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And nothing is worth putting my son in danger.
* * *
A few hours later, Jack is zooming down the road in front of our house on an electric scooter, and I’m staring daggers at Ronan Kade, who’s watching Jack with a proud smile.
“Really?” I ask with my head tilted and a glare directed at him.
“What? He asked for a scooter,” Ronan argues.
“So you got him an electric one? He’s seven, Ronan.”
“Be glad it wasn’t an electric car,” Daisy, Ronan’s much younger wife, replies with a laugh, bouncing baby Julian in her arms.
“I wouldn’t put it past him,” I say, standing next to her and rubbing my thumb over the soft skin of the baby’s cheek. I almost forgot how cute they are as babies. That phase seemed to fly by with Jack. Life was so hectic back then that I hardly had the opportunity to slow down and enjoy it.
But watching Julian’s tiny little mouth around the green pacifier and that adorable little suction noise suddenly has me wishing I could go back in time and experience it all over again with Jack.
“You’ll blink, and he’ll be seven,” I whisper as I lean down and kiss the top of Julian’s head.
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she replies, nuzzling him closer. “Have you thought about having another?”
My eyes widen, and I pull away. “God, no.”
“Why not?” she asks. Sweet, innocent little Daisy.
Well, notthatinnocent.
“I’m thirty-five,” I reply as if that’s reason enough.
“So? Ronan is fifty-seven,” she argues.
“Yeah, well, he didn’t carry and birth anything. Besides, being pregnant would really cramp my style at the club.”
The three of us laugh as Jack whips back around on his scooter. Every crack in the pavement or bump in the road has me tensing, even though he has kneepads and a helmet. I still imagine the worst. But he really is a natural, zipping around the turns and even managing a little jump off the curb.
My watch buzzes on my wrist, and I glance down to see the reminder I set.
“Hey, Jack, we have to get going soon if we’re going to make the movie.”
His scooter comes to a screeching halt as he stares at me with a curious expression on his freckled face. “What movie?”
“Oh, it’s justGalaxy Warriors 2. You did want to see that, didn’t you?”
His face lights up with surprise. “Really? I thought you said I couldn’t see it because it’s PG-13.”
I shrug, fighting my smile. “Well, you’re seven now. That’s practically thirteen.”
He jumps off the scooter, leaving it on the ground as he whips off his helmet and runs toward me, hugging me around my waist. “Thank you, Mama!”
“You’re welcome, buddy,” I reply, ruffling up his brown curls. “Now, go pick up your scooter and tell Ronan and Daisy thank you.”
He does, sprinting back to pick it up and wheeling it into the garage while shouting a rushed “thank you.” Ronan is laughing to himself as Jack bolts into the house. I’m almost certain he’s going inside to change into hisGalaxy WarriorsT-shirt.
“Well, I think he’s having a good birthday,” Ronan says. He’s giving me that proud smile, and I have to look away before he makes me get emotional. I know what he’s thinking. We’ve come a long way. Or rather,I’vecome a long way from terrified, penniless, and pregnant to this. Jack is happy and safe, which means I’m pulling off the one thing I was afraid I couldn’t do.
“Thank you both for coming. And for bringing the presents. It means so much to us.”
I can’t make eye contact with Ronan, but he pulls me in for a hug anyway. Then I kiss Julian’s head again, inhaling that sweet newborn baby smell before hugging Daisy and watching them climb into Ronan’s car.
