AllFreeNovel
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There is a mess of parents waiting by the doors. Will and I weave through a few and find a spot in the center, right in front of the doors.
I give a few nods and waves to parents I know. While everyone gives me a friendly smile, I’m getting a few extra stares. I run my fingers through my new hair and grin. With my chin high and chest puffed out, I am feeling extra good today.
As I’m peacocking myself in the middle of the crowd, I follow a particular mom’s eyes. She’s talking to another mom yet looking in this direction. Except she’s not looking at my hair. She’s staring at the tall gentleman to my left.
My shoulders deflate as I turn toward Will. He’s standing here, all six feet two-ish inches of him, glistening in the damn sunlight. The natural blond highlights in his light-brown hair are even twinkling under the rays as he stands, not noticing a single stare.
Will has his hands in his jacket pockets as he looks toward the entrance. His smile appears as he points to the door. “There’s Hunter.”
I see my boy coming out of the building with his class. He’s waving at me, so I wave back, letting the teacher know I’m here. As Hunter barrels through the crowd, I bend down to scoop him up.
“I got a sticker!” His chubby fist has a star sticker on top. “Only five kids got them because we weren’t chatterboxes today. And the teacher gave the whole class pretzels at the end of the day since we did so good on our spelling test.”
“That’s awesome, baby.” I place him on the ground and ruffle his hair as he stares up at Will.
“I know you. You’re the magic man.”
Will’s mouth tilts up. “You remember.”
“Yeah. You said you’d help me levitate someone. Are you here to do magic? I have a box, and I want to show you all the tricks I have.”
“I’m free today,” Will starts, but I shush him.
“Don’t feel obligated.”
Hunter grabs my shirt and pulls on it as he stares up at me. “Please, Mom! The show is coming up soon, and I need to practice!”
“Give your mom a little breathing room, kiddo,” Will says as he takes Hunter’s backpack and slides it over his shoulder. “Did you notice anything new about your mom?”
Hunter looks up at me and squints. “No. She’s still mom.”
“That’s a good thing, I guess. I don’t want to look like someone else.” I’m giving Hunter a kiss on the head when there’s a tap on my back. I turn around and see my daughter. “Hey, sweetie. How was school today?”
I’m wise enough to know not to give her a kiss hello in front of her peers. Word has it, that’s the ultimate “cringe.”
Izzy looks at me with her head tilted at Will. She has a hand on each of her backpack straps. “You’re the Target guy. The cop who was shot.”
“Nice to see you again, Isabella,” Will replies.
She stares at me for a beat longer than usual. “You got your hair done.” She gives a curt nod. “It looks good.”
Izzy turns around and starts toward the parking lot. I look at Will and shrug. He lifts a shoulder in return, and we follow Izzy out of the quad, me with Hunter’s hand in mine and Will with an Avengers backpack on his shoulder.
Will shows Izzy where we parked, and despite her scowl at the illegally parked vehicle, she gets in without a word.
“Shoot!” I state as I open the back door. “Hunter needs a booster seat.”
Will opens his truck bed, reaches in, and emerges with a red booster seat in his hand. “I always keep one for emergencies.”
I take it from him. “Do you often give emergency rides to young children?”
“Eleven nieces and nephews, remember?”
I tap my head. “Non-photographic memory, remember?”
With Hunter buckled in and secure, I slide into the front seat. Izzy’s sitting with her backpack on her lap and looking at Will as he gets in the truck.
“Why did you come with Mom to pick us up?” she asks as he drives.
