“Do you know how to ski?”
“No, but I’m sure you can teach me.”
I wasn’t a pro, but I’d gone once with Crow when we were in college. “It’ll probably be the blind leading the blind.”
“It’ll be fun. We can take lessons together, and if we don’t like it, we can sit in the lodge and drink hot cocoa.” He had a great attitude about it, and joy burst in my chest. I pulled him close and kissed his cheek. Marriage, kids, whatever…as long as I had Cody, it would be a great life.
After the cruise
The cruise was fun, but so was the road trip part. Most of the time, I loved the stopping and camping better than anything. But I had to admit it was nice to have the cruise in the middle, where someone else could take care of things and all I had to do was enjoy it. All the driving was getting to me, but thankfully, Vince would drive the next leg as we headed toward Tampa. We’d left the ship after another fancy lunch and then started the long drive to the last campground in Fort Myers. We would get there around dinnertime.
The bridge out of the Keys was seven miles long, with water on both sides as far as the eye could see, but it was stunning green and blue, and the sky was just as gorgeous, with a few big, fluffy white clouds floating around in the blue like tiny islands.
Behind me, Cody and Joey were chit-chatting away until Cody yelled, “Beep-beep. On our way.”
Vince jumped. Joey giggled. I shook my head and turned to look at him. He had his nose pressed to the window. “Cody, don’t be so loud. You startled Vince, and he could have wrecked.”
“Nah…he’s a professor-driver. He won championships. He ain’t gonna wreck ‘cause of me.”
“A what now?”
“You know…” I could practically hear his eyes roll. “He drives for a living. Racing.”
I wanted to scold him, but Vince chuckled. “He’s not wrong.”
“Alright, man.”
The rest of the drive was long and boring, taking several hours. A little after we made it to the mainland, Joey wiggled all over the place in the backseat.
“What’s wrong, Joey?” Cody asked.
Joey huffed, “I gotta potty.”
“Okay, Joey. We’ll stop as soon as we can.” Vince reassured him. “Do not pee yourself in Warner’s car.”
“Uh, has that been a problem before?” Was I going to have to clean the inside of the car before we got home?
“Hasn’t been, but he can’t seem to hold still back there at all.” Vince wasn’t wrong. The boy was practically having a conniption.
Finally, Vince exited the highway and found a gas station. Joey was already unbuckled before we stopped, and as soon as Vince cut the engine, he threw the door open and ran for it. Cody snickered as he unbuckled and got out of the car at a more leisurely pace.
“Cody, be nice. He couldn’t help it.” I shook my head at him with a scowl. I didn’t want him to be mean to Joey. They were good friends, and I didn’t want them fighting. Plus, it would make the rest of the trip more uncomfortable.
“I’m sorry, but he drank like three sodas.” He held up his hand as if that explained everything. Well, to be honest, maybe it did.
“Figures,” Vince grouched. “He’s cut off from soda.”
After our pit stop, we got back on the road, but this time, both boys fell asleep before we got too far. Instead of listening to them chatter away or play their games, we had a longer conversation about the future and maybe investing in something together. He was interested in finding more ways to make his money workfor him, and that was always a favorite subject of mine. I wasn’t a professional like Crow or even Larry and Hudson, but I found it interesting, and who didn’t like making money? I’d made enough from deals with and without Crow that I didn’t have to work. If I didn’t love law so much, I probably wouldn’t.
Soon enough, we arrived at the campground, and the clouds above were darkening the sky as we got out of the car.
“Daddy? Is it night already?” Cody rubbed at his eyes, slowly waking up.
“No, it’s threatening to storm.”
“Oh, no…we better hurry and get the tents up.” He rushed to the trunk where all our equipment was stored.
Everyone pitched in to get the tents up, and then we helped a few others at nearby sites. Danny and Lee came around letting us know that Drew had burgers and fries catered, and it was set up under the pavilion, so we took a break and got food, then went back to our tent. Even though the sky was dark, it didn’t rain.
