She explained the details of the trip, and how Jeremy’s school intersession gave him a few weeks to come visit. Her excitement slipped through into her tone as she spoke, and Garrett smiled in a way that she knew was mirrored on her own face.
“Honey, that’s amazing,” he said happily, rubbing his hands up and down her arms. “The only part I don’t get is why you were so nervous to tell me. I’m looking forward to meeting him!”
Eleanor rolled her eyes, but it was self-directed.
“I told you it was silly,” she reminded him. “But I guess I just… I don’t know, you’ve never seen me do the mom thing. I don’t know if you even really like kids.”
The way he watched her was indulgent and loving. “Well, for your information, I do like kids. You know I like my nieces.”
Eleanor had admittedly forgotten about his nieces in the midst of her panic.
“Plus, Jeremy is, what, nineteen? It’s going to be a pretty different dynamic than, say, if he was three or ten or even fifteen.” Garrett shrugged. “From what I know of him, my guess is that as long as I keep treating you well, he and I will get along just fine.”
She pouted. “That’s soreasonable. It’s so rude when you’re reasonable and I’m being nuts.”
Garrett slid his hands down to her waist, then pulled her in close for a quick peck.
“Not nuts,” he corrected. “Just a concerned mom and a good girlfriend.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “So, according to your logic, I am actually acting this way because I’m awesome?”
“Pretty much.”
Eleanor felt he deserved another kiss for that and, accordingly, gave him one.
“Well, your logic means that you’re a great boyfriend,” she said.
“I do try,” he said. “Now, let me finish up this project, okay? It will be nice to have a little less on my plate when your boy gets here. I’m looking forward to getting to know him as more than just a tiny face on a three-inch screen.”
After one more stolen kiss, Eleanor left him to his work, her boyfriend’s encouraging words echoing in her ears.
Now, all she had to do was hope that Jeremy felt as excited about meeting Garrett as Garrett was to meet him.
* * *
June and Cadence relaxed on the couch in June’s house, sipping wine, eating cheese, and keeping an absent eye on Benjamin and Izzy, who were playing some sort of inscrutably complex game of their own creation in the corner play area. They had tried to explain the rules to their moms at one point in the proceedings, but June had gotten lost when they’d tried to show how the Monopoly pieces were worth three times the points when they were seated atop the Scrabble tiles unless one of the wooden blocks were nearby.
“I’m going to decide just to be happy that they’re so creative, and not worry that they might be smarter than us,” Cadence said when the two adults had retreated to the couch, leaving the kids to their schemes.
“Oh, yeah, let’s go with that,” June agreed, reaching out to clink wine glasses with her friend.
They’d started having these girls’ nights plus kids about a year ago, when their two children had gotten old enough to entertain themselves for a few hours with minimal supervision. They’d had playdates before that, of course, but they hadn’t been as restful for the parents as they were now that the kiddos were a little more self-sufficient.
The wine and cheese had been a genius addition that had increased the cheer of the events when Cadence and Tyler had separated and Cadence had really needed some extra support. Now, they kept the wine and snacks around because who didn’t like wine and snacks?
“So,” Cadence said quietly when they were certain that neither Izzy nor Benjamin was listening in. “Time to spill. Tell me about your date with the swoony country star!”
June laughed. “I want to object to your somewhat dramatic characterization,” she said with a chiding note to her voice, while Cadence shrugged, totally unabashed, “but heiskind of swoony.”
Cadence did a happy little shimmy, taking care to avoid spilling any of her red wine on June’s couch. June appreciated this, although she’d had this couch since Benjamin was a baby, which meant that it had survived a great deal more than spilled wine.
“Okay, okay, tell meeverything,” Cadence exhorted.
June did so, providing all the details that her friend desired, from descriptions of their meals to their conversation, to the way spending time with Levi made her feel.
“He sounds pretty great,” Cadence said when June was finished gushing.
“He is,” June said, the words flying to her lips with ease. She didn’t doubt that Levi was wonderful, even with their rocky first introduction.
