8. Este
ESTE
I fill out Reed’s packet and permission slips and write a check to secure her spot in the summer camp as Dom lends me his strength beside me. I’ve already wolfed down corn chowder and an egg salad on wheat while Dom had pastrami.
We almost feel like a normal couple, sitting at the kitchen table with paperwork spread out around us. It feels domestic.
I like it.
When Reed slams the front door open at around three and walks into the house, we’re still sitting at the table with the documents strewn about. She sets her practice bag down on the kitchen floor with a thump.
“Hi,” Reed smiles when she sees Dom beside me.
“Hi, babe. You remember Dom from last night? We’re reviewing your summer camp documents, and I've decided you can go. I’m making sure I signed in all the right places and didn’t leave anything blank.”
I grin over at Reed as a genuine smile pops, and she jumps up and down in excitement, squealing.
“Oh my God, oh my God, thank you, Mom!” Reed practically yells as she bounces over to hug me, moving me from side to side in the chair as I giggle. I love it when she’s happy.
“What made you do it?” My daughter asks with wide eyes.
“Well, after last night, I realized life is short, and I only hesitated because I’ll miss you, which is selfish of me.
You deserve all the great coaching at camp, and you should set yourself up for scholarships.
You know. Local ones, preferably.” I glare at her as she pulls a face that says, “You’re so lame. ”
The truth is, I know she’s eyeing Florida. At least it’s a quick plane ride.
And maybe I won’t be so alone after all when she leaves me behind to jump into her future.
“How did practice go?” I ask.
“I’m exhausted. Going to take a nap. Dom, it’s nice to see you again. Are you staying for dinner?” Reed wonders.
He glances at me. “If I’m welcome.”
I see the look Dom and Reed exchange as she nods, and it communicates her provisional support.
“I was thinking of staying to cook.” Dom winks her way.
“Thank God!” Reed rolls her eyes. “I’m tired of casseroles. Sorry.” She’s not saying anything untrue, and I suspected as much.
“Yep, I’m a one-trick pony with dinner, but you have to admit, I’m pretty good at breakfast,” I tell them as I collect all the paperwork, put it back in the packet, and then hand it to Reed. “Be careful with this stuff. The check is in there.”
“That’s so weird. Who writes checks anymore?” Reed asks. “You can’t Venmo them?”
“Nope, they’re old school like me.” I smile at her. She grabs the packet and then hugs me again. Two hugs in one day are rare for a mom, so I squeeze her a little tighter in return and savor the moment. One day, she won’t be in my house anymore to hug anytime I want to.
She’s already coming up on seventeen and finishing her junior year, which leaves me one summer and one more school year before she’s off, and I need to impart all the lessons she must know before she reaches adulthood in that tiny time frame.
Reed scampers up the stairs to her bedroom.
I blink back tears, and Dom notices. He puts his arm around me and pulls me into his side. “You okay?”
“I only have her for one more year,” I whisper, my eyes misty as I gulp back the sobs that want to explode out of me. It’s always been the two of us, with Cole often abroad and unreliable at best when he was at home.
“It’s been the two of us for a long time.” This time, I barely get the words out of my mouth.
Dom pulls me off the chair and into his lap, where I rest my face on his shoulder (now clad in a T-shirt). I let out a single sob and then contain myself as Dom rocks me slowly and holds me tight.
“We, uh, we’re not going to have a traditional courtship, are we? Just barreling full-steam ahead?” His shoulder muffles my words.
The thing is, I don’t care. I want whatever it is we have right here.
“Doesn’t seem that way, and that’s fine by me. I think today should count for several dates. Breakfast, for one. That makes five, as we discussed earlier. Nap, six. Lunch, seven. Dinner, eight?”
I love the sexiness of Dom’s drawl, and I pull back just enough to smash his lips with mine. Eight dates in three long days works for me, and I don’t need to dress up and have him drive me to Houston for a meal to know that this thing between us is real, and I want it. Badly.
The kiss deepens, and I’m almost sorry I didn’t do more than just touch Dom earlier when he was naked in front of me. Hell, I ache in places that have been lonely for years. I want him to fill me, take me over, allow me to let down all my walls and defenses and feel.
I pour all my desire into this kiss. When I pull back, shaking slightly, I can tell from the look on his face that Dom understands what I’m trying to communicate.
“Don’t let me fall all by myself,” I whisper pleadingly. Cole had never made me wonder where I stood. We were just kids, but he’d made me feel entirely sure of him from the very first moment.
Dom puts a hand to his heart as if I’ve wounded him, a wince on his handsome face. “Would never. Could never.” His eyes seem to darken as they stare into mine.
I kiss him again, and the universe blurs around us. We end up on the couch talking for the next two hours. Then, my best friend Mallory throws open the front door and marches right on in.