Page 16 of Ewan

“I’m pissed with you for getting in trouble. You were lucky this time… Even the doctor admitted it,” I comment, and my voice trails off as footsteps shuffle behind the door.

He pushes upright, and I rise from my seat.

The girl knocks on the door.

“May I come in?” her sweet voice comes to us.

“Please behave,” Ezra says. “I don’t want you to scare her off. And by the way, I need a favor.”

“What favor?”

His hand goes up.

“Yes. You can come in,” he says in a loud voice, and the door starts sliding open.

Why do I have a feeling he’s about to set me up again?

Amanda carries a bottle of juice and a cup of coffee. I pivot to the door and hold it for her.

“I didn’t get you anything,” she says, apologetic.

“I’m fine,” I say, putting forward my best effort not to ruin the evening for my son and his new friend.

Ezra makes the introductions, and I find myself holding a small, soft hand in mine. It feels like a restless dove. I can tell she can’t wait to stay closer to him and farther away from me despite my innocent smile and low-energy attitude.

She puts the drinks on the side table and fishes out a pack of peanut butter crackers and a whole-grain cereal bar.

“I’ll pick you up in the morning,” I say to him.

“You don’t need to. We’ll manage it,” he says, tossing me a stern look from behind her.

His manhood is in danger, so I pull back.

“Okay. You know where to find me if you need anything,” I reply. “You were saying something about needing a favor.

“Yeah…”

He touches the woman’s arm, and I get worried.

Why is he pussyfooting around this?

“Amanda,” he says in a sweet voice that makes the girl melt into a puddle.

Women are so easy at this age.

“Yes,” she says promptly.

“Can you bring the duffel bag for him?”

Now I really start to get worried.

“Sure,” she chirps and reaches behind a partition screen.

We both watch her come back with a basic, zippered, gray duffel bag.

“What is this?” I ask as she sets it on the bed.

“I had just picked it up from a store before I got hit by the car.”

---