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She and Hyde laughed.
“But, I saw you yesterday,” Parker wondered, and his confusion made the whole thing even funnier.
“No, sweetie, it was just a joke,” Rene walked over to him and caressed his cheek.
“Oh, I see,” Parker smiled. “Are you coming to the picnic?”
“Your father mentioned it to me,” she replied. “If you guys don’t mind me cramping your style, then sure.”
“Can we look for more worms?” Parker started jumping up and down with excitement.
“How about we just play some ball, bud?” Hyde interfered, trying to make this picnic worm-free.
“Either is fine by me,” Rene shrugged her shoulders.
“Worms and ball, yay!” Parker kept jumping, as if he had an invisible source of energy which never died out.
“Let’s have some breakfast first and then head out,” Hyde suggested.
Happy sounds filled up the kitchen and Rene watched as Hyde and Parker ran around the kitchen, grabbing all the ingredients for eggs and bacon, oranges for the juice and bread for the toaster. She couldn’t remember the last time she enjoyed the simplicity of life, the laughter, the smiles, this sophisticated artlessness of what it meant to be truly happy.
Chapter 6
It was about 3 pm, and the day was still sunny and warm. Rene was sitting on a red and white checkered blanket, spread underneath a weeping willow tree in the local park. The mild weather seemed to invite everyone outside on this sunny day. She was watching happy families all around her. The smiling blonde mother with her curly angelic son. The father who, despite a few pounds extra, was doing his best in running after his boy and playing catch with him. The young woman who was reading a book on the bench, as her dog sat obediently by her feet, alert to every single thing that was happening around them.
Parke
r ran back to her, and still breathing heavily from all the running, stopped right before her and offered her his hand.
“Come join us, Rene!”
“Oh, that’s OK,” she smiled back at him, taking his hand, but remaining seated.
Her gaze traveled somewhere behind Parker, trying to find Hyde. He was standing away from them, his hands resting on his hips. Again, she wondered how someone could look so effortlessly gorgeous, without the slightest intention of doing so. The sun rested on his slightly tanned face and his hair flared up like a heat ray, reflecting against the sun. A few casual glances his way didn’t escape Rene. Women were always aware of Hyde’s presence, wherever he went. It wasn’t only her. There was a magnetic attraction about him, an infectious smile, and a radiating beauty that encompassed more than just mere good looks. He was charming in that old school style, which every woman fell for.
He just stood there, oblivious to the sighs he was the cause of, and the casual, hidden glances thrown his way, in hopes that he would look back. He didn’t. His eyes were glued to Parker, and now, they rested on Rene.
“Afraid to play with the big boys?” Hyde suddenly asked, taunting her.
Parker turned around, then back to Rene. He found this comment amusing. The corners of his lips danced upwards and he started playing with the ball in his hands.
“Yeah, you aren’t afraid, are you?” Parker repeated, teasingly.
“Well, when you put it like that,” Rene dusted herself off and got up.
The following half an hour passed by quickly playing ball and by the time they were sitting on the blanket again, Rene didn’t even realize how much time had passed. Parker had asked if he could run around a little and after getting permission to do so, Rene and Hyde were left alone on the cozy little blanket.
Both of them were guardedly watching Parker’s every move. There were just too many people there, and Rene didn’t even want to consider how easy it would be for Parker to get lost in this sea of people.
“Is he staying with you the whole weekend?” Rene found herself asking, even though the silence didn’t feel oppressive.
The question wasn’t really asked out of curiosity. She simply wanted to talk to him, and she assumed that Parker would be the best topic to achieve this. She didn’t care that the feelings she had for him were inappropriate. She had already crossed the line when she agreed to come to this picnic, so a little more crossing couldn’t hurt.
“Just for today,” he replied, not taking his eyes off of Parker.
She could see the outlines of his face from the side, his strong jaw, his protruding chin. He was clenching his teeth. This much was obvious from the way his jaw drew together. He seemed nervous.
“He’s going back this evening?” she asked again.
