Page 32 of Crave Thy Neighbor

I’m not a chef by any stretch of the imagination, but I know my way around the kitchen well enough. I spent a lot of time in one when Sam was a baby, always trying new recipes I could impress my husband with.

That was back when I thought Patrick and I could make something of our future.

That feeling didn’t last long.

“Should I start packing up my room?”

I drop the spoon into the pot of sauce, and red liquid goes flying onto the stovetop.

“Shit,” I mutter, retrieving the messy spoon and tapping it against the rim of the pot to clean it off. I cup my hand to catch any drips and spin toward the sink. I switch the water on, rinsing it off, and peek over at Sam. His head is bent as he works on his math homework. “What do you mean?”

“They’re starting construction soon, aren’t they?”

“How do you know that?”

He lifts his shoulders. “Katlyn told me.”

“Mr. Dan’s daughter?”

“Yeah. We play Minecraft together. She has leukemia, so she’s on there a lot because she doesn’t have to go to school anymore.”

I didn’t ask Dan what Katlyn’s illness was, but part of me figured it was cancer. It would explain his desperation for financial help. Chemo isn’t cheap.

“Should I pack up my room before I go to Dad’s? Will I have to pack up my PlayStation? Can I still go to the game?”

I sigh.

I haven’t talked to Sam about the move much since I got the first letter. I told him we’d be moving soon because of the sale, but I haven’t brought it up since.

A mistake on my part. It’s his life getting uprooted too, and I should have been more considerate of that. I just didn’t want to burden him with the semantics of everything that comes along with moving. The kid is already aware of how much I struggle to make sure he’s able to take part in other things kids with two active parents can. I didn’t need him to worry about this too.

I shut off the water, setting the spoon back next to the stove, then switch the sauce down to a simmer and cover the pot.

I twist back around to Sam, leaning against the counter until we’re eye level.

“I wanted to talk to you about that…”

He peeks up from his homework. “About the hockey game? I can’t go?”

“No, it’s not about that. You can still go.” He relaxes. “It’s about where we’ll be living.”

“Are we staying with Aunt River and Dean?”

I frown. “No, but we’ll be staying in the same building. You remember Dean’s friend Nolan? The one you played football with?”

He bobs his head up and down. “Yep. I remember Dean hit him in the nuts with the football and he cried.”

Hearing my kid refer to his balls as nuts is not something I was expecting, but I breeze past it. “Well, he recently moved in and happens to need a few roommates.”

“Okay.” He nods, absorbing the news. “Why do we have to stay there?”

“Because we’re on the waiting list for an apartment, but it’s not available for another two months.”

He twists his lips up, considering it. “Will I have my own room like now?”

I nod. “Yep.”

That is what Nolan said, right? Man, I wish he’d text me back already.

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