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I swear.
With that done, I pick up Zach from a friend’s home, a kid named Arjun who has a dog named Donut, a friendly, sparky little mutt who barks and scampers.
I’m so screwed.
As Zach says goodbye, I brace myself for the inevitable pooch request, but as we leave, he instead asks, “Can we go to the bookstore? There’s an oldCaptain Dudethat I’ve never read, and I want to read it before the new one comes out.”
Well, that’s much more manageable. “Let’s get it.”
We go to An Open Book, a few blocks away, and the second he slides past the door, Zach is off and running. I catch up in two long strides, grabbing his shirt collar. “Indoor feet,” I admonish.
Chastened, he frowns. “Sorry, Dad.”
He heads to the kids section and grabs the graphic novel. “Can I get some other books too? Daveed’s mom works for a publisher, and she was telling us about all these other cool books.”
“Get whatever you want.” I’m indulging him, and I know it.
But as far as I’m concerned, books are one indulgence that should never be curtailed.
He stocks up, then we head to meet my brother and his son at Neon Diner.
Nick’s kid gives Zach a fist bump. “What did you get at the store, Z?”
“Check this out.” Zach beckons David closer, but he doesn’t show him his haul from the store. He whispers something in his cousin’s ear.
David’s grin spreads across his face. No. That’s wrong. It takes over the city.
“Sure,” David says, and the two cousins slide into a booth together, looking like little stinkers.
Nick turns to me, shaking his head in amusement. “They’re up to something.”
“Yeah, they remind me of a couple of shitheads I once knew,” I whisper, as we slide in across from them.
“They sure do.”
Halfway through the meal, David clears his throat. “Uncle Finn. It’s time you get Zach a dog. I know all the rescues in the city, and I can help.”
Nick barks out a laugh then claps my back. “You’re so screwed.”
Yes. Yes, I am.
But I’m not a negotiator for nothing. “I still travel for work,” I remind my son. “I won’t be home all the time to take care of a dog.”
David nods, his expression serious. “But I don’t travel for work. Tiramisu can stay with Cynthia and me.”
I blink, confused for a hot second, then ridiculously impressed. “You already named a dog we don’t have?”
Zach sits up straighter. “It’s your favorite dessert, Dad.”
Nick covers his mouth but can’t hide the sound of his cackling. When my brother finally shuts up, I get a word in edgewise. “I have to go to Paris in a couple weeks,” I hedge.
“What I’m hearing isafter Pariswould be a great time.” David turns to my kid. “Are you hearing that too, bro?”
Zach gives David a matching nod, his gaze dead serious as well. “I definitely heard that.”
I drop my forehead into my palm and laugh.
Nick chuckles. “Good luck, Daddy.”
