Page 85 of The Ex Next Door
“How was work?” she said, accepting a glass tumbler from him.
“It’s always weird to work the early shift. A different crowd. Tippy and Ted came in and he always likes talking baseball with me.”
“Did you stay after to give your pep talk?”
He shrugged. “Debbie wasn’t there, and the rest hightailed it out after their shift.”
“They don’t know what they’re missing.”
He simply smiled at her, that easy smile that had always felt like a secret tucked between them.
At the evening’s conclusion, she chose not to push her luck and simply walked Declan to the front door. A stroll next door with him would invite too many questions from curious little eyes and ears.
“I thought that went well but I apologize if David was a bit grumpy.”
“Baby steps.”
Smiling so wide her cheeks hurt, Amy slowly shut the door behind him and silently wondered how she could be feeling as giddy as a schoolgirl at her age.
“Do you like him?”
Amy startled. This time the voice was Naomi’s. She turned to answer her girl, whose voice wasn’t angry or accusatory. She’d simply asked a question, maybe even because she recognized the vibes obviously written all over her mother’s face.
Amy took a deep breath. “Yes, honey. I like him very much.”
“Oh. Is it kind of like Daddy and Shannon?”
“Um, yes. It’s just like that.”
“I thought he was our neighbor.”
“Well, hewasjust our neighbor. You’re right.”
“You like him because he’s nice, right? And funny sometimes, and he likes you, and helps you and isn’t ever mean to you.”
And also, he’s incredibly hot and delicious and his kisses make my knees dissolve.
But TMI for her daughter, who at least seemed to understand the basics. She wasn’t falling for that “if he pulls on your pigtails and is mean to you, he probably likes you” business. Amy would raise her daughter to believe she should be treated like a partner and an equal, the way her parents raised her.
“That’s right. He’s good to me and I think that’s important, don’t you?”
Naomi’s head bobbed up and down. “I liked a boy at school last year.”
“You never told me.”
“He’s really smart, maybe smarter than me.”
“Oh, that’s not possible.”
Naomi didn’t catch the joke. “No, really, he reads a ton of books, like me.”
It sounded like a match made in heaven except it had arrived too soon. But one never knew, she supposed. This boy could wind up being Naomi’s first love. Good Lord, she didn’t want to think about that. Her baby girl wasnine. Could she please stay nine and sweet forever?
“I don’t think David likes Shannon and now he’s not going to like Declan.” Naomi spoke with wisdom. “But I’m not sure why.”
Amy cupped her daughter’s sweet face. “He thinks if Shannon and Declan weren’t around, things might be different. I think he’s mad that we can’t all be together like we used to be. You, me, David and Daddy.”
“I get sad about that sometimes, too. Is it okay if I’m sad?”
