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“Thanks. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“I’ll be here.”
As Max trekked down the steep path that led to the sugarhouse, he pondered what Colton had said about Caden feeling threatened. Caden had never seen Max with a girlfriend, and it was probably unavoidable for there to be bumps as he brought Lexi into their lives. He couldn’t let his son turn against Lexi without giving her a chance.
When he got back to the sugarhouse, he called his mother.
“Do you mind if I pick up Caden today?” he asked her.
“Of course not. He’ll be thrilled to see you.”
“Great, thanks. I’m on my way.”
“Come for dinner if you’d like. I’m making spaghetti and meatballs.”
“Caden’s favorite. We’ll be there. Thanks, Mom.”
“See you in a bit.”
Max hung up the heavy coat he used to work on the mountain and changed into the lightweight down jacket he wore the rest of the time. When he was on his way down the mountain with classic rock blaring from the truck’s speakers, he couldn’t wait to see his son and spend a rare weekday afternoon together.
As Max easedthe truck into the pickup line, he realized it’d been a while since he’d picked up Caden at school. His son would be looking for his grandmother’s SUV, not his dad’s truck. When he saw Caden standing with a bunch of other kids, he gave a soft toot and watched his son’s face light up with delight.
All the hell and heartache he’d gone through with Chloe and the many challenges of single fatherhood were worth it to have his son look at him like he hung the moon.
Caden climbed into the truck and dropped his backpack on the floor with a thud. “What’re you doing here?” he asked as he put on his seat belt.
Max kept the passenger-side air bag turned off so Caden could ride in the front seat.
“Took the afternoon off to hang with my best pal.”
“Awesome! What’re we doing?”
“I thought maybe we’d check out the rest of the stuff you got for your birthday.”
“Yes!”
“And Grammy is making spaghetti and meatballs for dinner.”
“Best day ever!”
Oh, to be seven years old again, Max thought. Caden was always so happy with the simplest things, much as Max had been as a kid. He reminded Max of himself on many a day. It’d taken until Lexi disappeared without a trace for the blush to wear off the rose of life for Max. That’d been his first major disappointment, one so profound that he buried her and the memories of her deep inside so he could go forward without her. And then Chloe had happened and Caden was born, and he didn’t have time to dwell in the past when the present had required his full attention.
Having Lexi back last weekend had opened all those old wounds and exposed them to the light. Being with her again had been amazing, especially now that he knew where she’d been and why. He wanted the same things with her he’d wanted back then, but he needed to make his son comfortable with the idea before it went any further.
“What else do you feel like doing before dinner?”
“Can we take Daisy to the dog park? My friend Luke was telling me that his dog loves that.”
“Sure, that sounds fun.” Max drove them home to pick up Daisy. “How much homework do you have?”
“One worksheet of spelling words and no math, thank God.”
Max laughed. “I was the same way. Thankfully, Uncle Hunter was good with math and helped me with my homework.”
“Now you tell me. I need to call him for help.”
“That’s a good idea.”
