Page 14 of Three Not-So-Little Words (The Lawson’s #3)

fourteen

Some Good Old-Fashioned Naked Fun

Drew

“ H ey, buddy! I missed you!” I tell Colton as he jumps into my arms.

After latching onto my neck, he says, “Missed you too.”

Natalie’s mom, Sandy, walks up the path leading to my front door, carrying Colton’s overnight bag as well as a giant stuffed panda bear.

I cock one eyebrow at her. “Really?”

“He wanted it,” she defends.

“He wants a lot of things.”

“Eh, I’m Grandma. It’s my job to spoil him.”

“Fair enough,” I laugh. “Come on, let’s go inside.”

I put Colton down so that I can help Sandy with all the stuff. After I set it down, I ask, “Do you want some tea?”

“You have tea?” She sounds shocked.

“Of course. I always had it on hand for Natalie. I guess the habit just stuck.”

Sandy’s smile fades a little, but she tries to hide it.

“I’m sorry,” I say. “I shouldn’t have brought her up.”

She shakes her head. “Don’t be sorry. I never want to stop talking about her. That’s how we keep her memory alive.”

Sandy was never local to us, so she was never around all that much. When she was, I appreciated how involved she was with Colton. Lord knows my parents aren’t good for anything, so I have kept my son as far away from them as possible. I’m grateful he has one grandparent who gives a damn.

I tell her, “I don’t have a teapot, so the microwave will have to do.”

“Tsk, tsk.” She points her finger at me. “Natalie is probably rolling over in her grave right now.”

“Oh yeah. She always made sure I had a kettle on hand. Unfortunately, it didn’t survive the move.”

I finish making her tea and set it on the table in front of her. “Did you two have a good weekend?”

“Oh, we had a blast. I forgot how much I missed that kid.” She stirs her tea. “I also forgot how exhausting it is.”

That gets a loud laugh out of me. “Yeah, he can be a handful.”

She waves her hand as if pushing the statement away. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m just a little out of practice.” She gives a quick wink before sipping her tea.

I take a seat at the table across from her and lean my elbows on its surface. “You know, Sandy, while I appreciate your offer to take Colton every weekend, if it becomes too much, you don’t have to. I’d understand.”

She’s already shaking her head back and forth. “And while I appreciate you looking out for me, that little boy is all I have left in this world. Well, and you.” She smiles. “Didn’t mean to leave you out.”

“Hey, I get it. He’s much cuter than me.”

“First, I lost Natalie’s dad, and now, I don’t have her either. I’ve learned exactly how precious time with your loved ones is. So, I will soak up every second with Colton that I can.”

“I get it. But the offer still stands if you ever need a break.”

She takes another sip of her steaming tea. “Speaking of breaks, how was your weekend?”

“Pretty good. Didn’t get as much done as I wanted, but that’s alright.”

“Oh, yeah? What did you end up doing?”

Images of Ronnie flash through my mind like a sped-up dirty movie. Her sucking my cock. Me eating her pussy and fucking her doggy. Every single thing pops into my mind, and honestly, I don’t think they’re going anywhere any time soon.

But I don’t want Sandy to suspect any of that. It’s probably not a great look that I was out hooking up on my first weekend without Colton.

Trying to act normal, I reply, “My new boss was getting married, so I went to his wedding.”

The look she gives me tells me that I’m not a very good actor, but she doesn’t press me on it. All she says is, “Sounds fun.”

We both get quiet for a minute before I feel the need to say something. Something I have been wanting to say for a while.

“Sandy,” I begin.

She looks into my eyes, waiting for me to continue.

“I don’t think I’ve ever said thank you.”

“For what?”

“For always treating me so well even after Natalie and I broke up.”

She pushes a strand of her dark blonde hair behind her ear—the same color hair her daughter had.

“Drew, I knew you and Natalie didn’t stop loving each other, but you being a couple didn’t really work.

I always appreciated that you continued to treat her well even after you decided to be nothing more than friends. ”

My eyes fall to the table. “I probably should have been more involved those last couple of years.”

She points her finger at me again. “Don’t do that. It’s not going to do anybody any good to dwell on the past. All you can do is try to give that little boy the best life that you can. That’s all Natalie ever wanted.”

She’s right. Nat loved Colton more than anything in the world. Being his mom was her number one priority.

As if his little ears were burning, Colton comes running out of his bedroom.

“Hey, bud,” I greet. “Are you hungry?” I set him up on the counter.

“No, My belly hurts.”

Sandy chuckles. “I’m not surprised. The boy has been a bottomless pit all weekend.”

I tousle his hair. “I’m sure you’ll feel better after your bath.”

Sandy stands up. “That’s my cue.”

“You don’t have to rush off,” I tell her.

“That’s alright. I think I’m ready for an early bedtime.”

I set Colton down so that he can go give her a hug goodbye. I walk her to the door, and she pats me on the shoulder.

“I’ll see you on Friday.”

After I shut the door behind her, I spend the next few minutes getting Colton in the tub.

While he’s playing, I ask, “Are you ready to start your new school tomorrow?”

He doesn’t look at me but just keeps swirling his toys around the water.

“Colton, look at me.”

When he finally does, I ask, “What’s going on? Are you nervous about school?”

“Kind of.”

“Well, let’s talk about it. Maybe I can help.”

“I don’t want kids to make fun of me like they did at my old school.”

My stomach knots because this is the first time I’m hearing about anyone making fun of him.

“What would those kids say?”

“Things about me not having a mom anymore.”

Anger courses through me. What kind of kids talk shit about a boy who lost his mom? I bite my tongue, trying to figure out the best thing to say.

I feel like I’m in uncharted waters, though. Natalie usually handled all of these types of things.

I guess I better figure it out.

I kneel next to the tub to try to get more on his level.

“You know what the coolest thing about starting a new school is?” I ask.

He shakes his head back and forth.

“You get a totally fresh start. Nobody knows you or knows anything about your past. None of the kids in that school are going to know a single thing about your mom, and if you don’t want to tell them anything about her, you don’t have to.”

He thinks about my words for a moment before turning to look at me. “Do you think they’ll like me?”

“Are you kidding?” I exclaim. “You’re the coolest kid I know! They’re going to love you.”

He still doesn’t look convinced. I ask, “Do you remember what your mom used to always say? If you can be anything in this world, choose to be kind.”

He nods.

I knew he’d remember. She’d say that all the time. Ironic that she was such a pacifist, yet she fell in love with someone who fought for a living.

No wonder we didn’t work out.

I go on to say, “When you go into school, just be kind. To everyone. I’m sure you’ll make friends before you know it. And tomorrow morning, on the way to school, we will go get some donuts. And we can have anything you want for dinner.”

His eyes light up. “Pizza?”

“ Anything you want. While we eat it, you can tell me all about your awesome first day.”

That seems to put his mind at ease for now. Tomorrow morning, we may have to go through all of this again, but that’s okay. We’ll do it as many times as it takes for him to feel comfortable.

“Come on, bud. Let’s get you out, so we can finish getting ready for bed."

Twenty minutes later, teeth are brushed, pajamas are on, and a nature show is on the TV. He talked me into sleeping in my bed again. I thought that when his room was done, he would be more eager to sleep in there.

I guess not.

It takes no time at all for him to fall asleep next to me. It’s only when he’s passed out that I let my mind wander.

Immediately, Ronnie takes over my thoughts. We spent the better part of the day in bed. No matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other.

Oh, let’s face it—we didn’t try all that hard. We were having way too much fun.

I think about our conversation we had before I left.

Three hours earlier.

“I had a really great time,” Ronnie says, linking her fingers with mine and looking up at me.

“Back at you, beautiful.”

Throughout the past 24 hours, all of her makeup has come off, and her hair is a bit messier, but she’s still stunning. Absolutely gorgeous.

“Drew,” she begins. “I very rarely ever say this, but maybe we could get together again. Since I’m going to be sticking around for a while.”

I think about her offer. I want to go all in and say yes, but there’s one very large elephant in the room. “I’d like that,” I tell her. “But I can really only do things on the weekends.”

“Weekends are good,” she smiles.

Guilt hits me hard, and I feel like I have to say something about the fact that I have a kid.

“I can only do weekends because—”

She cuts me off. “Nope. I don’t want to know. Look, I’m not looking for any type of commitment from you. I don’t really do that. I’m just saying every once in a while—on weekends—we can have some fun. Some good old-fashioned naked fun.”

I can’t help but smile. “Sounds like a plan.”

Present.

Maybe I shouldn’t have agreed. After all, I’m supposed to be focusing on Colton and my new job. But that time with Ronnie was the happiest I’ve felt in a while. It was the first time in who knows how long that I didn’t have to think about any of my responsibilities.

Maybe that’s selfish of me.

But right now, I don’t care. Being a little selfish may be necessary for my own self-preservation.