Chapter 20 Already Best Friends – Zane
“Hello, Coach Simmons,” Raegan greeted me, standing in the doorway.
“Hello, Raegan. We’re not at school, so you can call me Zane instead of Coach Simmons,” I noted as she smiled up at me with bright eyes.
“I can do that. You can come in. Mama is getting pretty. You can sit with me until she gets done,” she offered.
“Raegan Simone Morgan, did you answer the door by yourself when you know that’s not what you’re supposed to do?” Tara chastised as she approached us in the foyer of her home. Though her attention was zeroed in on her daughter, I was taken away by her effortless beauty.
“Yes, ma’am, but I knew it was Coach Simm— I mean Zane.”
Glancing up at me, I could tell Tara was surprised to hear Raegan casually calling me by my first name. Nodding my head in response to the look she was giving me, I silently let her know it was okay, and a smile appeared on her face.
I was sure Tara would have wanted them to call me ‘Mr. Simmons’ or ‘Mr. Zane’, but ‘Zane’ was simple enough for me.
My intention wasn’t to flex unwarranted authority with them because I knew it was enough of a shock for them to be processing Tara being with someone who wasn’t Jason.
Aside from that, Jaedan and Raegan were good kids, so there was no need for any excessive tactics or overly dominant energy on my end as I found myself entering into their lives as a permanent fixture.
Tara had always been everything that I wanted in a better half and so much more, and there wasn’t a doubt in my mind someday she would be my wife. Anything bound to happen to us and for us along the way, was nothing more than small tidbits making up the bigger picture I knew we were bound to be.
Showing me to the dining room, Raegan kept me company until Jaedan joined us while Tara brought out the fruits of her labor from the kitchen.
Indulging in a delicious dinner of beef pot roast with purple onions, red and white potatoes and carrots, butter beans, and crescent rolls was joyous and better than anything I could have whipped up in my kitchen.
Aside from the company and consistent conversation surrounding Jaedan and Raegan wanting to know more about me, the meal was nostalgic and comforting.
It took me back to my childhood, and I wasn’t sure if Tara knew it was one of my favorite meals and something I requested for my mama to make every time I came home to visit.
Sitting down for dinner in the capacity of being introduced as Tara’s man was nothing like I thought it was going to be and I was glad because it was so much better. While I had prepared myself for the evening to err on the side of worst-case scenario, it was nothing close to a disaster.
When we were finished devouring dinner, Tara and Raegan cleared the table while Jaedan took it upon himself to retrieve a stack of UNO cards and a Monopoly board game for an impromptu game night.
For close to four hours, we exposed each other’s inner competitive nature, going game for game and round for round until Raegan was slumped over on the arm of the couch, exposing all the cards she had in her hand.
That was when Tara suggested we call it a night and prepared to wake Raegan up so she could walk the distance and get in her bed.
Instead of interrupting her sleep, I told Tara if she led me to her room, I would carry her.
“You may have just started something you won’t want to keep up with,” she teased, gently pulling the door closed. “She’s going to expect to be carried to her room from now on.”
“I don’t mind at all.”
“Are you telling me she already has you wrapped around her finger?”
“I suppose she’s just like her mama,” I noted, causing Tara to blush under her warm chocolate tone.
“Good night, Mama. Good night, Zane.” Jaedan stated, walking in our direction as we walked to the front of the house, wearing a smile when he made it to us.
“I hope you can come back so I can teach you about the game of Uno,” he added, referring to the unbeatable winning streak he’d had for the night.
“Are you sure? Next time you may not be so lucky,” I responded.
“Yes, sir. I’m sure,” he confidently reasoned wearing the same victorious smile he sported on the basketball court. “Good night, y’all.”
“Good night,” we simultaneously called out in reaction.
“I haven’t seen him like that in a while, and I have you to thank for that,” Tara acknowledged once Jaedan was out of earshot. “Tonight I felt like I had my baby back, and I love that he could have the interaction with you because Jason was never in on the family game nights we would have.”
“Where would he be while y’all were playing games?”
“He would either be at work or here in his office. Wherever he would be, he always found an excuse not to participate.”
“How attached are you to this house?” I inquired, shifting the conversation to what was on my heart. Looking around her home, it was beautiful no doubt, but at the end of it all, it was a home she built with her ex-husband and a home I wasn’t too comfortable being in.
“At one point it was my dream home, but truthfully, I’ve been considering selling it because of the constant memories that I don’t care to revisit anymore.”
“Have you started looking at homes?”
“No. As of now, moving is just a thought,” she uttered, eyeing the formal dining room we were standing in.
“Would you consider moving with me?”
“As in the two of us essentially shacking up? No.”
“Tara, I would never ask you to shack up with me. You are worth far more than that, and I wouldn’t want to set such an example to the kids.
When I ask you to share the same space and bed with me, living under the same roof, it will be as my wife.
Can you hold off on looking for a house until we take the next step in our relationship? ”
“I can wait for you.”
“You won’t have to wait long,” I promised, causing her to gleefully look at me.
At her suggestion, we went out to her back patio with a bottle of wine and two glasses. It was the perfect ambiance to enjoy the night sky and each other’s company.
We conversed and drank for an hour or so before I kissed her goodnight and headed home. Admittedly, when the time came, I didn’t want to say goodbye, and considering the feeling, I knew I needed to make her my forever sooner rather than later.