Garrett shrugged. “You can’t do much damage with a block plane unless you’re really trying to. And you seem to know what you’re up to.”
Eleanor was reminded of all the times she’d gotten to see Jeremy learn a new skill, and how proud of himself he’d always been. Whether he was a little boy learning to sound out words for the first time or a teenager with his fresh driver’s license, he’d had the same beaming sense of satisfaction that poured off him. Eleanor felt herself practically tear up at the sight.
She waited until Jeremy was done making a smooth line with the tool before knocking at the doorway to get both men’s attention.
“Hey, guys,” she called lightly.
Jeremy and Garrett were almost comically in sync as they turned to look at her, first with welcoming smiles, and then with expressions of dismay as they realized that she had no reason to be there.
“Oh man, Mom,” Jeremy said, wincing. “Did we ditch you?”
“Shoot,” Garrett said, hurrying over to his workbench, where his phone was plugged in. Jeremy’s phone was next to it, but since Jeremy’s phone wasn’t about a thousand years old like Garrett’s, he didn’t yet need a charge. “Oh, shoot, shoot, Ellie. We totally ditched you.”
“It’s fine,” she said, no longer bothered now that she knew that they were not in peril… and visibly getting along. It was basically all that she could ever have hoped for. Well, that and lunch. But she would take this.
“We did get you a sandwich though,” Garrett said, holding up a take-out bag from the diner. Eleanor practically collapsed in relief.
“I love you both so much,” she said, then paused, worried that Jeremy might feel uncomfortable about this effusiveness between his mother and her boyfriend.
But the two men were exchanging a high five.
“I feel like we crushed it,” Jeremy joked to Garrett.
“Eh,” Garrett said. “We could have probably answered our phones.”
“Okay, fair.”
Eleanor was enjoying watching this exchange, but she was also desperately curious.
“So, uh, what’s going on here?” she asked, pulling out the club sandwich that they’d gotten for her.
“Okay, Mom, no offense, but you totally buried the lede when you said that Garrett was a hardware store owner. He’s also a total pro at carpentry. I swear, I learned more from him in the last half hour than I learned in the whole semester ofmy woodworking class. I was already looking forward to taking another class, but Garrett’s really showed me all the ways that it can be way more than a hobby.”
“That’s amazing,” Eleanor said, feeling flush with pleasure.
“Yeah, I…” Jeremy looked slightly nervous, and he glanced in Garrett’s direction for support; the older man gave him a nod of reassurance. “I might be considering changing my major. I’d do business as a minor so I know how to turn it into a real career but…”
“Honey, that soundsamazing,” Eleanor reassured him when he trailed off, looking apprehensive.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” she said.
Perhaps detecting that they’d hit a conversational wall, Garrett took pity on them. He stepped up to Jeremy’s side and clapped him fondly on the shoulder.
“He’s got a real knack for it too,” Garrett said. “The planes he makes? Real smooth for a beginner.”
“I… don’t know what that means,” Eleanor admitted. “But I’m thrilled for you, Jer. And I love that you two have found something to bond over.”
The two men exchanged an amused glance.
“I told you she couldn’t go more than five minutes without mentioning it,” Jeremy joked.
“She made it two or three though,” Garrett said back. “That’s pretty impressive.”
“Oh har de har har,” Eleanor snarked, although she wasn’t truly upset that they were teasing her. The day hadn’t gone the way she’d expected, but it had still exceeded her wildest expectations.
What had she even been worried about?
