Page 83 of Embers in Our Souls
“You sound like Mom,” River retorts.
“You sound like a child and not a thirty-year-old,” Clay reminds him.
This goes on, so we grab the food and start heading outside. This is exactly what these guys do. They make me feel like I’m a part of a family.
“I was just about to order some Chinese take-out. Would you like to join me?” I ask Indy and Noah when they come over to pick up Darth.
“Can we Mom? Please?” Noah pleads.
“That sounds nice,” Indy says, her smile widening, as if she’s not in on this plan.
“What do you like to eat?” I ask Noah. Indiana told me Noah loves Chinese food, so I’m ordering from a spot I love.
Noah runs over and sits next to me on the couch, looking over at my phone to look over the menu. After everyone selects their favorite items, I place the order.
“So, there’s something else I was going to do before you two arrived—I was just about to cue up a movie. I don’t think we’ll be able to watch the entire thing, but maybe just a bit of it.” I start.
“What movie?” I see Noah’s eyes light up.
“I’m not too sure you’ll like it. It’s one of my favorite ones. It’s called…” I stall a beat.
Noah’s staring at me, anticipating my every move until I finally say, “Star Wars.”
“Really? Which one?”
“I was thinkingA New Hope.” Not sure he’ll approve of the lineup I’m going with but may as well start with the original.
“Yes! Darth loves that one,” he shouts.
“Awesome,” I say.
Indy laughs and shakes her head. “Okay, boys. Well, maybe we can sit and talk for a little bit first?” She gives me a look, and I nod. I’m hoping he’ll be just as excited about this news as he is about the food and movie.
Noah sits with his mom while I sit opposite them on the couch. Darth is lying on what I’ve deemed his favorite spot since he arrived two days ago.
“How was the visit with your grandparents?” I start.
“Fun! Grammy took me for ice cream. Grandpop says he prefers basketball instead of baseball.”
You have to love the honesty. I guess taking them to a Gaels baseball game won’t be on the docket for them anytime soon.
“Well, the ice cream sounds like a win. And I bet your grandpop would love to see you play baseball.” I smile.
Indy moves her hand through Noah’s hair. “Noah, baby, we wanted to talk to you.”
He looks up at her. “Am I in trouble?” His brows furrow with concern.
“No, not at all,” I tell him.
“We wanted to talk to you about something good. Did you know that Tyler—Hunter—we used to know each other growing up?” she says.
Noah’s eyes go wide and he shakes his head.
“Yeah, we’ve known each other since we were your age. Back in Las Vegas,” I say.
“That’s where Grandpop and Grammy live,” Noah says, pride in his voice.
“Yep. That’s right. And for many years, Hunter and I didn’t see one another. We used to write letters to stay in touch. But then we went a long time without talking. And that day when you got stung by that bee, it was the first time we saw each other,” Indy explains.
