Page 22 of Skid
“Yeah, I might remember something about that, but that’s not a story worth sharing.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Dad chuckled. “I think Laken would get a kick out of it.”
“Sure, I’d love to hear it.”
Dad turned his attention to her as he said, “He came home with the fattest frog I’d ever seen. Poor kid could barely hold it with both hands, and he was as tickled as could be.”
“Fred was a badass.”
“Fred?”
“That’s what he named the frog,” Dad answered. “He decided to keep him as a pet and carried that damn thing around ina shoebox. Took him everywhere. The clubhouse. The grocery store. Even tried to take him to school.”
“That’s adorable.”
“Yeah, it was cute until one night when he got to screaming like he was being murdered.” Dad shook his head. “I go flying into his room to save him and find him standing in the corner white as a ghost and pointing at the bed. And there sat Fred. Apparently, he got out of his box, and my son, in his infinite wisdom, thought the damn thing was trying to eat him.”
“Asshole bit my damn toe.”
Jenna and Laken burst out laughing, and that just fueled Dad’s need to mortify me. “Kid didn’t sleep for days. Hell, he couldn’t even look at the pond without getting jumpy.”
“It wasn’t that bad.”
“Says the guy who still gets a weird tick when he sees a frog.”
Laughter erupted again. Once it died down, Laken leaned in and asked, “So what happened to Fred?”
“His ass went back to the damn pond,” I answered.
“Ah, poor Fred.”
“Poor, Fred, my ass! He’s lucky I didn’t drop-kick him and toss him in the damn road.”
We laughed and talked a while longer, and when Laken yawned, I stood and said, “I think it’s about time we call it a night.”
“We’re so glad you came.” Jenna got up and gave me a quick hug. “You’ll have to come back soon.”
“You know we will.”
They all followed me inside to get Baylor, and when we stepped into the living room, we found them both out cold on the couch. Baylor was curled up against Luna, and she couldn’t have looked more adorable clutching her little bunny against her chest.
“Why don’t you let her stay the night?” Jenna whispered. “They’ve had such a good time, and she’ll be no trouble.”
I glanced at Laken and asked, “You okay with that?”
“Yes. That would be more than fine,” Laken answered. “I can swing by in the morning and pick her up.”
“Perfect.”
“Alright then, I guess we’ll leave you guys to it.”
“Enjoyed it,” Dad said with a slap to the shoulder. “And next time, I’ll tell her the clown story.”
“Only if you want me to tell Jenna about the lady in the closet.”
“Well, damn. You got me there.”
I chuckled, then Laken and I said our goodbyes and headed out to the truck. The drive back to Laken’s place was quiet. We exchanged a glance or two, but neither of us spoke. I had a feeling she was thinking the same thing I was.
