Chapter 20
twenty
Tristyn
Who was that?” Vince stares over his shoulder, keeping his arm linked with mine so I can guide him through the crowd.
“Jeremy, apparently.”
“Jeremy.”
“Yup. Don’t think we need to keep saying his name.”
“He was totally checking you out.”
“Was not.”
“Yes, he was. He couldn’t take his eyes off you.”
“Was probably just surprised Henry had such a young mom.”
“Or he wants to be Henry’s new dad.” Vince pokes me in the rib cage.
“Shut up.” I push him off me and catch up with Henry. “Having fun, baby?”
“Yeah, thanks for coming, Mama.” Henry wraps his arms around my waist. “I’m happy you didn’t have to work today.”
“Me too.” I kiss the top of his head.
“Alright, are we going to ride this loopy coaster, or what?”
“You two have at it.” I motion for them to get into line. “You both know hanging upside down is not my thing. Not even close.”
“Please.” Henry looks up at me, and I shake my head.
“Nice try, baby, but this is all you and Uncle Vince.”
“Come on, kid, we can tell your mom what she missed out on when we’re done.”
I watch the two of them get in line, and then I find a spot where I can take pictures of them once they’re on the ride.
The line moves quickly, and before I know it, they’re finding their seats on the ride.
Never in a million years would I ride something like this. I don’t mind rollercoasters with loops, but a ride that’s just loops over and over. No, thank you.
Henry waves at me as I snap a picture.
I go to put my phone away, but a message from Andrew pops up on my screen.
Andrew: Give it any more thought?
I ignore the message and slide the phone back into my pocket.
Andrew has ruined a lot of things in my life.
I won’t let him ruin today.
Igot off work early today. Which I normally hate, but it’s nice to see Henry practice for once.
And I hate to admit it, but he’s good.
No, he’s better than good, he’s amazing.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d think that he’d been training for years already, or at least knew how to skate before starting this program.
I never believed people when they said someone was a ‘natural’ at something, but seeing Henry on the ice, I get it.
“He has a lot of talent.”
I turn and see Jeremy rolling towards me.
“Thank you.”
“He told me he’s never skated before this. I find that hard to believe the kid is a—”
“Natural.” I cut Jeremy off, and he smiles.
“Exactly.”
I run my hand through my hair. “He’s a great kid.”
“Yeah, he is.” Jeremy adjusts his wheelchair so he’s facing me more directly. “We didn’t get to officially meet the other day; I’m Jeremy. Moore. I’m one of his coaches, obviously.”
“Tristyn. Stevens. Henry’s—”
“Sister. His friends talk a lot about you. You must be a pretty cool big sister. My best friends used to talk about my big sisters the same way.”
I tilt my head.
Holy shit.
Was Vince right? Was he checking me out the other day?
“Sorry.” He scratches his temple. “That was weird.”
“No, no, it wasn’t.” I brush my hair behind my ear. “Sorry, it’s just been a long couple of days.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Shit, sorry, that was—”
He lifts his hands to cut me off.
“No, I didn’t mean it like that. One of my best friends is home for the next few days; she’s currently on tour, so we’ve had a lot of late nights hanging out. I wasn’t,” he looks down at his wheelchair, “I wasn’t trying to make you feel guilty.”
“Right.” I rock back on my heels. “Tour for what?”
“She’s one of the openers on Gracie Dunn’s tour right now.”
“Gracie Dunn?!” I turn towards him, my jaw hitting the floor. “Shut the fuck up.”
“I’m serious.” He laughs.
I like his laugh. It fills his whole face.
Is that weird? Is that a normal thing to notice about someone you barely know?
“They have a show at Huntington Bank Pavilion this Thursday, that’s why she’s home right now.”
“That’s crazy.”
“Yeah, we still can’t believe it.”
“Henry loves Gracie Dunn. I think he’s the first girl Henry’s ever had a crush on.” I hold up a finger. “Never tell him I told you that. He gets embarrassed when we talk about girls.”
“My lips are sealed.” There’s a beat and then— “I’m sorry, I don’t know if this is weird or not, but we go to the same place for PT.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I, um, think we ran into each other there a little while back.”
I fight the smile growing on my face. Now I feel like Vince was definitely right.
“I remember.”
Jeremy’s cheeks flush.
“Cool.”
“Cool.”
What am I doing? He thinks Henry is my little brother. If he had any idea that Henry was my son, there’s no way he’d be flirting with me right now. I wouldn’t blame him.
From what Henry’s told me, Jeremy graduates from college next Spring, which means he’s a little younger than me, and I still don’t feel ready to be a mom, and I’ve been doing it for over six years.
“He really likes you,” I begin. “He talks about you a lot.”
“He’s a great kid,” Jeremy continues. “He could go far in hockey. I mean, if he wanted to.”
“I think he might, I just don’t know if he’d be able to.” My smile fades. “It’s expensive and let’s just say—”
“There are a lot of programs to help with that. Scholarships and stuff. If he decides it’s something he’d want to do, I’d be happy to help you guys find something.”
“Thank you.”
“Of course. A talent like his doesn’t come around all the time.”
I give Jeremy a soft smile, and he shoots me one back. One that makes butterflies flutter around my stomach at a rapid speed.
Fuck.
“I should get back.”
“Of course.”
“It was nice to meet you, Tristyn.”
“You too.”