Page 5 of Gifts

I’ve never been attracted to work boots before. Work boots have never been a blip on my radar.

Well, I guess after fourteen years, one’s tastes can change. Who knew?

Oh well. As the work boots in the truck pull away, I shrug that thought off. It doesn’t matter anyway. I’m not trying this dating thing again for a long, long time.

And silently—besides the soft rock music from the 90’s that’s been annoying me since five o’clock—Stan directs his car toward my old farmhouse where my kids are waiting for me. I’m ready to write off my first attempt at getting back into the game after more than a decade. I’ve decided the game sucks and I will be pleased as punch to sit on the sidelines. Others can go watch Netflix and fuck themselves for all I care.

*****

“You went on a date, Mommy?”

I sigh and snuggle into Saylor’s hair where I’m lying with her on the floor of Knox’s room. She’s got her own room, but for the last year and a half, she sleeps on a pallet she made in his. I’m lucky Knox is sweet and allows this, although deep down, I think he likes having her close.

“I went to dinner,” I answer.

Knox shifts in his bed and looks down at us. “Aunt Stephie said you went on a date.”

“Aunt Stephie is wrong,” I correct him. “I went to dinner with a friend of hers and we had a flat tire. The food wasn’t good and I had to stand in a ditch. Which reminds me, if you’re ever stranded on the side of the road, always stand off to the side, never close to the car. It’s safer that way.”

“Okay, mom,” Knox agrees immediately as he always does, but he’s a sponge. He takes in everything and remembers it all.

I’ve stopped pussy-footing around my kids like I once did. If I can prepare them for any eventuality, I will. When life hit us like a Mac truck, I learned my lesson. Pretending everything is licorice and butterflies will do them no good, especially when they need to pull their shit together like their life depends on it.

Of course, Saylor didn’t hear a thing I said and asks, “What did you eat?”

I sigh, wanting to put the day out of my head. “Salmon. It was dry.”

“Yucky.” She wiggles around in my arms and smiles. “You shudda gone to Brooklyn Brothers and had pizza.”

“I agree.” I smile and kiss her nose. “It’s late and you guys need to get to sleep.”

When I got home from the date from hell, I chewed Stephie’s ass. She was surprised because her husband, my brother-in-law, thought Stan was an okay guy. She felt bad about the bump on my head, but I told her what I told everyone else tonight—I’m fine.

Then we opened a bottle of wine and made fun of Stan’s outfit while the kids finished their movie. If nothing else, I can always count on Stephie to be snarky with me. It’s who we are.

I kiss Saylor one more time and pull myself off the floor to do the same to Knox. “Sleep tight, my loves.”

I get “You too, mommy” and “Goodnights” from both.

After tucking them in, I call for the behemoths. “Banner and Bella. Time for bed!”

I hear them come running, the lovable mutts we got for the kids when we moved in. As much as they shed and make a mess, I can’t help but love them. Their nails skid on the aged wood floors before they make the turn into Knox’s room.

“Settle down.” I give them a good rub down before they find their spots on the floor next to Saylor.

After more loves and goodnights, I finally flip off the light and go straight to my room.

This Saturday can’t end soon enough.

Chapter 2

Saturday Hater

Asa

“I should have never left. Three and a half years—I could’ve waited to move. This is all my fault.”

I sigh and rub my face roughly as I sit in the parking lot of my kids’ school, trying to convince my ex-wife that for the first time in a long time, I’ve got this. But unlike everything else in my life, when it comes to this I have not one fucking clue what I’m doing.

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