That was heartening, but what DJ said made Wyatt feel sad, so he told him, "I like to hold hands with guys all the time, my friends and boyfriends."
"And it's OK?" DJ asked.
"Sure. It's nice. So you can hold my hand if you want, but you don't have to," Wyatt told him.
For a few steps, DJ looked unsure, but then he took Wyatt's hand and smiled. He was still so little, it was too soon for him to give up little comforts and signs of closeness especially when he lost his parents so recently.
They were going to the café for dinner, but Wyatt was wishing he had texted Sam to make sure he would be there. Since they were close, he figured he would soon find out one way or the other.
Then he got a surprise. Before they got to the café, they saw Sam coming out from behind the hardware store. The kids called his name and he came over to join them.
"Are you on your way to work?" Wyatt asked him. "That's where we're going."
"No. I have the evening off," Sam said.
"Looks like Sam isn't working at the café tonight," Wyatt told the boys.
"We won't get to see him," Riley said mournfully and his sad, brown eyes looked right at Sam.
"We are seeing him, Ry. He's right there." Wyatt pointed at Sam.
Riley gave him a goofy grin and said, "I know."
"Look. It's Billie and Cat," DJ said as he waved at someone down the sidewalk. He had spotted a little boy and girl with their parents, and now all the kids were waving at each other. "Can we go show them Barney and Brownie?"
While DJ waited for him to give permission, Wyatt saw that the parents were busy looking at something on one of their phones. The boy and the girl were already coming their way.
"Go ahead," Wyatt said and DJ and Riley ran off to meet them halfway on the sidewalk. There was a lot of fussing over the dogs, and that gave Wyatt a chance to have a word with Sam.
"I was about to invite you to have dinner with us. As you might have noticed, we can't get enough of you. But I don't want you to feel pressured to spend time with us," Wyatt told him. The thought that Sam might not want to see him made his chest hurt, but he tried not to show how much he dreaded a no from him.
"I don't feel pressured," Sam said and looked at Wyatt with his earnest, gray eyes.
"When you said you didn't know about your schedule, I thought maybe that was your way of saying you needed a break from us," Wyatt confessed to him.
"I don't need a break. I like spending time with you," Sam said then he blushed and looked away.
That made Wyatt feel so good. "I always look forward to seeing you," Wyatt told him, his voice coming out low and thick with meaning. He meant to say it more casually than that, but that's just how it came out.
"Me too," Sam admitted shyly.
As their little friends went to join their parents, the kids ran back, and Wyatt decided it was time to make dinner plans. "If you haven't had dinner, maybe you want to come eat with us. We can go to that barbeque grill if you want a change of scenery," Wyatt said to Sam.
Sam didn't even get a chance to answer before the kids started clamoring for him to come. "And Barney and Brownie want you to come too," Riley said to Sam then he got down to talk to the dogs. "Tell him."
"Actually, I'm not sure what we'll do with Barney and Brownie when we eat," Wyatt said as he looked down at the dogs.
"What were you going to do with them at the cafe?" Sam asked and leaned down to pet the dogs and scratch their heads.
"Get takeout if we couldn't get anyone to watch Barney and Brownie for us," Wyatt said.
"L&L Barbeque is near these picnic tables by the riverside. If we eat there, then it won't be a problem to bring Barney and Brownie. They can just hang out with us," Sam said.
"So you're coming, that's great," Wyatt said since Sam hadn't given him a yes. Hearing the good news, the boys celebrated by jumping around and the dogs woofed a few times. "See you made everyone happy," Wyatt told him.
They set off for the barbeque place with the dogs and the kids a few steps ahead of them. The sun was very low now, turning the clouds on the horizon a fiery red. Ahead of them they could see the river turning brassy and gold.
"So do you eat over there much?" Wyatt asked Sam.
