Page 29 of In Your Dreams

I watch him walk away, a little shocked but mostly able to stand a little taller after the compliment.

“Hey, you,” Poppy’s sweet voice comes from the top of the stairs, pulling my attention.

“Hey,” I say. “You look pretty.” Poppy looks down at her jeans and T-shirt, possibly a little confused. “It doesn’t matter what you’re wearing. You can’t hide pretty.”

“Well thank you,” she says. “You look nice, too.”

I’m dawning my standard jeans and T-shirt look as well but it seems to do something for her so that’s fine by me.

“Ready to go?” I ask.

“Yes, I think so,” she says. “Aiden, you ready?”

“Sure am,” he says from behind her. “And I think you look pretty too, mom,” he adds.

“Thank you, baby,” she says. “You’re looking very handsome, too.”

I watch her run her hand through his hair, ruffling it up a bit. It’s cute. It’s also obvious she’s a great mom. That shows in how he acts, how he treats others, and how hard he works at baseball.

“Are we taking your truck?” He asks.

“If you want?” I say. I hadn’t given any thought about what vehicle we would take.

“Yeah!” He says.

The idea of riding in my truck seems to excite him. I guess when I was his age, a big truck compared to my mom’s little car was cooler.

We all strap in—me behind the wheel, Poppy in the passenger seat, and Aiden riding on the bench of the extended cab behind us. I rev the engine extra loud as I pull onto the road, causing Aiden’s eyes to grow wide. I have a feeling it’s going to be a great day.

***

After brunch at Millie’s—a favorite local spot for brunch because they serve mimosas—we head over to the park so Aiden can play while we sit on a nearby bench and talk.

“What do you want to do after this?” I ask.

“I was thinking we could take him to see that new King Kong movie that’s out?” She says. “He really likes that kind of stuff.”

“Sounds good to me,” I say. “I could go for some Junior Mints.”

“I don’t think I know anyone who would say that,” she says, laughing.

“Well, now you do,” I say. “And I don’t just enjoy them at the movies. I’ve been known to pick up a box of those bad boys before a night of dancing.”

“Oh my god,” she says. “I’ll have to keep that in mind.

Her eyes trail to Aiden as she watches him swing across the monkey bars and I don’t think I have it in me to ignore the burning questions I have.

“Poppy, I-” My voice trails off.

“What is it?” She asks.

“Nothing,” I say, second guessing myself. Something on my face must read serious because she reaches a hand out to mine, giving it a squeeze.

“You can tell me,” she says. “Are you regretting last night?”

“What? God no,” I say. “What would make you think that?”

“I don’t know,” she says, her shoulders rising and falling. “I thought maybe you did and that’s why your face got weird and pained looking.”

---