Page 33 of The Other Room

“You good?” she asked, and I nodded.

“Yep. All better.”

“Good. Then let’s get this girl some ice cream.” She smiled at me and I almost dropped to my knees.

Why in the hell was she having this effect on me again? Frustrated with myself for sliding so far back in the progress I’d made putting Jo in the friend zone, I grabbed my wallet and waded through the water, hoping these feelings would wash away with the waves. And soon.

Bodies soaking up the warm summer sun flooded the sandy beach. While we wound between them, I ducked to avoid a football being passed between a father and son, and I smiled watching them interact. My father had marched out the door when I was fifteen and I hadn’t seen him since. But even when he’d been around, tossing a football wasn’t something he’d ever made time for.

When the football came flying at my head a second time, a botched throw by the son, I leapt in the air and caught it, tossing it back with a grin. “Catch!”

“Thanks, sir!” he called, and I gave him a wave.

Lucky kid. I’d have killed for a dad to toss around that football with me.

“You’re so good with kids,” Jo said, trotting up to my side.

“I’m a sucker for kids. Someday I’d like to have some of my own.”

“Yeah?”

“Definitely. And since I had a shit for a father, I’m going to make it my goal to be the best dad ever. Breakfast every morning, tossing around footballs, fishing... you name it and I’m doing it.”

“I hear you about shit fathers.”

Part of what solidified Jo in my life as my best friend was her understanding the situation with my father. Her dad had cheated on her mom and walked out, too. When she was a kid, he’d started a new family with his mistress and never even bothered to send her a birthday card. It was like she and her sister had ceased to exist.

She was the only person I knew who understood the damage done by a parent deciding they didn’t want you anymore. That you weren’t worth it to stick around. That kind of abandonment messes with your head, and Jo had been the one person I could open up to about it. The one person who got it, because she’d lived it, too.

“You’re going to be a great father someday.” She smiled, and just like it had the day she’d sat at my side and held my hand when I found out my dad had left us, it soothed every crack in my soul.

“Thanks, Jo. You’re gonna be a kickass mom.”

“You think?” She chuckled as her gaze washed over the playing kids around us. “I can’t picture it.”

“A kickass mom. For sure.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“Well,” I said, stepping between the sunbathers. “If you can love that mangy cat of yours, then you’ve got that motherly unconditional love thing down pat, and that’s the most important thing.”

She slapped my arm and burst out laughing. “You leave Petunia out of this. She’s beautiful.”

“See? Mom eyes. You’re gonna crush it in the mom love department. And you’re the most loyal, dependable person I know. And funny. Smart. Caring. All top-notch mom qualities.”

“Hmmm.” She pursed her lips and tipped her head. “I guess maybe I won’t totally suck.”

“Not a chance.”

We bumped shoulders and shared a smile before we padded up the stairs to the concession stand. After snagging the soft serve twist cones we’d both loved as kids, we strolled along the pathway toward the volleyball court.

“Is that your sister?” I asked as we approached the court.

“Huh?” Jo mumbled with her mouth full of ice cream, her eye following my pointing finger. “Well, hell. It is.”

As we walked toward the sand volleyball courts, we cut across the grass lawn where some kids raced around in an aggressive game of tag.

“What up, sis?” Jo called to Jenna, her right arm back as she prepared to serve.