Page 38 of Feels Like Home

The rest of the evening goes about the same. His hand would find its way to the base of my back when we were walking. He positioned me so I would be sitting next to him in the booth at the little Italian restaurant James had referred us to, his thigh resting up against mine. We spend the night together laughing over shared pizza and wings, a pitcher of soda, and warm cookies with ice cream for dessert. When supper is done, he drives me home, telling the boys to wait in the pickup. After giving them my goodbyes, Andy walks me to the door, waits for me to unlock it, and follows meinside.

A butterfly garden just hatched in mystomach.

“Thank you,” he sayssimply.

“You’re the one who invited me, paid for supper, and provided me with entertainment for the evening,” I remindhim.

“You’re the one who saidyes.”

He looks at me deeply, leans in, and kisses my cheek then my forehead, lingering in place for a few beats, his hand wrapped around the back of myneck.

He squeezes twice. “Sleeptight.”

“You, too,” I squeakout.

“I’ll call you tomorrow,okay?”

“Okay, Andy. Good night,” Iwhisper.

“Sweet dreams,” he whispers and kisses me once again on the cheek before disappearing out into thedarkness.

12

Andy

“You’re seriously leaving town?Forgood?”

Heather is in the middle of packing what looks like her last bag when I step into our old bedroom. The boys’ and my stuff had been moved out for a while now, just two weeks after she left, but I haven’t touched her things. Didn’t care to. But now the house is sold, and she needs to get her shit. I still don’t know why she didn’t get it beforenow.

I’m a little surprised she actually showed uptoday.

By the look on the boys’ faces when they heard her car pull up, they were surprised, too. And I’m not sure it’s a goodone.

“Well, what would you expect me to do, Andy? We have a meeting with our lawyers set up. You knew this was coming. Hell, you were the one who servedmepapers, not the other wayaround.”

She shoves another pile of underwear out of her drawer into the bag then slams the drawer shut before moving over to the closet. I stay right behind her, not letting up aninch.

“Oh gee, I don’t know. And what do I expect from you? Maybe… be a mom? Stay in town? Have a relationship with your sons? Realize that you were a selfish ass? Any of those would work. You missed their birthday. Thanksgiving.Christmas!”

She spins around with fire in her eyes and points an accusing finger towardme.

“You know I never wantedthis.”

I raise my eyebrows and fold my arms over my chest. “Uh, actually, no. I didn’t knowthat.”

She storms out of the closet with an armful of shirts on hangers and throws them onto the bed that I plan to donate. “It was always you who wanted the family, who wanted kids and the whole white picket fencething.”

“So, when you kept showing me rings and didn’t bring your birth control pills on our honeymoon, that was allme?”

“You know what I mean.” She grabs the last of her clothes out of the closet before moving on to the shoes, well the shoes that are left. I did touch those. In a desperate attempt at calming my rage one evening, I came to the house, took most of her shoes, threw them in a box, and took them to the Goodwill store. I wanted to burn them but figured someone else could actually get enjoyment out of them. And they’re expensive shoes. Those damn red bottoms don’t come cheap, itseems.

I came from nothing. I was raised by a single mom who struggled to put food on the table. Without the help of second hand stores, I would have gone to school naked. I can’t bring myself to throw things out, even if I do all right for myselfnow.

“I don’t know what you mean. Enlightenme.”

She looks around the closet, and I know she’s looking for her shoes, but I just stand there with my arms crossed over my chest, and ignore her silent questioning. “Andy, cut me some slack. All I’ve been for half my life was a mom andwife.”

“Don’t you dare pin this on me, Heather. You know damn good and well that I would have supported you if you wanted to work outside the home. I would have helped out more here, been available more, not taken the promotion with Barrett and Josh. You never, not once, made mention of you wanting somethingdifferent.”

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