Page 68 of Feels Like Home

“I see that,” Ilaugh.

“Can you like… close your eyes orsomething?”

“Forreal?”

“Yeah.” Aidan nods his head and licks hislips.

Reece smiles so wide his dimplepops.

I do as told then hold out my hands; they each take one and lead me into what I assume is thekitchen.

I feel a soft breeze as a hand moves up and down in front of me and swallow mylaughter.

“Okay,open.”

Standing in front of me are twoveryexcited boys, holding the prettiest ugly cake I’ve ever seen in mylife.

Chocolate frosting with yellow gel pen writing spells out, “Will you date ourdad?”

I gasp after reading it overtwice.

Then I look up to see Andy standing before me, a large bouquet of… wooden spoons tied together with a bright redbow.

A giggle bursts out ofme.

“You mentioned a few weeks ago that all your wooden spoons were splitting and you needed new ones. So, I made Bri go with me to pick them out. There’s three spatulas in here, too. All different colors. And” —he reaches behind Grady’s back and produces a small bag from Grady’s hands— “chocolate covered espressobeans!”

“Oh, mygosh.”

“Surprise?”

“You’re too much.” I shake my head as I admire the wooden spoons. It might seem weird to most, but I’ll take something from the heart over a bouquet of roses any day. It proves he listened to something I mentioned off-handedly.

“Mom! Pay attention!” Brigiggles.

“Christine. You have to answer thequestion!”

“Oh!Right.”

“Will you? Date ourdad?”

“Hmm. I might have to thi…” Before I can finish answering the question, Andy’s standing in front of me, wooden spoons shoved into Bri’s hands, as his fingers grip myhips.

“You have towhat?”

Eyessmiling.

Bright white teeth biting his lowerlip.

Oh, who am Ikidding?

“Think aboutit?”

“And just how long do you need to… think aboutit?”

I tap my chin and pretend to mull itover.

He leans down, his face barely a breath away frommine.

---