Page 32 of The Love In Sunsets

Of course, she’d use “daddy” to try and get out of getting into trouble.

“He said you and Ciara sound like a herd of elephants. He didn’t specifically call you one, and Kiel’s right. Try walking lighter around the house. I’m afraid the ceiling is going to cave in.”

Keil wanted to stick his tongue out at her but held back.

The five of them ate breakfast and talked about what they were going to do for the day. Kiel wanted to find Eloise and hang out with her. They hadn’t made plans when he dropped her off at her place, but exchanged numbers so he didn’t have to look all over town for her. He figured being in her presence for the day was better than not being able to see her. There was no way for him to text her until he left the room. Pulling his phone out would draw too much attention, mostly from Skyla. She’d tease him and then his mom would ask him every question she could come up with, even repeating some until she got the answers she wanted.

Kiel and his sisters cleared the table after breakfast. He put the leftovers away while Ciara washed dishes and Skyla dried them. There was a dishwasher, but Ciara liked handwashing everything.

Before they finished, Emmett told the kids he and Leona were heading to the beach, but not the one where all the people were. They had found one close to the house, but not as “beachy” as the other one. This one was quiet, had less people, and was more for the locals. Emmett laughed at himself for using the term locals. The kids were more than welcome to join in for a fun day. They all agreed, hurried up with their chores and then went to their respective bedrooms to change.

When Kiel came downstairs, he helped his dad pack a cooler. No more spending a god-awful amount of money at the snack shack, although he could go for another Ida’s Lemonade. He was never one for frozen drinks before but loved this one.

Leona came around the corner in her swimsuit with a towel draped over her arm and a book in her hand. Emmett whistled and Kiel turned away, not wanting to see his parents flirting. It shouldn’t bother him and for the most part, it didn’t. But there were times, like then, that he felt as if he were intruding on something private.

After a few moments Kiel inhaled deeply and looked at his mother. “Are you going for a swim?” The question wasn’t out of the ordinary. Leona was much like Skyla; afraid something might touch her in the water. They were more pool people than lake or ocean people.

“I’m going to work on my tan,” she told him and held her book up. “And I’m going to read.”

Kiel chanced a look at the title and groaned. “How to Land the Perfect Job? I didn’t know you were looking for a new job,” he said.

Leona smiled. “I’m not, but you are, and if this book gives me any advice on how to help you, it’ll be worth the read.”

Kiel loved his mother, but she meddled. She meant well, he knew this, but he needed to be able to figure out his life without her help. He sighed.

“Lovely," he muttered.

Leona patted his cheek. “You’ll figure it out with or without my help.”

He wasn’t so sure. The deadlines on accepting the grad school offers loomed. He needed to decide, but making the wrong one could be costly. No one liked throwing money around, especially when there was a mountain of paperwork involved when it came to loans. The more time he wasted, the more opportunities he missed out on. Such as housing. In some towns, it was scarce, or you’d have to get on a multi-month-long waiting list. It was bad enough not knowing what he wanted to do in life but throw in housing and other adult things and he was as lost as they came.

Kiel and his mother left before the others. Skyla had a swimsuit malfunction which Ciara had to stay back and help her fix, and Emmett ended up getting a call from his base back in Saratoga. Kiel wanted to linger around for the call, to pick up on anything that might be said that would indicate where his father was moving to. That could influence Kiel’s decision as well. He wouldn’t want his mother home at night, by herself all the time, and with his dad gone, Kiel could be the man of the house again.

He was lost in thought when his mother tapped him on his arm. “Where do you want to sit?”

“Oh,” he said, clearing his voice. “I don’t know. How about near the water?”

“What about the tide?”

Kiel didn’t know jack shit about the tide. “Uh . . . we’ll move when it comes in.” Or was it on its way out? He supposed there was some sort of tracker in the app store or maybe online. He’d look it up after they got settled.

They laid their towels down and then sat. Kiel kept his knees drawn to his chest as he looked over the beach. Had they gone to the busier side, the one where he met Eloise, they’d be squished among the other tourists. Where they were now, they had privacy and weren’t privy to someone’s conversation, loud music, or children running around.

Granted, on the other side, the sand was nicer. It was the kind you buried your feet in or made sandcastles out of. And they had the food vendors, public restrooms, and potentially Eloise.

Leona opened her book and began reading . . . out loud. Kiel laid down, put his hands behind his head and listened to his mom read the self-help book that was meant to help him. For all he knew, something she’d read would help him. Mostly, he just wanted to listen to her voice. Kids are always in a hurry to grow up. Only being an adult sucked sometimes. If his mom wanted to read to him, so be it.

An hour or so later, his dad and sisters joined them. The girls spread their towels out next to the blanket Leona and Kiel sat on and he moved over to his so his dad could sit next to his mom. Leona stopped reading once everyone else arrived. Kiel was sad, but also a bit relieved. He had thoroughly enjoyed the hour of time they spent together, albeit he wished they had spent their time reading something else. The more he thought about it, if his dad had to transfer, Kiel was determined he would stay home and either go to school locally or find a job. He didn’t want his mom and sisters home alone.

Kiel rolled over onto his stomach and turned his head in the opposite direction. He needed to stop thinking about tomorrow and live in the moment with his mom.

“Kiel, answer your damn phone,” Leona said as she broke from the story briefly. He searched his bag, found his phone, and pulled it out. There was a text from Eloise, but nothing else. Kiel glanced at his mom oddly.

How did she know?

(text format) Are you free for dinner?

The question brought a smile to his face.

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