Page 101 of Sweeter Than Fiction

“He seems great.”

“Yeah,” I agree. “The best. Sometimes, I think there’s no way he could be as wonderful as he is.”

She smiles. “Oh, yeah. I used to think that about your dad back in the day. He swept me off my feet, and I swear for the first year we were together, I just kept thinking how there was no possible way this man could be real. I’d only dated jerks, and I just kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. Thankfully, for me, it never did. Well, I guess he does snore, but all things considered, I think I still came out with the better end of the deal.”

I smile, and it’s a real, genuine smile because my mother hardly ever shares anything personal with me. It’s nice, albeit a little odd.

She goes on. “Just try to go with it. Try to just enjoy it and be happy. There are good guys out there. Hopefully, Don is one of them.”

“I think he is,” I agree.

We talk a little more while we finish our wine, and much to my surprise, she doesn’t nitpick at me for anything. I’m shocked.

When our glasses are empty, she stands up. “Well, I should be going. I know you’re expecting company.”

“This was…nice,” I tell her.

“I think so, too.” She smiles. “Maybe next week sometime, we can get together for coffee or something.”

If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was in the Twilight Zone.

“I’d like that.”

She gives me a small hug, but there’s still a lot of awkwardness there, so it doesn’t quite feel right yet.

When she’s out the door, I take the glasses into the kitchen, putting hers in the sink and refilling mine. Don knocks about two minutes later.

I swing the door open and skip straight past the greeting.

“You will never believe what just happened.”

Chapter Thirty-eight

Don

"Where are we going?” Abby asks me for the tenth time in five minutes.

“Can’t you just be surprised?” I ask.

“I think you and I have already established that I cannot.”

With her hand in mine, we walk down the sidewalk. We took a cab part of the way, but I didn’t want to give the address and spoil where we are going. I could go ahead and tell her, but she’s cute when she squirms a little.

We walk a couple more blocks before I stop in front of a fence. “Okay, we’re here.”

She looks at the fence and the construction site behind it. “Did we come here to vandalize something?”

I smile. “Nope.”

“I’m going to need some more information, Don.”

“Come on,” I say, leading her through the gate and inside the massive building.

We walk past the security guy who greets me with an, “Evening, Mr. McDowell.”

“Evening, John.”

“Wait a minute,” Abby realizes. “Is this your job site?”

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