Page 89 of Crew
Knox had a mug too. His was navy blue with bold print:
COOL BOYFRIEND.
MEDIOCRE BABYSITTER.
He turned his over in his hands, smiling. “She’s not wrong. I am cool.”
Mallory raised her mug. “I stand by it.”
When things settled again, Knox pulled out a box. He tossed it to me.
I peeled back the paper. Inside was a black T-shirt with one word across the chest in block white letters:
DILF
I stared at it.
Knox shrugged like it was no big deal. “It’s accurate.”
I held it up. “You really gave your boyfriend a shirt that says DILF?”
“You’re welcome.”
“I’m not wearing this in public.”
He grinned. “Didn’t say you had to.”
I shook my head. “You’re unbelievable.”
But I folded it neatly and kept it.
Then I picked up a small box I’d kept tucked under the tree. Passed it to him without a word. He popped the lid.
Inside was a hotel key card with the name of the hotel across the front. Tucked behind it was a small folded note.
He openedit.
LA. 1823.
He looked at it for a second.
“It was the first night?—”
“I know,” he cut me off.
I smiled warmly at him. “Guess that was the start. Even if we didn’t know it yet.”
“I can’t believe you kept it.”
“I have both.” Usually, we left our keys in the hotel rooms when the team checked out and went to their next destination, butsomehowmine had slipped into my bag after the first night he and I had first hooked up in LA after he was traded to the Rockies so many moons ago.
He leaned in and kissed me. “Thank you,” he murmured. “I love it.”
We hadn’t told Grady that Knox was my boyfriend. It never felt like we needed to. He was so young, and Knox had been there since the beginning when I’d learned of my son. They played together, built Legos, and shared snacks on the couch. Grady never asked. He just accepted it—like his life came with a mom, a dad, and a Knox. And one day, maybe we’d explain it. But for now, we just let him grow up with all of us.
Grady sat in the middle of the floor clutching a toy in one hand and a book in the other. He looked up at me and grinned.
I leaned back on my hands and took it all in—the mess, the quiet, him.
