Page 33 of As Long As You'll Have Me
She laughs off the question as if it’s the most ridiculous idea in the world. “Of course I’m not. I’m too busy to try dating. Besides, entering the dating market at my age is a joke.”
“Mom, you’re not even that old.”
“I’m pushing fifty-eight, Hanna. In the dating world, that’s old.” She pinches her lips up at me.
“I entered the dating world in my fifties and look at me now,” Dad says, trying to be supportive.
“Honey, I don’t think she needs the reminder of your later in life dating experiences,” George whispers, trying to be polite. Realizing that he’s talking to his ex-wife first and friend second, Dad closes his mouth and smiles awkwardly at the table.
“Well the dating scene at my age is a joke too. The men in this city are only looking for a casual hookup or some traditional wife who will stay home and raise the kids behind a white picket fence. Neither being things I want for myself,” I start to explain. Without wanting it to, my brain calls out the name of a man I’d met recently who’s been nothing but a gentleman. Even when I turned him down at our session this week, he took it in stride. Most guys I’ve interacted with turn into a complete ass when they’re denied.
But not Miles.
“Is this your way of telling me you aren’t giving me grandchildren?” Mom asks.
“This is my way of telling you that I like my life how it is. I have my work and I have Rae and I have you three who, and I mean this with so much love, drive me crazy enough as it is. Throwing another person into the mix doesn’t seem feasible right now.”
This warrants me a heavy sigh from her which is quickly followed by a look of understanding. She reaches for my hand and squeezes it twice.
“My independent girl,” she hums. “I’m so proud of you for building a life you love. I just don’t want you to miss outon sharing that life with another person if that’s what you want for yourself.”
“I won’t, I promise. But right now I’m focused on building my practice and doing the best I can for my patients. And besides, if our family has taught me anything, it’s that it’s never too late to start anything. Isn’t that right, Dad?”
When I turn to look at him he smiles widely before taking George’s hand in his. Beaming at me, he uses his other hand to take mine.
“That’s right, sweetie.” He turns to Mom and smiles. “We made a really cool kid, don’t ya think?”
“I do think. Coolest kid I know,” she responds with an equally proud smile.
I roll my eyes and pull my hands from theirs, breaking the connection we formed. I love my parents something fierce, but sometimes even they’re a little too much.
Once again, I’m saved from speaking when a couple of servers bring food to our table. A satisfied silence falls over us while we eat, leaving my mind to wonder about other things. Other people. And what they might be up to this sunny Saturday morning.
15
MILES
My hands flex around the old, flaking wood that cries out when I pull it off the side of the porch. As promised, Carter and I are working to fix up Ivy’s front porch before she calls one of us to say that her foot’s gone through an old board.
“I went to the lumber yard yesterday after my shift and picked up fresh siding. It’s in the shed on the side of the house.” Carter flicks his chin towards the structure off the back of the house. “I also got some sealant and a sprayer to make applying it faster so we aren’t here until the sun goes down.”
“You got somewhere to be?” I ask as I pull another board off the side of the porch. A bead of sweat drips down the side of my face. My arm comes up to wipe it away instinctively.
“I have some property I want to go look at if I have the time,” he responds, heading back towards the shed, presumably to get the new wood. My eyes narrow on the back of his head as he goes.
“Property? What property?” I ask when he returns,hauling several pieces of lumber over his shoulder. “You moving?”
For the longest time, Carter and I have lived just a few blocks from the firehouse to make our commute as easy as possible. This is the first I’ve heard of him wanting to move let alone buy a piece of property.
“Thinkin’ about it,” he answers, keeping his tone short. He dumps the new boards onto the ground and heads back for more while I continue to work on pulling down the old ones. When he rounds the corner of the house with another load, I’m about to ask him more about his property search when another voice cuts me off.
“Ivy wants to know if you two are coming in for breakfast or not?” Willow asks, leaning against the porch frame.
“Off the banister, Willie. It’s not safe right now. Don’t you see that Miles is already starting to rip off the sideboards?” Carter points a finger at the pile of old wood I created and nearly barks at her.
She curls her lip up at him. “Do you always have to be so bossy? I was going to offer to make you a plate and bring it out but now I’m not going to.” Her voice tips up at the end before she turns to me with a smile. “Miles, would you like me to bring you out a plate so you can keep working?”
“That would be great, thank you, Willow.” I smirk back at her before she disappears into the house. When I look at Carter, he’s glaring at me. “What? You shouldn’t have snapped at her. What’s with you today?”
