Page 18 of Autumn Wishes and Pumpkin Kisses

Our eyes lock on one another and a blush fills my cheeks once again. We’re interrupted by Seraphina stating she needs more ketchup. Keefer looks away and grabs the ketchup bottle. “Just say when, okay?” Seraphina bobs her head up and down. The rest of the meal goes off without any interruption and when the waitress comes to take the dishes, we ask for a couple of coloring pages and crayons. Once the kids are occupied, I pull out my sketch book with the color swatches. Keefer turns his tablet towards me. “This is a very rough mockup of what the website will look like. Obviously, I still need the color scheme and of course photos and the breakdown of her regular menu as well as the seasonal ones, but you get the general idea.”

Keefer shows me the different pages. It’s clean and classic, easy to navigate, but has just enough flair to show off Warbee. Once everything is plugged in where it needs to be it’ll be perfect. I turn the sketch book around to Keefer. “So, here is the color scheme I’m going with and this is a mockup of what I would ideally like the bakery to look like after everything is done. Jayse Lyons is going over today to get measurements and what not so he can give me a price quote. What do you think?”

His eyes are large and there is an emotion in them I can’t read. “Wow, this looks amazing. It’s so Warbee. You’ve brought vintage and modern together as well a little small town country vibe. She’s going to love it. The color scheme is really refreshing, too. Let me just plug in those colors and you can get a better idea of the website will look like once it’s finished.” Keefer taps the screen with the stylus and then turns it back towards me. “How’s this?”

“Perfect,” I tell him. “Well, it looks like we got it all figured out.”

Keefer nods his head. “Yeah, we do. Now, I guess we need to get his football gear,” he tells me, as he motions his head in Silas’ direction.

I sigh. I’m still so uncertain about my little boy playing football, but he’s so excited so I nod in agreement. Keefer takes Silas’ hand. I take Seraphina’s and the kids take each other’s as we head down the street to the sporting goods store. For a moment, I have to remind myself this is just a single moment in time. This isn’t forever, but goodness I wish it was.

FIFTEEN

Keefer

Having lunch and going shopping with Teaganne and her kids probably wasn’t the best idea I’ve ever had. The last few days I had missed their presence which makes no sense. I’ve barely been around any of them, but the first couple of days of her return I had seen her quite a bit and some part of me had gotten used to it. I enjoyed her company again. The idea of this possibly being our second chance had been running through my mind ever since my mama planted that damn seed. I didn’t hate the idea. If I’m being completely honest, I loved the idea. Silas and Seraphina were great to be around, too. I had always wanted kids in my life at some point. Of course, back then I always assumed they'd be mine and Teaganne’s, but regardless of the blood in their veins I already loved them.

Walking around Blue Ridge with the three of them made me feel like we were a real family, which is another silly thought. Teaganne and I aren’t even together, not even close. We haven’t even been on a date. We still have our past to deal with. There are too many unanswered questions right now. It’s just that I’m as drawn to her as ever. It’s like we’re magnets, unable to escape one another. She moves and I move. We even ended up moving back to Blue Ridge at the same time.

As I help Silas pick out the few things he’d need for football, I keep glancing over at Teaganne and Seraphina. Apparently, Seraphina has always wanted to be a ballerina and she has found the part of the store which is geared towards dancers. She had drug Teaganne over there right after her eyes landed on it. Teaganne just told me to get whatever Silas needed and she’d pay for it once we were done. Seraphina was doing a twirl right now with her hands above her head, trying to demonstrate why she needs the ballerina tutu. Teaganne looks on, a huge smile on her face. It’d be so easy to fall back in love with her. The only problem is... our past.

I wasn’t one to dwell on the past. Opening my heart to the one person who put it in the shredder years ago... well, that’s another story. My mind keeps repeating the same question. Did I want another shot with Teaganne? My heart says yes, but hearts are quick to forget pain and only remember the good. The brain, which I tended to listen to, remembered everything. It thought with logic. My brain isn’t sure of anything right now.

“Do I need anything else?” Silas asks.

I take in the items in my arms and shake my head. “Nope, I think you’re all set, buddy. You want to take this to the counter then go get your mom and sister?”

“Sure.” His voice sounds unsure and pulls at my heartstrings.

I stand up and take the items to the counter before turning back around and squatting down to Silas’ level. Clearly, something is bothering him. “What’s wrong, buddy?” He shrugs his shoulders but keeps looking in the opposite direction of me. “Come on, you can tell me.”

Silas crosses his little arms over his chest. “I’ve never had a football,” he admits quietly.

For a moment, I’m stunned. Throwing a football around in the backyard is just right of passage down here in the south. It never crossed my mind that Silas didn’t know about football or what it even was really. “That’s okay, buddy. We can fix that.” I grab his hand and head over to the section of the store where the balls are kept. “Pick any of these you like.” His eyes and entire face light up as he rushes forward and grabs a football. “You know what else you need?”

He looks up at me and shakes his head. “No.”

“A baseball cap with the Falcons on it and a jersey. Come on, my treat.” We grab everything and head to the cashier. I end up paying for all the football stuff because it just feels right. After we pay, I ask the cashier to cut the tags off the cap and jersey and I help Silas put them on. His smile is so large, I don’t even try to fight my own off.

As we approach Teaganne and Seraphina, her eyes go large. “What did you do?”

“We got what he needed, but I also had another idea.” I motion for her to join me off to the side. I don't know what her plans are for the day, but I don’t want to get the kids excited and then she has to tell them no.

Teaganne looks frustrated. “Why did you pay for everything?”

“What?” I’m a little caught off guard by her question. I didn’t think it would be a big deal.

“It’s not your place to buy all this stuff. I was going to get it.”

After taking a deep breath, I say, “I just did it because I enjoy your kids Teaganne. Maybe, you don’t think it’s my place, but it felt right to me. I’m sorry if I stepped on your toes, it wasn’t my intention.”

We stand there staring at each other until we hear the kids laughing. Teaganne looks over my shoulder at them, her eyes soften. “I’m sorry. It’s just this is all new and honestly pretty weird for me. I appreciate you taking the time and now money to buy us all lunch and get Silas the football stuff he needed.”

“It was my pleasure.” I give her a bow like we’re in a different century and she dies laughing.

Her head has fallen back with laughter and once again, I’m mesmerized by her. When she looks back at me, she swipes her fingers under her honey colored eyes, drying them from the tears. “What was your other idea?”

There’s no easy way to ask this so I decide to dive right in. “Silas mentioned he’s never had a football before, so I was thinking it might be better for him if we have a cookout tonight. Y’all can come over to my place, I’ll cook dinner and then afterwards Silas and I can toss the ball around a bit. I mean, if you don’t have any other plans.”

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