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“So, Josiah’s the older one?” She handed the phone back to him. “He’s very handsome. What’s the little one’s name?”
“Xanax.”
She choked on a laugh, reached for her glass of wine, and took a sip. “So,” she cleared her throat, tapping her chest, “is that all you did today? Hang out with your boys?”
“It was a distraction,” he said. “I was kind of nervous about this date. After the park, they went to their aunt and uncle’s house, and I spent the rest of that time getting ready. Two hours.”
“Two hours for a guy is like the four hours I took.”
“You spent four hours getting ready for me?”
“I was nervous too. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a date with a guy as hot as you.”
He graced her with another smile.
She slowly unraveled.
The man was so damn gorgeous.
The server returned with their food, and she vaguely remembered leaning back to give them space to rest the plate in front of her. Underneath the table, she fiddled with her boots, trying to slip one off to slide her leg up Joel’s, but the zipper at the back kept her foot trapped in leather.
Then, all of a sudden, he chuckled to himself and shook his head as he reached for his fork.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Nothing, nothing. It’s just that…I just realized I’ll do anything to keep that smile on your face. You’re so damn gorgeous, Eesh.”
She stopped fiddling with her shoes.
At the same time, they looked out the windows at the dark, private, non-heated, uncovered, and cordoned-off deck sporting a bright yellow sign that read:Varning.
She rose.
He went to stand, but Gage settled him back onto his chair with a hand on his shoulder. Tayler did the same for her with a light tug on her wrist.
Gage sighed. “I stand corrected, love. I understand now why we’re here.”
“I’m glad we came,” Tayler said.
“Love, I’ll come anywhere you ask me to.”
Ayesha, grimacing, set down her fork.
Joel, eyes closed, squeezed his forehead.
Gage and Tayler laughed, Tayler squeezing Gage’s fingers as though she needed his strength to stop herself from falling over.
While they ate, Ayesha and Joel managed to avoid having their intensity singe the rest of the restaurant patrons. Gage and Tayler kept the conversation flowing, which helped to keep her and Joel distracted, but she knew Gage well enough to know he was getting them primed for a heavy question.
“So,” Gage began. “How’s Theo doing? Any better?”
Ayesha drained her wine glass and took a moment to piece herself together. “Honestly, I’m not sure. Earlier this week, he mentioned something about a ‘man.’ Then there are these drawings he did. I can’t help but feel like they’re connected.”
“Is there an alternative?” Tayler asked. “Back when I worked in North Carolina, we’d have kids undergoing various cancer treatments. Sometimes, they would manifest their emotions through art. It wasn’t unusual for them to create a physical being for their fear or frustrations.”
“That’s a strong possibility, and the one I’m hoping is the most accurate,” Ayesha said. “There’s no way of knowing if the move was hard for him. Theo’s always had big emotions, but never to this magnitude.”
Joel reached across the table, took her hand, and swept his thumb across her knuckles, pausing every so often at her ring. As far as she knew, Theo had adjusted well to the move because everyone was closer. He occasionally objected when she bundled him up like a stuffed burrito. However, the objections stopped when she reduced the number of layers and focused on clothing material—at Xara’s suggestion.
