Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 107673 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107673 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“In Southlake. It’s a suburb north of Fort Worth,” he answered, tucking his hands inside the front pockets of his walking shorts.
“I’m not as familiar with Texas as I should be. I need to get better.” My mom wrapped an arm around my waist, knocking mine to place around her shoulders. It took a second, but I finally followed through.
“Texas is so big, it’s hard to know what’s where.” Just like that, Dash had my mom eating out of his hand.
“There’s more to why I’m here.” She glanced up at me, finally, and lifted a hand to shade her sunglass-covered eyes from the bright angle of the sun. “I also come with news. I found a house and put in an offer. I wanted you to see it first, but I had to act fast. It’s close to my school. A pretty three-bedroom cottage-style home. A coworker’s grandmother is selling.”
“When would we move?” I didn’t care in the least about seeing it. My concern was the at least twenty-minute drive from the beach to her high school. I didn’t think Sea Springs had a transit system. It’d take forever to get back and forth on my bike.
“We have to wait until right before school starts. They need to move her into a facility then move her belongings out. The homes around there get snatched up quickly. I’ll take you to see it as soon as you have time off from your job,” she said excitedly.
Her happiness made me happy. Since I was currently in a day-by-day existence, I let the worry go. Let it work out like it’s supposed to. I’d figure it out.
“Who was the coworker?”
When she met me with silence, I gave her a funky side-eye. The expression she gave had me instantly knowing the deal. “Mom. That part of my life’s over. I don’t want to play football anymore. I’m out of shape. I haven’t conditioned…”
Dash sucked in a sudden breath, then began coughing and laughing at the same time.
“I am out of shape. And football’s all anyone talks about with me. It’s why I spend so much time over here.”
I was on a long-winded, rambling denial, and I just stopped speaking, shaking my head no.
“Son, it’s not about you.” At her statement, I gave her my best skeptical look. “He’s the varsity baseball coach. He’s invited me to dinner on Friday night, and I’d like you to be home to meet him.”
Wait. What? My mom had a date with a dude?
She was barely two weeks shy of being divorced.
“Mom. It’s gettin’ weirder.”
“Put the g on the end of your words, son.” Her brow lifted at me with her incessant reminder.
“Getting,” I repeated properly, trying my best to shake off the creepiness in the conversational turn. Of course, she wasn’t ready to date. She needed to concentrate on being my mom first before finding her way back into the world. Not dating some sex-crazed, ego-maniac coach. Heck, that was what got us to Sea Springs here in the first place. Her lousy taste in men.
I started walking backward toward the dock, waving her off. We’d certainly talk about this later. “I gotta finish up. We’ll talk later?”
Dash gave me a questioning glance, clearly not ready to let this time with my mom go.
“Dash, it was very nice to meet you. Made better now that Beau has a friend who can speak in complete sentences. I believe that’s a first in my boy’s circle of friends.” Some might call what she said a joke, but it wasn’t.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Brooks,” Dash said.
My mom moved backward a couple of steps. “The three of us need to have dinner soon. My treat. And please call me Linda. Mrs. Brooks is my ex mother-in-law. She wasn’t a pleasant person.”
He rocked on his feet. “It’s a respect thing so we’ll have to see how it goes. Beau’s a great guy, the best friend I’ve ever had. Now I see where he gets it from.”
Her smile brightened. She pointed to Dash as she looked at me. “Keep him around.”
Oh, yeah, exactly what I intended to do. I nodded and waved when she dropped into the front seat and shut the door. My thumb hooked over my shoulder as I stared openly at Dash. “I’m gonna put everything away.”
He stayed rooted where he stood, waving as my mom backed out of the spot and started out of the parking lot. When she left, he slowly turned, looking lost in thought as he walked back to his perch on the side of the building. “Take your time. I’m great. I think she liked me.”
One week later
The idea of quiet relaxation while being in the wide-open wilderness always intrigued me. Mainly due to my recent discovery that all the things that wanted to bite me, lived freely outside, mainly in the dark. Yet, here I was again.