Page 31 of Free

“I’m good, Charlie. Really I am. But the longer we sit out here, the less good I am. I’ve got my heart set on a banana split.”

By the time we join the others in the brightly lit ice cream parlor, Nick’s color has returned, though the shadows in his eyes linger. The atmosphere inside is jubilant, the place a riot of white tile and neon pink accents. It smells of waffle cones and sugar, and Nell’s high-pitched laughter rings out as she makes goofy faces at Jeremiah, who is busy smearing caramel across his chubby cheeks.

Ivy gives us a once-over when we walk in, her head tilting in a silent question. I wave her off, offering a small smile, though I’m still not sure it’s the right call.

“When I kicked that goal, I did exactly what you said I should do, Uncle Nick!” Nell exclaims, bouncing on her chair. “I just imagined the line from my foot to the net, and then boom! It went right in!”

Nick smiles, and it’s the first real one I’ve seen since the bang. “You nailed it, kiddo. I’m proud of you.”

Micah turns to Nell, pointing at Nick. “You should’ve seen him play, back in the day. He was something else.”

“I didn’t know you played soccer,” I say, tilting my head toward Nick.

He shrugs, dragging his spoon through his ice cream. “It was just a high school thing. No big deal.”

“Don’t let him fool you,” Nathan interjects. “He was the youngest player on varsity. Played through college, too.”

Nick rolls his eyes, the faintest hint of pink coloring his cheeks. “It’s not a big deal.”

“I tried to get him to coach Nell’s team,” Micah adds, “but he wasn’t having it.”

Nell’s eyes light up. “You should coach, Uncle Nick! You told me exactly what to do, and it worked. That would be so fun! Ever since Coach Gupta got sick, we just keep having subs anyway.”

Nick scoffs, though there’s warmth in his voice. “What those girls need is someone with patience, not a grumpy old Marine yelling at them.”

Nell shrugs and stuffs another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth. “I wouldn’t mind if we won more.”

The image of Nick standing on the sidelines, surrounded by little girls in brightly colored jerseys, makes me smile. I glance at him, and he catches my eye, grinning back.

“Charlie gets it,” he says, bumping my shoulder with his. “Just look at her.”

“I didn’t say anything!”

“You didn’t have to. Your face says it all.”

I laugh, the sound bubbling up unexpectedly.

The conversation moves on, and we finish our ice cream, laughing and joking and listening to Nell daydream about having Uncle Nick as her coach. When it’s time to leave, I buytwo pints of ice cream for Angela and Garrett, draping the plastic bag over my wrist. Nick walks me to his truck, and for a moment, the earlier tension feels like a distant memory.

As he drives me home, the truck is quiet, save for the hum of the engine and the occasional creak of the leather seat as I shift. I almost let myself forget the last year and the distance that’s grown between us. I want Nick to take my hand, or I want to take his. I want him to press his lips to mine before I get impatient and kiss him first. I want to tell him I had a lovely time, that I adore hanging out with him. That he’s been everything I needed since the day I almost married Davis. Instead, I sit quietly as he pulls into the driveway, trying to decide if he’ll disappear on me again.

“Thanks for the ride,”I say with a bright smile, cracking open the truck door and swiping the bag of ice cream off the floor at my feet. The plastic rattles as the pints bounce inside.

“My pleasure,” he replies, his tone warm but guarded. The statement is as ambiguous as his constant assertion that he’s fine. There’s an ocean of something underneath his words. I just don’t know what it is.

“Hey.”

I hesitate, one hand on the door handle. “Yeah?”

“Thank you. For staying. For calming me down. Thank you for being exactly what I needed today.”

“My pleasure.” Without another word, I close the door. The hood of the truck is warm under my palm as I pat it lightly on my way to the house, a soft wave to Garrett as he jogs out to meet Nick.

For the first time in a long time, I feel like I’m standing on steady ground.

SIXTEEN

Nick

---