Читать книгу The Mommy Bride - Shelley Galloway - Страница 11

After edging her Corolla out of the icy parking lot and onto the salt-treated streets, Claire sneaked a peek at Wes.

Without a word, he’d tossed his backpack on the backseat and climbed in next to her. Now he was pushing buttons on the radio, flipping stations every twenty seconds. With each push, clips of loud music burst out of the speakers, jarring Claire even more than the chunks of gravel and snow under the wheels of the car. “Choose a station now, Wes.”

“I’m trying.”

“Choose or the radio’s going off,” she said, purposely injecting a tone that welcomed no argument.

His finger hovered over the knob before he defiantly turned it off himself. “Fine. Now nothing’s on. Happy?”

Claire bit back a sigh as she slowly rolled to a stop at the light. What in the world was going on with him? Was this typical teen behavior? Something more?

Instead of berating him for his attitude, she cast him a worried look. “What’s wrong? You okay?”

“I guess.”

Something was wrong. That gravelly tone in his voice only came when he was on the verge of tears. “Listen, I’m sorry I snapped about the radio, but it’s hard to concentrate on the road when a different song clicks on every two seconds. You’ll understand when you’re driving.”

“That’s a long time from now.”

“Not so long. Just three years.”

“That’s forever.”

As the light turned green and she accelerated, Claire privately knew better. Forever was never a long time.

For years, it had just been the two of them. Wes probably didn’t realize it, but he was her stability, her rock. No matter what was going on in their lives, she could count on Wes to be her partner. Now it looked like that relationship was changing.

“You can try the radio again if you want.”

After a moment’s pause, Wes pushed the button and again went through the whole process, just like he hadn’t heard a word she said. As Christina got replaced by Pink and then by some rapper, Claire had had enough. Pushing the power button in, an abrupt silence permeated the interior of the car.

Wes scowled. “What did you do that for?”

“You know why. You pushing button after button gives me a headache.”

“There’s no good music on.”

“I told you we could pop in a cassette.”

“Mom, your car has to be the only one in Ohio that still has a cassette player. We need a CD player. Or better yet, an iPod. You can get an attachment so you can hear your iPod in the car.”

So much for Wes being her partner. If he was, he’d realize she was pretty darn happy to have a car, an apartment, food and money in the bank. “Maybe next year.”

“It’s always next year.”

“We used to hope for the very things we have now,” she pointed out, just about at the end of her patience. “I’m surprised you’ve forgotten what life was like, living in our van.”

He slumped. “I haven’t forgotten. I just get sick of never having what everyone else has. Here in Lane’s End everyone has stuff I don’t.”

“Even rich kids want things they don’t have, Wes. You need to learn to be happy with what you’ve got. Count your blessings.”

“You tell me that every day.”

“Obviously I need to. What is going on with you? Is it the wrestling meet? Is your shoulder bothering you?”

“No.”

“What? And don’t say nothing. We’re almost at Skyline Chili. I don’t want you pulling this attitude in front of Dr. Slattery—especially since he was nice enough to ask us out to eat.”

His eyes narrowed. “How come he invited us, anyway? How come Dr. Slattery is always talking to you?”

Well, there it was. Wes was wondering what was going on with Ty and herself. And since she didn’t really know, Claire decided to slowly feel her way through the conversation. “I didn’t realize Ty was always talking to me.”

“Mom, he sat near you when he ate pancakes. I saw. Now he wants us to go out for chili with him.”

“Why are you asking me about this now? You’re the one who wanted to go out to eat. I tried to go home. Remember?”

“I remember. It’s just that we never go out to eat.”

“You know the reason for that. So, you only wanted to go out because it’s a restaurant meal?”

“Maybe I like talking to Dr. Slattery sometimes. He’s pretty cool. For someone so old.”

Claire curbed a smile. The way Wes spoke, it sounded like Ty was ancient. And she definitely knew her son liked being around men and doing “guy” stuff. Maybe this meal wasn’t such a bad idea, after all. Choosing her words carefully, Claire said, “You know, Ty is pretty cool. And going out to eat during the week is pretty special. Maybe he feels the same way. Dr. Slattery lives alone, you know.”

The conversation paused as Claire slowly turned right, then left. There weren’t too many cars on the street, which was a real blessing. The little Corolla did okay in bad weather but was no match against the powerful SUVs that seemed to be the norm in Lane’s End.

Like Wes, sometimes she found herself wishing for things she didn’t have.

Wes broke the silence just as the bright blue and yellow Skyline Chili sign loomed about a hundred yards away. “So. Do you like him?”

“I like Dr. Slattery fine.”

“I mean like a boyfriend.”

The question was as jarring as the mishmash of rock tunes had been. “No. I don’t want a boyfriend.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’ve already been married. Once was enough for me.”

“He’s probably rich. Doctors always are.”

“It doesn’t matter if he’s rich or not. We’re joining him for dinner, not a future,” she attempted to explain as finally—finally—they pulled into the parking lot and parked. “There is a difference.”

“I know that. But, if you did date him, I wouldn’t care. Very much.”

What would he not care about? That she was dating? That it was Ty? That he was rich? “Thank you for that.”

The car was still running. Conscious of the price of gasoline, she turned off the engine but made no move to get out.

Claire had a feeling that Ty was looking out the window and wondering why they hadn’t just unbuckled and gone on in. But this was important. Hesitantly, she said, “Do you want to talk about things?”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

That almost made her laugh. As far as Claire was concerned, they had everything to talk about! “Everything changes, Wes. You’re growing up and becoming more independent. I’m working hard and learning to be independent, too. I guess it’s no longer just the two of us against the world.”

“When we were in the shelter—we had Tessa and Keaton.”

Thinking of Tessa, who’d helped her so much while she’d been in the hospital and Keaton Phillips, the cop her friend had married, Claire said softly, “We still have them. You stay with them one weekend a month still.”

“I like my visits with them.”

“Do you want to see them more often?” Claire’s heart broke, wondering if she was ever going to be good enough for her son.

“No.” His hand on the door, he turned to her. “I’m sorry I said all that about the radio.”

“I know. I’m sorry we don’t have a CD player.”

Twin splotches of color stained his cheeks. “I shouldn’t have said that, either.”

“It’s okay to want things, honey. I want things, too.”

“I’m saving for an iPod.”

“That’s good. I’m saving for a new couch. But while I’m looking forward to everything I want, I think I’m going to go enjoy a dinner out with a man who wants to be our friend. Sound like a plan?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, then. Let’s not keep him waiting any longer. He’ll think we stood him up.”

Wes’s eyes widened. Before Claire had even put the keys in her purse, he’d scrambled out of the car, hopped up on the sidewalk and run into the restaurant.

She followed at a much slower pace.

TY AND WES were already diligently reading menus when she arrived in the seating area after taking a quick trip to the ladies’ room to wash her hands. To her surprise, he stood up when she arrived at the table.

Wes narrowed his eyes. “What’d you do that for?”

“You stand up when a woman comes to the table,” Ty answered. “It’s good manners.”

“Oh.” After a moment, Wes said, “Where’d you learn that?”

“My coach in high school. He was a stickler for things like standing up and saying yes, ma’am.”

“Mom’s never made me say ma’am. She’s never made me stand up for her, either.”

With a wink in her direction, Ty said, “You don’t stand up because a lady asks you to. You stand up because it’s the right thing to do.” As he scooted back in his chair, he added, “Don’t worry, Wes. You’ll get the hang of it all and, if you don’t, more people will step in to tell you what to do. My wrestling coaches in college spent hours giving me advice about how to get along in life.”

Wes’s eyes widened with a new respect. “You wrestled in college? I didn’t know that.”

Claire hadn’t known that, either.

“Yep. I went to school on a wrestling scholarship. No one set up any college fund for me growing up.”

There was more than a trace of bitterness in Ty’s voice. Wes must have caught it, too, because he said, “Was college wrestling hard?”

“Yep. But, that was okay. Working hard has never been an issue for me. I had big dreams and I found a way to pay for them. That was lucky.”

Claire liked Ty’s spin on life. That he was lucky to be hardworking and goal-oriented. How many people looked at things from the complete opposite view point? Like they deserved more than they had?

Wes shifted in his seat, a sure sign that he was interested. “So that’s why you go to so many wrestling meets. Because you used to wrestle.”

“Partly,” Ty replied, sending a shuttered look her way.

Claire received that look with some trepidation. What was he really saying? That he came to the meets to see her?

That made her uncomfortable.

Oh, not because he found her attractive. No, what made her uncomfortable was that she liked his interest. She swallowed hard, hoping to calm the knot in her stomach.

She needed to get a grip on herself, pronto! There was nothing romantic between them. And there couldn’t be, ever.

After ordering sodas, cheese Coneys and 5-way spaghetti dinners all around, Wes saw a buddy of his. He bummed two dollars off Claire then joined his friend at the video arcade until the food arrived.

“Are you ever going to take off that coat?” Ty asked.

Quickly, she shrugged it off. “Sorry. I don’t know where my mind is tonight.” But she did. It was revolving around Ty, her attraction to him and the multitude of warning signals that were going off…reminding her that he was Mr. Unsuitable. Correction—Dr. Unsuitable. He was too young, too polished and too rich.

But he still had a great demeanor. He smiled, warming her insides. “Don’t apologize for a thing, Claire. I just hoped you’d get comfortable around me. That’s all.”

Their sodas came. Claire sipped her root beer gratefully as she tried to think of something to say. Finally, she settled on their jobs. “How does your schedule work? Are you in the hospital all week?”

“I’m with a private physician one day a week, then spend the rest of the time in the emergency room at the hospital.”

“And then you’ll be up at the high school, working with the kids?”

“When I can.” He shrugged off his crazy schedule like it was no big deal. “What about you?”

“Oh, I have pretty much the same schedule every day. On most days I work from eight to three. On Wednesdays I go in early and leave around noon.”

“Then you’re off to your other job, huh?”

He’d lost her. “What do you mean?”

“Being a mom?”

Glancing in her son’s direction, Claire couldn’t help but smile. “Yes. Lately, that’s been just as challenging.”

“If you handle motherhood like Deanna, I’d say you’re doing all right. I had a chance to visit with her after I got Taylor patched up. She’s a nice lady who really cares about her kids.”

“I agree.” Remembering Deanna and the tumble of emotions that the woman brought forth, Claire shook her head. “I hope they’ll be okay. I gave her the name of a shelter.”

“She mentioned that. If I had to guess, I’d say her luck was about to change.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I don’t know. Something tells me there’s more to her than meets the eye. Some people are kind of like my house, a little rundown, but inside, they’re in pretty good shape.”

Claire laughed at the analogy. “Your place is like that, doctor? And here I thought you’d have a manicured lawn and organized cupboards.”

“That’s not me at all. I have very little in my cupboards, which is a good thing, because Maisy would probably find a way to get into them and chew everything in sight.”

Wes joined them right at that minute. “Who’s Maisy?”

“My dog. She’s an old golden retriever.”

“I love dogs,” Wes said. Over his head, Claire shared a smile with Ty. Wes’s dream had always been to have a dog of his own.

“Maybe one day you’ll get a chance to meet her,” Ty said offhandedly. “If you two do get the chance to meet, I’m sure the feeling will be mutual. Maisy loves everyone.”

Their chili came. Claire picked at hers. She’d never been one to totally love the chili-spaghetti-cheese-and-onion combo that everyone else in the city seemed to crave. Of course, it didn’t really matter what was on her plate, anyway. The reason she was at Skyline was to make Wes happy.

With a lump in her throat, Claire realized Wes was having the time of his life. He really liked being around Ty. And Ty, for his part, seemed to know all the right things to say to her son.

She couldn’t help but notice how skillfully Ty guided the conversation with Wes, discussing dogs and wrestling and video games with an ease she never had.

After a half hour of conversation, the check came. She’d just pulled out a twenty when Ty stood up to go pay at the counter. “Put that away. This is my treat.”

“I can pay our way.”

“It’s just chili. You can pay next time.”

Claire was just about to fumble her way through—not being sure there was going to be a next time—when Wes spoke up. “Mom likes to cook.”

Ty’s blue eyes issued a challenge. “How about you invite me over for dinner someday?”

Claire didn’t trust herself to reply. She was afraid if she opened her mouth, she’d do something stupid, like actually offer an invitation. The next thing she knew, she’d be thinking about a real date with Ty. And that would be a huge mistake.

Unfortunately, her son had no such reservations. “How about next Saturday night?”

Claire’s stomach rolled as Ty grinned. “How about next Saturday night, Claire? Would you like to have dinner together then?”

She glanced at Wes. Once again, she saw hope in his eyes. He liked Ty—he liked him a lot. And, well, she couldn’t buy him iPods or new furniture, but she could cook Ty dinner, right?

True desperation engulfed her, making her feel anxious and…excited? “Sure. Why not? Next Saturday night would be fine.”