Chapter 14
fourteen
Carolina
Isat outside with my morning cup of coffee, the local church bells sounded in the distance bringing back fond memories of my attendance as a child.
I pulled my phone out of the pocket of my robe and sent Gus a message thanking him for fixing the front porch steps.
As I laid the phone back in my lap, it vibrated against my thigh.
Picking it back up, a message notification from Gus shown on the home screen.
Gus
I didn’t fix the front porch steps. I’d been meaning to, but had gotten busy. Maybe that next door neighbor of yours fixed it.
I shook my head with a smile. That sounded just like something Leo would do. Or one of his brothers.
Thanks, Gus. I’ll be sure to thank them. Have a great Sunday.
He responded right away wishing me well and I took another long sip of my coffee trying to conjure up a subtle way to thank Leo.
After I finished my cup of coffee, I walked back in the house to wake up Luke and get started on the day, nervous for what the night would bring seeing Leo’s family again.
“Luke, how do you feel about meeting some new people today?” I asked him as we ate our lunch.
I’d messaged Leo this morning that we’d be glad to come over to his parents tonight for dinner, and that I would let Luke know to prepare him.
He’d taken a bit to respond, but he thanked me and told me he’d pick us up later to go.
I understood the coordination of riding together, but the thought of being back in Leo’s truck, the one he’d still had all these years later, made me a little uneasy on how I’d react to being thrust back into memories I’d long since tried to forget.
“Who, Mom?” he asked.
How did I explain this, so he’d understand? I didn’t have any siblings or a big family like the Courtrights, and while Luke had learned a little about family dynamics in school, he’d never experienced them firsthand.
“Leo, um … your dad, I mean. His family wants to meet you. Doesn’t that sound exciting?” I tried to hide my nerves so he wouldn’t notice how I felt about the situation.
“Like his mom?” he asked as he kicked his feet back and forth and took another bite of his bologna and cheese sandwich. We’d decided to have sandwiches and chips for lunch, so I wouldn’t have to use the stove and heat the house up by cooking since it was so hot outside today.
“Yeah, his mom and dad, and his brothers and sister. You even have a baby cousin. How’s that sound?”
“What’s a cousin?”
“When your dad’s sibling has a child, that makes him or her your cousin,” I said, hoping I didn’t butcher my answer and his little innocent mind understood.
“What does that make my dad’s siblings? Like, what are they called?”
“Well, your dad’s brothers are called your uncles, and your dad’s sister is called your aunt. Your aunt has a husband and that makes him your uncle too. I know it sounds confusing, buddy, but you’ll get used to it,” I reassured him.
“What’s a husband?” he asked, and I groaned. I didn’t want to answer this question because it’d lead to ones I wasn’t sure I could answer.
“When a boy and a girl really love each other they get married,” I said after giving my response some careful thought.
“Will you ever get a husband?” Luke happened to ask just as I took a sip of my sweet tea, causing me to choke.
I coughed some and patted my chest to relieve the ache as I tried to regain my composure.
“You okay, Mom?” Luke asked.
“Yeah, buddy. The drink went down the wrong way,” I replied.
“So, will you?” he curiously asked.
I didn’t want to give him any false hope, but I also didn’t see a way out of avoiding the conversation. With the way Luke was, if I avoided answering a question, he’d double down on trying to get the answer out of me.
“Maybe one day,” I told him. Not likely, but anything was possible.
“If you do get a husband, what will that make him to me?”
Could we get off this topic?
“That would make him your stepdad,” I said as I took a bite of my sandwich, which now tasted like lead due to this conversation.
“Would he replace my dad? Because if so I don’t want you to get a husband,” Luke said as he eyed me warily. In just the few short days since he’d met Leo, he’d grown attached.
“No, buddy. No one will ever replace your dad. How about we finish your lunch, and we can put one of your Lego sets together?” I asked, hoping he’d take the bait on my change of subject.
“That’s for me and Dad to do, Mom. But we could play with my trucks,” Luke suggested.
It was such an innocent response, but I couldn’t help the pang in my chest at him only wanting to do that with Leo.
We’d always done everything together, and now he had something that he just wanted to do with his dad.
Don’t get me wrong, I was happy that he wanted to spend time with Leo and that they had bonded instantly, but my mama heart was a little hurt that he wasn’t just mine anymore.
We spent the rest of the day playing in Luke’s room, and before I knew it we had thirty minutes before Leo would arrive to pick us up.
“Let’s get this room picked up and get you ready, kiddo,” I told him as I stood from the floor.
I played the clean-up song on my phone which always helped motivate Luke to pick up his toys quickly.
Opening his closet door, I had limited options to choose from until our packages arrived from South Carolina.
“What do you think about this?” I told him as I pulled out a pair of khaki shorts and his favorite button-up shirt. The blue stripes of his shirt always made the blue of his eyes stand out.
He shrugged, and I took that as a yes and handed him the clothes so he could get dressed.
“I’ll be right back. Make sure you get ready, okay. Your dad will be here in about twenty minutes,” I told him as I rushed out of his room and into mine.
I had no clue what to wear to dinner. I didn’t want to be overdressed, but I didn’t want to be too casual either. With the heat outside today, I also didn’t want to wear anything too heavy.
Without giving it much thought, I pulled out a couple of sundresses and tossed them on the bed. I mulled over my options. The yellow dress came down to my ankles and was light and flowy and didn’t show too much cleavage, while the other one did. Yellow sundress it was.
Quickly I got changed and pulled out a pair of white sandals. I pulled my long brown hair into a claw clip and put on some mascara and called it good enough.
This wasn’t about me. This was about Luke and him meeting his family.
I was nervous to be around them again. I didn’t know what they thought about me and my situation with Luke.
But the Courtrights had always been fair and honest people.
I couldn’t see them saying a harsh word to me, especially in front of my son.
“You ready to go?” I called out to Luke who came running out of his room. His shirt wasn’t buttoned correctly, and I smiled down at him.
“I can’t get my shirt right, Mom,” he said, as he pulled at the bottom of his shirt, trying to figure out how to fix it.
I knelt down and showed him what he did wrong and correctly buttoned the shirt.
“All fixed,” I said as I ruffled his hair which was still messy from this morning.
“Let’s go comb your hair, and then we’ll be ready to go,” I told him as we walked into the bathroom.
“Spikey or side part,” I said as I sprayed his hair down with water.
“Spikey,” he said as he jumped up in the air.
“Can you lean down and get the gel out of the cabinet for me please?”
He did as I asked and thrust the gel into my hand.
“Careful,” I warned because when Luke got excited he didn’t realize his strength sometimes.
I got a small glob of gel out of the container and rubbed it in my hands before I ran it through his hair, spiking it just the way he liked. Once I was done I rinsed my hands off, and lifted him up so he could inspect my handiwork in the mirror.
He fixed some pieces he didn’t like before he turned to me and gave me a wide smile and a nod.
“Alright, let's get your sandals on, then we’ll be ready to go,” I told him as I put him down.
He raced into the living room and pulled his sandals out of the basket by the front door. Just as he finished putting them on, a knock sounded at the door.
“I’ll get it,” he said as he jumped up and pulled open the door to find Leo on the other side.
“You have to make sure you know who’s on the other side of the door,” I told him as I grabbed my purse off the counter.
“But I knew it was going to be Dad,” Luke groaned.
“That may be true, but we always have to check first, okay,” I told him as I walked from the kitchen over to the front door.
Leo eyed me curiously before he looked down at Luke.
“You ready to go, bud?” he asked as he kneeled to Luke’s level.
“Yep,” Luke said as he grabbed Leo’s hand.
“You ready?” Leo asked me, but all I could do was nod as I took him in.
He wore a short sleeved blue button-down shirt opened with a white shirt underneath and a pair of khaki shorts. I grinned at how they were dressed alike even though we didn’t plan it.
“What’s so funny?” Leo asked as he held the door open, Luke’s hand still in his as he waited for me to follow.
“You two are dressed alike,” I said with a smirk as I walked out the front door, making sure it was locked before I pulled it closed.
Leo looked down at his shirt and then over to Luke and laughed.
“How about that?” Leo said before he walked slowly down the porch steps. Luke hopped down each one, causing me to take a deep breath in and hold it until he reached the bottom.
I let out a sigh of relief when he stepped off the bottom step and let go of Leo’s hand, racing toward his truck.
“We can take my SUV if you want since I have Luke’s booster seat already inside,” I suggested, not only for Luke’s safety because I didn’t know how I felt about being back inside the truck that held so many memories for the two of us.