Page 77 of Take Two

“He is,” Charlie says. “She’s done it to us both when we were teens. She did it to the kid next door, and he didn’t even cuss. He just got a little smart-mouthed at his grandma, and Mama fixed that.”

Unsure of how to respond to this news, I just stare at Charlie in silence.

Colt gives us a smug look and says, “That’s what I thought.” He points at us and says, “Check and mate. Let’s go.”

He yanks the front door open and says, “After you.” He gestures for us to go. Charlie extends his hand to me, and I angrily grab my purse.

“Fine”, I say when I get to the door and point in Colt’s face. “I won’t hit you today, but you got one more time,” I warn.

“One more time to what?” he asks as he moves my hand out of his face. I huff and roll my eyes at him.

“Ask your wife what that means,” I throw back and walk outside.

“Whatever,” Colt says. “I’ll drive. Get in the car.”

“I’m not going in the same car as him,” I tell Charlie.

“Better for me,” Colt says. “That way I won’t need to drive you two jerks back. Saves me some time.” He goes to his Mercedes and slams his door shut.

“One of these days, I’m going to punch him for real,” I warn Charlie.

Mary Leigh pulls me into a bone-crushing hug the instant I step outside Charlie’s car. She was waiting in the driveway and seemed to take a deep breath when she saw me sitting in the car.

“I’m so sorry, honey.” She pulls back and cups my face. “I think you’re a doll, and I don’t know what nonsense my son was talkin’ about. I don’t agree with it, and I let him have an earful, believe me.” She looks away from me and eyes Colt. “You get in the house,” she says to him as if he’s a little boy who just got in trouble.

She takes my hand in hers and leads me to the house with Charlie following behind us. The moment we step inside, the boys run to their uncle. He picks both of them up at once and kisses their cheeks.

“Unco Tarley!” Johnny says as he bounces in his arms. “Play!” He puts them down, and they each take his hand and pull him away.

The table in the kitchen is set. I eye Vickie in the corner talking to Colt who nods at whatever she says. He bends down and kisses her cheek. She leaves his side and comes to me. She opens her arms and we hug.

“I’m so embarrassed,” she whispers in my ear. “He’s in so much trouble,” she says. She pulls away and takes both my hands. “Please know that we all love having you around, andwe’re so happy for Charlie.” She doesn’t wait for me to answer. She hugs me again, takes my hand, and pulls me into the kitchen.

“Violet, can you make me another triple-decker?” Evan asks me. He runs to me and looks up at me with his big eyes, and I wonder how anyone can say no to him.

“If your parents say it’s okay,” I say as I smile down at him.

“You already had too much sugar today,” Colt says from across the room. I stop myself from rolling my eyes, but of course, that’s what he would say. Fun killer.

“Sounds yummy. You can make me one too,” Mary Leigh says as she glares at her son, almost daring him to contradict her.

“Me too,” Vickie says while also glaring at her husband.

“They’ll never get to sleep tonight, but what do I know?” he mumbles.

“Nothing,” Charlie mumbles back.

“That wasn’t as awkward as I thought it was going to be,” I tell Charlie when we get back to his house. I hold onto his bicep while I take off my shoes. “Those boys are so sweet. Too bad their dad is such a tool,” I toss in. “And that’s the last of it. I’ve gotten it out of my system.” I take a deep breath. “How about a nice, hot shower?”

I wrap my arms around him and press my body to his. “God, you’re so sexy when you’re in uncle mode. The way you were throwing that baseball around got me all hot.”

After dinner, everyone sat outside, and I watched as Charlie and the boys played baseball. I ignored Colt for the duration of my time there, and he did the same to me. Despite the tensionwith Colt, dinner was a lively affair. Evan spent most of it talking sports with his uncle while Vickie and Colt beamed with pride at their son.

Charlie cradles my cheek, and I wait for him to kiss me, only he doesn’t. He stares into my eyes and says, “Are we okay? I had the awful thought that you’d leave and—”

“Why wouldn’t we be okay? Did you stop loving me?” I ask.

“Of course not.”

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