Page 27 of When Morning Comes Around

“How did you get so smart?”

He chuckled. “Genetics I guess – all from my mom’s side of the family. Oh. I’ve got another call coming in. I need to go. Let’s talk again soon, huh?”

“I’d love to. You can call me anytime.”

“Same goes. Love you, Mom.”

“Love you.”

The call ended, and she sat there, cradling her phone to her chest. She’d done her best to raise him to be a decent human being, but there was no way that she could take credit for just what a wonderful man her son had grown up to be.

~ ~ ~

“Are you ready, Uncle Dom?” called Jake.

“Be right with you.” Dominic pulled on a T-shirt and examined his reflection in the mirror. He looked different – he didn’t know what kind of different, but there was something that he couldn’t put his finger on.

He didn’t have the time to hang around figuring it out; he and Jake were supposed to be at Damon and Jo’s by noon. They hadn’t ended up going over there for dinner last night, so Jo had suggested they should come for lunch today instead.

He’d been to the gym this morning. He hadn’t slept well last night, and by the time morning came around he’d felt antsy and out of sorts. His workout hadn’t helped much, and on his way back from the gym, he’d stopped at the beach to take a walk.

He’d enjoyed rock hunting with Sadie yesterday so much that he’d gone back for more. He grabbed a sweater from his closet and smiled when he saw the collection of stones on top of hisdresser. Some of them were just pebbles. Sadie had told him that a few of them were quartz. He’d found a couple this morning that he was convinced were rose quartz – only because they were pink. He was looking forward to showing them to her; from the way she talked, he guessed that they were a special find. His smile faded; he didn’t know when he’d see her again.

“We’re going to be late!” Jake called.

Dominic ran his hand through his hair and checked the mirror again. He didn’t think of himself as vain; that wasn’t why he kept looking at himself. It was more that he needed to find out why he looked different – what the difference even was.

He hurried out into the hallway to find Jake standing by the front door.

“Sorry.”

“No worries. Am I driving, or are you?”

“Do you have your keys?” Dominic reached for his jacket from the hook by the door as he asked.

“Yep.”

“Then you drive.”

Dominic fastened his seatbelt as Jake pulled out of the driveway. As he turned his head to click the buckle, he sniffed the collar of his jacket – it smelled good. He sniffed again. It smelled like… Perfume!

He smiled when it hit him – this was the jacket that Sadie had worn yesterday. He pressed his nose against the fabric and breathed in deeply. It smelled like her: sweet, and a little bit spicy. Whatever perfume she wore suited her personality.

Jake glanced over at him when he came to a stop at the crossroads. “Are you okay over there?” he asked with a laugh. “Do you need to wash that jacket?”

“No! I… It’s fine.”

When they arrived at Damon and Jo’s place, Dominic hung back and watched his brother greet Jake. Sometimes, when he saw the two of them together, he wondered what life would have been like if he and Polly had children. But…

“Hi, Dom.” He smiled at Jo, who greeted him with outstretched arms.

“Hi, Jo.” He wrapped her in a hug before standing back. She was a good woman. He loved the relationship that she and Damon had. If anyone deserved a good woman, it was Damon, especially after his first marriage.

Damon grasped his shoulder. “How’s it going?”

He nodded. “All good. How about you guys?”

“All the better for seeing you,” said Jo. “I was hoping that you’d come out on Friday night – but then you had to go on your rescue mission. I thought we might all have lunch while we were in town yesterday, but that didn’t work out either. And then last night…” She shrugged. “I feel like we haven’t seen you in forever. Come on through to the kitchen; we’re nearly ready to eat. What would you like to drink?”

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