Page 104 of Yours and Mine (Friends with Benefits)

“Mamma, come here. Swim with us.”

I took the blanket off my shoulders and came closer to the pool. Of all the odd days, I wore shorts today. I wasn’t sure where the strange feeling in my gut came from, but something was off — as if the entire atmosphere had shifted. I had that same feeling the night the tornado struck, and so I looked up to the skies, but they were clear. I sat at the ledge and dipped my legs in the water.

“How about I sit and watch as Uncle Carter teaches you for reals?”

“Uncle Carter, teach me how to swim!” she squealed, splashing him. For the next fifteen minutes I watched him give Mackenzie instructions for her first swimming lesson. She was relentless; she wouldn’t stop until she could at least float on her back, then on her front, with her face submerged and arms stretched out. By the time they were done, the sun was behind the trees in the back and a shadow covered most of the pool.

“Did you see that, Mamma?”

“I did. You were great, but I think it’s time to come out.” I gave Carter a knowing look, asking him to help get her out of the pool.

I wrapped the towel around her. “It’s bath time.”

“Bubbles?”

“Yes, bubbles.”

“Did you know that Tank likes bubbles? We showed them to him today.”

“I think that maybe it’s time to make friends your age, don’t you?”

“Tank is my age.”

“Human friends, Mackenzie.”

I knew that she knew what I meant the first time. My little girl was smarter than she let on. After the bubble bath, Mackenzie had some cereal, brushed her teeth, and I tucked her into bed. After reading her a story, I turned on her night light, said goodnight, and went downstairs.

“A glass of red?” Carter reached out toward me.

“My favorite.” I took a sip, swirling the aromatic wine in my mouth.

“How was your day?”

“The same as yesterday?”

“Was that a question?”

“Maybe?”

“Jo, stop that.”

“What?”

“Playing your twenty questions game.”

“Okay, then how was your day? I’m sorry, this is a genuine question, not a game. Did you hear from Molly?”

“Nope.” He shook his head. “I’ve officially given up.”

“Carter, you can’t. You two belong together. I thought things were going well. What the heck happened?”

“It’s a long story, but to make it shorter, she’s with some other guy now. But I want you to know that I’m ready to move on.”

“That’s good, I guess. Can’t say that I’m not sad about it. I just always thought you belonged with Molly.”

Molly was working at a hospital fifty miles away from our town. She was renting an apartment there, and I’d visited her once with Mackenzie. Molly definitely looked like she was born to be a nurse. I also knew that Carter could be a chauvinistic pig when he got nervous, especially around Molly, and I had wondered whether I should fix them up on a date. Better yet, lock them away somewhere so that they could find love in each other the way I had found mine with Nick.

“Well, I was thinking that maybewecould go out.”

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