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A jerky nod was all I got in return. It wasn’t exactly the reaction I was hoping for, but it was certainly the one I was expecting.
“And then Ms. Andreasaid that I was right. Which means Carter was wrong.”
I kicked the car door shut, grabbing Parker’s backpack as it fell off his shoulders. “Just because you were right doesn’t mean you need to point it out. That makes other kids feel bad.”
“But Mama, I didn’t want him to feel bad. I just wanted him to know he was wrong.”
This was going to be a learning curve this year for Ms. Andrea. She thought she was getting a sweet kid, which he was. He was also a know-it-all, and that would drive her crazy.
“What do you want for dinner tonight?”
“Pizza!” he said, jumping up and down.
“Pizza is only for Friday nights.”
We were on an even tighter budget now and I wouldn’t waste money on pizza when I could easily make dinner, even if I was exhausted from my first day at work.
“But Mama?—”
“Parker, when I say no, the answer is no. I don’t want to hear any whining.”
His face scrunched up, but he didn’t argue further. I was about to shove my key in the door when I remembered I gave it to Jack earlier today. Luckily, it was unlocked. I had a slight moment of terror as I stepped inside, worried that someone was in the house, but then I reminded myself that I wasn’t in Texas anymore and Rico was in prison.
But that didn’t mean someone wasn’t in my house.
Jack stood at the counter chopping something and glanced up when we entered. Parker was the first to react, running over to him and gushing about his first day of school. I, on the other hand, stood there in complete shock. The man was cooking something in my kitchen. After three days of him not speaking a word to me, he was here, acting all domestic. It threw me for a loop.
His eyes flashed to mine apologetically, and then he rounded the counter, heading right for me. He stopped just a few feet from me, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Sorry to scare you like that. I fell asleep here and…then I realized that you didn’t have a key and…Look, if this is a problem, I can leave. I just wanted to say thank you for today.”
“No,” I said after a minute. “No, it’s fine. It just…surprised me.” Pulling myself out of my shocked state, I dropped my bag on the ground. “What are you making?”
“Tacos.”
“Tacos?” Parker shouted. “I love tacos!”
“Parker,” I chastised. “Please don’t yell. It hurts Jack’s head.”
“Sorry,” he frowned, looking up at Jack guiltily.
“It’s okay, buddy. I know it’s hard to be quiet when you’re excited.You want to help me?”
“I get to cook?”
“I still have to make the beef and I’m sure your Mama needs a few minutes after her long day.”
I stood there stunned. Did that mean I was supposed to…go upstairs and…do something? I’d never been in this position before and I didn’t want to assume. “I’ll just change.”
“Take your time,” Jack said, helping Parker stand on a chair.
“Weird,” I whispered, watching as he took over.
I took the stairs two at a time, wondering what got into Jack. He was like a totally different guy. That gruff attitude was gone—at least for today. And he was acting like he was my boyfriend or something. I didn’t know what to make of it. I wanted to see where things could go with Jack, but we were going from zero to sixty without a single conversation. We’d made out a few months ago, but nothing since then!
I pulled on some sweats, deciding that until things were figured out between the two of us, I was going to be myself. There would be no primping for him or anything that might fill my head with dreams of something that might never happen. It could be as simple as Jack wanted to do something nice for us after I helped him this morning.
By the time I got downstairs, the spicy scent of tacos filled the air, making my stomach rumble. I was going to make sandwiches and call it a night, so this was a pleasant surprise. As soon as my feet hit the bottom stair, Jack’s eyes were on mine. His intense gaze had me squirming in place, desperate for something to do so all the attention wasn’t on me.
“Mama! I made tacos!” Parker yelled, hopping down from his chair and rushing over to me.
