Page 10 of All in December
The boys don’t care at all that there are other people in here. They waste no time kicking off their shoes and tossing their towels down on the nearest chairs before cannonballing into the deep end.
Caleb and I both chuckle as we smile and wave to the other parents and grab the boys’ stuff to bring it over to where we’re actually going to sit.
“Dad!” Benji yells. “You have to count for us! We’re going to see how long we can hold our breath.”
“Alright.” I chuckle.
“Go!” Sam yells, and I start counting out loud to make sure they know I’m participating. Caleb is quietly laughing as we both watch them hold their breath underwater. “Thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three.” I count before Sam pops up. “Thirty-four, thirty-five.” Then Benji comes up, gasping for air.
“I got thirty-three, you got thirty-five,” Sam updates Benji.
“Let’s go again!” Benji exclaims, and they’re right back under.
I can’t help but smile as I think about how if I hadn’t walked up to Caleb this morning, none of this would be happening. Benji would’ve spent the day mildly disappointed, skiing a few runs, and wishing someone else had come with us.
Instead, he’s glowing, having the time of his life.
“I’m glad they get along so well, ” Caleb says after a moment with a big smile on his face. “Benji’s a good kid.”
I glance over at him and smile back. “So is Sam.”
He nods, then looks down before looking back out at the kids. “He doesn’t usually warm up to people this fast. I think today has been good for him. He seems to really like Benji.”
“Benji is very social, just like his sister, Emma. I’m sure he was dreading being stuck here with just me again tonight.”
Caleb leans back in his chair and stretches his legs out in front of him. His shirt rides up just a little when he moves, revealing a sliver of skin, and I rake my teeth between my lips. It’s been a long, long time since I’ve been with a man. All I can think of now is what his skin would feel like under my hands, what he’d sound like if I kissed down the length of his stomach, and what it would be like to have him beneath me, eyes glazed over and trusting me to take care of him.
“I doubt that,” he says quietly, almost like he’s saying it to himself.
Fuck, I’m in trouble.
CHAPTER 5
Caleb
By the time we make it back to the room, the boys are still little energizer bunnies wrapped in towels, dripping pool water on the carpet, recapping everything they just did.
“Quick rinse off,” Nash instructs. “Then we’ll go eat dinner.”
The boys scramble, each grabbing their clothes and taking their turn in the bathroom. Somehow, Benji manages to drop one sock and a shirt in the ten steps he takes to get to the bathroom. Nash laughs as he bends down to grab them and hands them off to him, who yells a quick “thanks!” as he closes the door.
He’s only in there for a few minutes before he comes out and Sam runs in.
Nash tugs on a hoodie and turns to me. “You good with the restaurant downstairs?”
“Perfect,” I quickly agree, more than ready for a real meal and not just half-finished ski lodge chicken tenders.
He smiles at me softly, and there’s just something aboutNash that makes the space around him feel less chaotic. Which, in a hotel room with two energetic kids, is nothing short of a miracle.
When Sam comes out of the bathroom, we head back downstairs. The restaurant has a warm, laid-back feel with a mix of booths and high-tops, and the smell of garlic and herbs makes my stomach growl.
“Hi there, four tonight?” the hostess asks us.
“Yep, thank you,” Nash confirms.
It’s such a normal thing, but I appreciate how he didn’t pause or defer to me. Even on the rare occasion I go out with friends, it feels like I’m always the one asking, therefore, the one planning. Unless it’s one of those forced parent hangouts with Sam’s friends’ parents, but I wouldn’t call birthday parties and awkward playdates “fun.”
I’ve carried every decision on my own for so long—what to make for dinner, when to call the dentist, how to handle every holiday, every meltdown, and every morning school rush. I didn’t even realize how much I’ve wanted someone to step in and just handle it once in a while. At least, I didn’t dare let myself imagine having it since dating as a single parent seemed like too much. Not that Nash is my partner or anything. But still.
