Page 53 of The Fix-Up

I took a deep breath and took the book from his hands, acutely aware Gil was sitting across the counter listening to all of this and not bothering to hide it. “That’s good, kiddo. T and H together say thhh. And the e and the r say er so ther…”

Look at that. Only fifteen more letters to go.

“Therizinosaurus,” Gilbert said in a clear voice.

Oliver’s head whipped around to stare at Gil. “Say it again.” Gil repeated it. Oliver bounced on the balls of his feet in excitement. “Do you like dinosaurs?”

Gil nodded solemnly. “I sure do.”

“Wow,” Oliver said in a voice he reserved only for my brother, dinosaurs, and the reptile hut at the zoo.

Gil leaned a little closer and pointed at another dinosaur on the page. “The deinocheirus is cool, too. They had a duck bill instead of big teeth and it was even bigger than a T-rex.”

“Whoa.” Oliver stared at Gil in pure, unadulterated hero worship. It was inevitable. Oliver had already asked a million questions about Gil when he lived in a tent in the backyard. Now that he’d moved into the house, his curiosity was unending.

Oliver set the book in front of Gil. He ran around the counter and climbed up on the stool next to him. Now that he’ddiscovered Gil knew dinosaurs, it would be impossible to keep the kid away.

Oliver pointed at a dinosaur in the book. “What’s that one called?”

“Okay, Oliver, how about we let Mr. Dalton get back to his lunch.” I tried to slide the book from the counter, but Gil stopped me.

“It’s okay. I don’t mind.” And then Gil Dalton, the same guy who had a resting frown face, smiled. At me. It was an adorable smile, a little crooked and unsure. My heart thumped hard, just once.

“If you’re sure.” I hesitated, watching the two of them together, before I took myself into the kitchen to work on a couple of batches of magic cookie bars for tomorrow.

Gil’s low murmur and Oliver’s giggles were my background music. Occasionally, I’d peek through into the dining area to see the two of them side by side, two dark heads bent over that encyclopedia.

They stayed like that until I closed for the day. “Time to go. Go get your backpack.”

“Mom,” he said, making the word about fifteen seconds long.

I gently pushed him. “Backpack. Now. Let’s go.”

Oliver trudged back to the office while Gil went back to eating his (cold) soup.

“What was that?” I asked.

“What was what?”

“That.” I waved a hand in Oliver’s general direction. “You were so…so…sweet to him.”

“He’s a kid.”

“But he’s not your kid. You weren’t just nice, you were…likable.”

His spoon clinked when he dropped it in the bowl. “I can be likable.”

I pressed my lips together in response.

“I am.”

“You’re kind of…stern. Like a principal on lunch duty. Just waiting to give detention to someone.”

Leaning back, he crossed his arms, a fierce frown marring his face. “That’s not true.”

“Sure.” I grabbed my purse from under the counter.

“It’s not.”

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