Page 156 of Aria

I grinned as I responded.

Me:Love you, too. Bali awaits.

The three wiggling dots showed that Beth was typing. I waited for her reply, certain she was typing out her reasons on why Aruba would be a better choice, but the three dots disappeared. After another minute passed, I slipped the phone back into my pocket just as Jeremiah heaved himself onto my lap with a concerning amount of force. My breath hitched at the sudden blow, and I cursed my body for not being used to the continuous abuse by now. I didn’t recall Sam being such a monster—but, then again, I was in my thirties now. I was no spring chicken.

Glancing at my phone again, I noticed it was almost time to run out and pick up Caden from karate. “All right, buddy. Let’s go get big brother.”

“No! I staying here.” Jeremiah stomped his little foot against the metal bleachers and crossed his arms in defiance. “I watch Sammy play soccer.”

I pressed my lips together, preparing for a scene. “Sorry, bud. We need to pick up Caden. We’ll come right back.”

“No!”

There must be a hole I could crawl into somewhere around here.

“Jeremiah…” I reached for my son, but he was too quick. He bolted in the other direction, garnering glances from the other parents. “Shit.”

“Why don’t you leave him here with us?” Darla offered.

Her features barely moved through her countless plastic surgeries, but I was almost certain she was smiling fondly at me. “That’s not necessary, but I appreciate the offer,” I replied. “I’ll only be gone twenty minutes.”

Jeremiah made his way back to our group and hopped up onto the bench next to Darla. “Hi, I’m Amiah!” he chirped.

Chuckling, I plucked my car keys from my front pocket. “We’re still working on his name,” I explained. I turned my attention to Jeremiah, who was swinging his legs back and forth with enthusiasm. “Okay, kiddo, let’s go. You can have ice cream after dinner if you’re a good boy.”

“Yay!” Jeremiah jumped down and grabbed my hand, dragging me to the parking lot.

It was a ten-minute drive to the karate studio, and Caden ran into my arms with giddy glee when he spotted us.

"Hey, Dad!"

“Hey, bud. Ready to go?”

Caden nodded and waved goodbye to his teacher, and after another ten minutes passed, we were back at the baseball game.

I looked into the backseat and noticed both boys were sound asleep. Leaning back, I reveled in the rare moment of silence. While I debated waking the boys and continuing my unremarkable conversation with the Nivens, the thought hurt me on a physical level. So, I decided to take advantage of my unexpected free time and get some writing in.

Sean, my business and PR manager, was eager to get a new song out by summer, and I had been feeling uninspired. He had followed me over from Freeze Frame to my solo career and had become a good friend throughout the tumultuous journey.

I pulled a notepad out of my glove compartment and scribbled down a few lines that had been floating through my mind. My hand tapped against my knee as I hummed under my breath. The sound of the ball game could be heard outside my window, and I peered out every now and then to watch Sam. A sense of pride washed over me as Sam high-fived one of his teammates.

He’d grown so much over the past ten years.Ten years.It was surreal to even think about. I had been a father for a decade. And even more unbelievably, I hadn’t royally botched it up.

Sam was a good kid, maintaining good grades in school and accumulating a large circle of friends. I felt like I’d done a pretty good job.

Luckily, I’d had Beth to help along the way.

Instinctively, I pulled out my phone to check my messages, but there was still nothing. I was hopeful the showing was going well and there may be an offer on the table.

After an hour had gone by and I felt relaxed and recharged, I decided to wake up the boys and watch the end of Sam’s game from the stands. We traipsed back up the bleachers and sat down to watch the final minutes, celebrating the big win for Sam’s team. Caden cheered from his seat, waving his fist in the air. I clapped and whistled.

Jeremiah sobbed hysterically because his goldfish crackers spilled onto the ground.

“That’s our cue,” I sighed.

Darla Nivens squeezed my shoulder as Sam and Harrison joined us on the bleachers. “It was great catching up, Noah. Let’s do a dinner party sometime.”

“A dinner party sounds…” I searched for an appropriate adjective.Nauseating? Painful? Terrible?“Excellent,” I opted for. “Text Beth about it. She’s in charge of me.”

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