes are shadowed, as if she didn’t sleep much. “Good morning, Quinn.”