Page 9 of Merry with a Single Dad

Four lithe bodies raced for the balls.

Hudson and I clapped, calling to the dogs.

“Whoa!” he said, stroking Gigi’s curls when she arrived before the three boys. “I didn’t know she was that fast.”

“Me either,” I answered, genuinely surprised.

I made a kissing sound to Gigi, one of the things Celine liked to do. Gigi looked up at me and lifted her paw. Luke cocked his head at the sound, then jumped up like he was giving me a hug.

“You’re a good boy, aren’t you,” I said before pushing him off and telling him to sit.

“Dad says he’s psychotic.”

I laughed. “Your dad just thinks he’s hyper. Which he is. But he’ll grow out of it.”

Hudson pet Luke’s head, studying him. Luke licked Hudson’s hand and lifted his paw.

“Are you getting excited for Halloween?” I asked Hudson.

He nodded. “I’m going to be Batman.”

“I’m surprised you’re not going as someone fromStarWars,” I said. Hudson and Chris wereStar Warsenthusiasts. Hudson had an array of toys from the franchise, and his room was a veritable shrine. I added to the décor a couple of months ago, hanging glow-in-the-dark stars all over his ceiling. It was actually one of the coolest rooms I’d ever seen.

“I was Logan the Science Guy last year.”

“FromLogan’s Laboratory?” I asked, just to confirm he was talking about the kid from his favorite show.

His smile told me he was proud that I remembered. “Yep. I’ve already been Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. Are you going to dress up with us?”

“Your dad dresses up?” I asked, genuinely intrigued.

“He always gets a costume to go with mine. It’s our thing.”

I chuckled. “Why am I not surprised?” Chris was an amazing dad, but part of me thought he liked to dress up just for the fun of it. He had a young-at-heart kind of vibe. “What’s he going to be?” I asked.

“The Joker,” Hudson said, then immediately asked, “So will you?” His big brown eyes regarded me with hopeful adoration.

“Yes. But don’t tell your dad, let’s surprise him,” I said.

“Okay!” he cheered, holding up both hands for me to give him a double high-five.

“Who’s your favorite girl character?” I asked him.

“Dad likes Harley Quinn. I like Catwoman because of her cats. I wish I had powers like that with dogs.”

“It would be pretty cool to communicate with animals like Catwoman does,” I agreed.

“You kind of do,” he said, looking up at me. “They all listen to you.”

“It took some time and a lot of practice to be able to do what I do. You’re doing great with them, Hudson,” I said. “Someday, you’ll be even better than me.”

Hudson continued to play with the dogs.

I wielded a plan to knock Chris’s socks off with my Halloween costume.

It took me the entire night, but by the time Chris and I were done cleaning up after dinner, I had everything worked out. Tomorrow, I’d hit the stores to find exactly what I wanted.

I was planning my route through town when Luke and Rufus’s barks rumbled from outside.

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