Chapter 15
15
CHERRY
For Cherry, it was such a strange and foreign sight to see Jeremy running around the yard with his father, who was laughing, smiling, and truly happy to be there with him. She took photos, recorded a few clips of the two of them wrestling in the grass, and thought back to her own childhood. It was so different for her, and maybe that was why she was trying so hard with Jeremy.
There had been so many days where she had come home to an empty house, listened to her parents yelling about money, or witnessed much worse happen within those four walls. Closing her eyes, she pushed back the memories and silently vowed that Jeremy would never witness anything like it.
“Hey,” Evan chuckled, hefting Jeremy up onto his shoulders in what she would describe as a ‘fireman’s carry.’ Evan had one leg in one hand, and his son’s armpit braced in the other hand, holding it upward… and she couldn’t decide if she was fretting like a mother hen at Jeremy falling – or out of breath seeing Evan’s muscles flex. “This little wrestler is going to get a shower and throw on his pajamas, Cherry. I think I’m going to clean up, too. I smell that roast, and my mouth is watering…”
It was such an easy statement between them, like the best of friends talking about something casual, that she didn’t protest in the slightest. Instead, she leaned into the moment, treasuring it.
“The roast is ready, and I’ve got some Hawaiian sweet rolls that I just need to warm up. Take your time, and I’ll start carving the roast. Do you want a Coke with dinner or an iced tea?”
“Iced tea, please,” he replied and leaned forward to kiss her on the cheek like it was nothing before turning and carrying the laughing child inside the house.
“Daddy, put me down…”
“No, you’re all sweaty.”
“You can’t hold me up here forever.”
“I can sure try…”
“Cherry! Come save me…”
“Nope,” she replied, laughing. “Your father is right – I smell a stinky boy.”
“That’s ‘cause I tooted on Daddy’s head…” Jeremy cackled and snorted – causing the both of them to burst out laughing as Evan rolled his eyes. He slowly moved his arms forward, setting Jeremy down on his feet before wrestling the little boy, who darted forward to tickle him.
“All right, all right,” Evan said gently. “It’s time to settle down now, and we both need a shower. I’ve got grass in my hair and haven’t showered in my own bathroom in six months.”
“Maybe you’re the stinky one, Daddy.”
“Maybe I am…” Evan growled and chased Jeremy into his room. Cherry walked forward, unable to resist, as she listened to the two of them talking.
“Were you good for Cherry while I was gone?”
“I was especially good – and she’s so nice, Daddy.”
“She’s pretty amazing, but we have to be wonderful back to our Cherry in return, too. She’s a lady, so no tooting on Cherry. That’s something guys do when they are alone or with other guys. Actually, let me amend that – you can toot on Uncle Shellac anytime you want because he kept sneaking my fudge you sent me.” And laughter filled the air as Cherry covered her mouth to smother her own giggle.
“Go get a quick shower and show me your new Transformers pajamas you got for Christmas, Tiger. I’m going to get my things so I can take the next one and finally relax.”
“Are we done playing tonight?”
“Yeah, but we can play tomorrow.”
“You’ll be home?”
“I’ll be home for two months, then gone one week, and back home for quite a while. I promise.”
“I’m so glad you are home, Daddy.”
“Me too, buddy. Me too.”
Cherry quickly left the hallway, not wanting to get caught snooping by either of them. She darted into the kitchen and busied herself getting some plates out, microwaving a bag of frozen vegetables, and fishing the succulent roast out of the crockpot. The potatoes she’d cooked in there were practically falling apart, and so was the meat. She quickly mixed some cornstarch with cold water and poured it into the crockpot to make a thick gravy of the drippings. In fact, she was so busy with all of it that she didn’t even notice when Evan walked up behind her.
“Hey…” he whispered, laying a hand on her shoulder as she jumped slightly. “Do you need any help? It smells delicious.”
She looked up at him and saw he was fresh from the shower. His hair was wet, and he had a Navy T-shirt clinging to him along with some plaid pajama pants. His feet were bare, and she couldn’t help but notice his toes, realizing just how different and masculine they were compared to her own. What a weird thing to notice she thought, trying not to stare at him. He was so breathtakingly beautiful, and he’s mine .
“If you want to put the rolls on the table, I’m just fixing our plates now.”
“Jeremy, come grab the rolls,” Evan called out easily, smiling at her. “I’m going to help Cherry fix our plates.”
“I can do it,” she whispered and felt Evan touch her cheek, causing her to look up into his gorgeous eyes. “Evan…”
“I’m so happy to see you,” he breathed, his thumb barely caressing her cheek as he smiled at her. “I love the short hair on you. You look like a brand-new woman.”
“Still no boobs,” she blurted out and winced as his smile widened.
“Can I be honest?” he murmured.
“Sure.”
“I love that you’re real with me,” he began softly. “I don’t want the heavy makeup, the crunchy hair that I can’t touch, or someone with fake breasts – pudding bags or implants,” he chuckled intimately. “I just want you to be you… and to be happy with me.”
“I’m just me – lucky you,” she said weakly.
“I’m so glad of it, too.”
Jeremy skidded into the kitchen, grabbed the basket of rolls off the counter, and stopped – looking at them as they pulled apart guiltily.
“Daddy, do you have a bellyache again? If you are going to have a leaking butt then…”
“Oh heavens,” Evan groaned, looking up at the ceiling. “I told Tate that was not funny in the slightest. I’m never going to live that down.”
“Probably not,” Cherry chuckled, winking at Jeremy. “Honestly, we laughed and laughed at the text message.”
“I don’t have a bellyache, Jeremy, but I would like you to put the rolls on the table and have a seat while I kiss your stepmother ‘hello’ – and I’d prefer you not watch me.”
“Is there going to be tongue?” Jeremy asked, making a face and sticking out his tongue like some chameleon trying to lick his own eyeball – and Cherry slapped a hand over her mouth, laughing painfully.
“Where’d he pick that up?” Evan blurted out, looking at her.
“Late-night cartoons,” she admitted and glanced at Jeremy, drawing her hand across her throat in a moment to tell him silently to stop that. The little boy only doubled down, rolling his eyes and wagging his tongue all around as he squirmed before walking off.
Cherry and Evan looked at each other – both bursting out in strained laughter for very different reasons. She was horrified that he chose to mimic something like that, and that was how kissing translated in his six-year-old brain.
Evan looked beside himself and saw that his son was growing up into a typical boy who was fascinated with all the other aspects of life, not just boogers and tooting like Jeremy had been before he left.
“Maybe the kiss should wait,” Cherry whispered painfully and saw the crestfallen look on Evan’s face before he hid it, nodding.
“We’ll talk first – and it’s hard to be romantic with him around, even if I would give up everything for that boy.”
Nodding, she went back to fixing the plates, and they quickly sat down around the small table – only to see a strange look on Evan’s face. “What?”
“Where’d the chair covers come from? They’re nice,” Evan admitted and glanced at the couch. “The throw pillows, too. It feels more like a home.”
“Pinterest,” Jeremy volunteered casually before taking a bite. “Cherry likes making stuff, and she said she gets bored a lot.”
“Jeremy…”
“Well, you did say that.”
“I know, but I’m sure your father doesn’t want to hear about me being bored – or me spending a bunch of money on craft supplies or…”
“I don’t care,” Evan interrupted quietly. “I love it and hope you continue making this your home, too. Do whatever you want, Cherry. It’s a welcome change.”
“You don’t mind?”
“Do you think I would actually mind you making my house into our home?” Evan said evenly, looking at her, and she wasn’t sure what to say in response. “Let me be the first to tell you that you are welcome to do whatever you want to our home… so long as it’s ours together.”
Cherry’s eyes stung with tears as she looked away, staring unseeingly at her plate and resting her hands in her lap. No one had ever made her feel so welcome or free to be herself in her entire life – and a part of her had been worried that he would change his mind or regret letting her take over. That obviously wasn’t the case, and she needed a moment to process it, only to feel his hand touch hers under the table. He was leaning toward her, his hand cradling hers in her lap as he looked at her tenderly.
“It’s a house… please continue to make it our home.”
“You really don’t mind? Because I stenciled the dresser in the bedroom.”
“I saw it, and it looks great. I’ve never been much of a floral person, but it brightens the feeling of the room,” he whispered, smiling at her.
“I told her to put airplanes on it,” Jeremy volunteered. Cherry chuckled tearfully, meeting Evan’s warm smile.
“Airplanes would have been cool,” he teased, giving her hand a small squeeze. “Whatever you want, Cherry… and I mean it.”
“Thank you.”
“Eat,” he encouraged, nodding his head sideways. “It must be good because ‘the-human-Hoover’ over here is inhaling his food.”
“It’s the best,” Jeremy choked out with his mouth full, reaching for another roll and dipping it into the gravy. She reached over and grabbed his arm like a mother and noticed that neither Evan or Jeremy seemed like it was out of place.
“Small bites, and don’t choke. Nobody is going to take your plate from you. Eat slowly – please.”
“But not too slowly,” Evan prompted, looking at her with a raised eyebrow, causing her eyes to widen as she looked away quickly. What did he mean by that?
Looking away, knowing that now wasn’t the time to question things or have a candid discussion, Cherry simply ate her dinner. The silence, a few questions from Jeremy, the faint scrape of the fork across the plates, and the occasional sigh from Evan as he took a bite of his meal made the environment so warm and comfortable. No screaming in the background, no accusations tossed, no random macaroni dish because macaroni was cheap and filling.
It was her perfect dream of what a family should look like together, enjoying a home-cooked meal.
“Can I be done, Cherry?” Jeremy asked, rubbing his belly emphatically. “That was amazing…”
“It sure was,” Evan added, leaning back in his own chair, rubbing his stomach as he stretched and looked like a cat who just lapped up a saucer of cream. “I’m going to get spoiled like this.”
“It’s leftovers tomorrow night,” she answered simply as Evan laughed contentedly, smiling at her. There was a warmth in his eyes, a gentleness to his features, and she couldn’t help but preen under the appreciative gaze. It was almost like he really was enjoying her just making their little place homey.
“Like I said – spoiled,” he whispered, stretching once more before reaching forward to rub Jeremy’s hair. “You can be excused if you tell Cherry ‘thank you’ and go brush your teeth.”
“Thank you for dinner, Cherry.”
“You’re welcome, sweetie… and floss too.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Wow,” Evan chuckled the moment the little boy was out of sight. “He said ‘yes ma’am’ too? How did you manage all of this?”
“I love him and treat him like he’s mine,” she admitted, not looking away from Evan, almost daring him to show his cards or say something. A part of her kept expecting the rug to get pulled out from under her even though he had tried to reassure her several times.
“Keep doing it,” Evan said simply, rising to his feet and leaning over to kiss her forehead. “Take your time and eat. I’ll get the dishes.”
“Leave them. I can do them in a bit.”
“Or I can, so we can spend time talking uninterrupted in just a few,” he countered easily. “Would you like some hot tea, or can I get you something else?”
“Hot tea is fine.”
“Cherry…”
“Jeremy is coming,” she whispered quickly, looking at him. “Hey, Jeremy. Your dad and I were just talking – how about we watch some television for a bit, all of us, and if you start to get tired, he can tuck you in since he’s home.”
“Cool,” Jeremy beamed happily. “And you promise that you’ll be here in the morning, Daddy?”
“Yup. Sure will. I swear it,” Evan promised – and that seemed to satisfy the young boy again, but for how long was the question. He seemed really nervous about letting his father out of his sight.
Jeremy climbed up onto the couch and grabbed the remote. Cherry took one more bite of her half-eaten dinner and moved to start putting away the leftovers only for Evan to corner her.
“Half of your meal is still on the plate,” he whispered. “Go sit down and finish. I can handle this.”
“I know you can, but I’m done.”
“Cherry…”
“Evan, seriously, I’m finished eating and…”
Cherry hesitated as a faint snore sounded from the living room. They looked at each other, and both chuckled softly as Evan clasped her hand, tiptoeing to the corner of the kitchen. The two of them peered around the corner, like a child trying to sneak a peek at Santa, only to see Jeremy was completely sound asleep. He was clean, worn out, had a full tummy, and that was the magic recipe to wear out any young, energetic child.
“You win,” Evan whispered softly. “I’ll carry him to bed if you want to start putting away the stuff. I’ll be back to help you in a few.”
“Sounds like a plan.”