Page 35 of Harvest of Love
Anyway, my dad's the best dad ever. He works a ton, but he always makes time for me. He comes to all my games. On the weekends, we cook so Daisy—his girlfriend slash my “bonus mom”(her words, not mine)—can relax. He even tries to play soccer with me in the backyard, even though he’s got, like, two left feet.
I love my dad. He’s my best friend. And I’m super grateful I get to live with him full-time now. My mom’s cool, and of course I love her, but she’s not really the “mom” type, you know? She’s always going out with her friends or her boyfriend—well, hernewboyfriend. Not the same guy from a year ago. Dad offered last year to trade an extra week in the summer for this Thanksgiving, but she said she didn’t need the extra time. I only stayed with her for two weeks, and I guess that was enough for her.
Sigh.
Daisy used to be my nanny, but then she and Dad became girlfriend and boyfriend. She moved in after that, and honestly? It’s been awesome. She completes our little family. She listens, she laughs at my jokes, and she always makes me feel important. She’s the best.
Today we’re at a pumpkin patch in town. Supposedly, we’re getting pumpkins and flowers to decorate the porch, but really? Dad’s gonna propose, and I’mhelping him pull it off. Because Dios mío, as much as I love him, he gets all clumsy and tongue-tied when he’s nervous. And he’s sweating buckets over this. I mean, dude—they already live together for Chrissake. Of course she’s gonna say yes.
“I’m gonna wait in the car,” I tell them as I get up from the couch. I’m not sure if they thought I was asleep or what, but they’ve been hiding in the pantry for a while now.
“That way you guys can kiss without hiding. Last thing we need is an injury before picking up our fall decorations.”
Dad’s wiping Daisy’s lipstick off his mouth, and I just shake my head.
“Like freaking teenagers, I tell you,” I mutter, heading for the car.
I’m acting like I’m disgusted by their behavior, but I secretly love that Dad was able to fall in love again after he and Mom separated. They weren’t perfect together, but I knew he loved her. And moving away broke him. I remember those first FaceTime calls. He always tried to put on a tough face, but I could see the redness in his eyes from crying.
“Thank you for waiting, bud,” Dad says as he helps Daisy into the truck.
“Ha! It’s not like I’d be able to go there by myself. Right?” I smirk as he gets in the truck and buckles his seatbelt.
“Okay, mister. Careful.” Dad gives me a pointed look through the rearview mirror. “One thing is being funny and another a smartass.”
Daisy covers her mouth with her hands, but I can see her smiling.
“Right. Sorry, Papi.” Dad immediately relaxes as I call him Dad in Spanish. That’s his weakness—seeing me still using Spanish.
Luckily, here in town, we have a few people I can still talk to in Spanish. Uncle Gio is from Argentina, and I love chatting with him. He’s so smart—and rich. Like filthy rich. But he’s cool. He never shows off or makes people feel bad because they’re not rich like him.
And then, there’s coach Xander. His Dad is Colombian. I thought he spoke Spanish, but it turns out he’s not fluent. It’s been fun trying to teach him a few words. He knows all the cuss words, of course. But now he’s trying to make full sentences. It’s kinda cute seeing him all flustered trying to roll his tongue to pronouncethe Rs.
“Tommy?”
“Huh?” Daisy was talking to me, and I didn’t hear her. Oops.
“Where’s your mind at? Are there any girls at school we should know about?” She asks in a teasing tone.
I immediately feel a rush of heat rising up my chest. “What? No way. I’m eleven, remember? Why would I be thinking about girls.” I wasn’t thinking about a girl just now, but to be truthful, there’s a girl at school who’s gorgeous. Although she’s way out of my league. She’s beautiful and funny and smart.
“So what were you thinking about then?”
“Hockey,” I deadpan and they both shake their heads. “What? You know how much I love playing hockey.”
“We know, son. We know.” Dad sighs as he drives us up the mountain.
Before long, we’re parking at the pumpkin patch. I’m the first one out of the truck. I need to see if the uncles are here already. Everyone we love wanted to be a part of this special moment.
Sure enough, without really trying, I spot Uncle Miles and Uncle River trying to hide by a haystack. They’re both over six feet tall. I’m not sure how they think they can hide under a tiny stack.
The next people I spot are Uncle Gio and Auntie Ruin—their stroller is a deadgiveaway.
I shake my head as one by one, they wave at me.
“Ready?” Daisy comes to stand next to me, ruffling my hair.
“Hey,” I protest. trying to fix it the way I like it.
