Page 107 of One Wrong Step
“Now that everyone’s happy and not being jerks,” Frankie says, shifting her hold on Maisy. “Can we get out of this heat? I’m exhausted.”
“You know what used to make Jonah happy after a long, stressful day?”
I duck my head. “Stop, Dad. I’m not five anymore.”
“You don’t have to be a kid to love ice cream.”
Maisy jerks her head up. “Ice cream?”
“Why, you little faker.” But Frankie’s grinning at her with something like pride on her face. God help us all.
We go for ice cream, and it’s a nice end to a very long day. We’re supposed to spend one more day in San Diego before heading back, but to hell with the schedule. It’s already fucked.
Vivian and I are in the bathroom brushing our teeth—together—when I finally broach the subject. “I want to do whatever works best for you. If that’s this job in San Diego, we can make that work.”
He spits into the sink and rinses his mouth. “What if I want to do what’s best for both of us?”
It sounds nice in theory. “I love you, Vivian. I want to be with you, but I can’t let you give up on your dreams.”
He dries off his hands and pulls me into his arms. “Sweetie, I am not your mother. I already know what I want.”
“You do?”
He nods. “I want to finish this vacation with a bang—only not a literal bang. Once was enough, thank you. I want to see every single stupid touristy thing we can find during the day—including the robotic dinosaurs—and then, I want to spend my nights getting bossed around by a certain farm boy.”
“That does sound nice.” I brush my thumb over the fading bruise. So much has changed since that night we sang karaoke, when I only wanted to take care of him. Now, I get to spend forever with him. “What about after our vacation?”
He shrugs and gives me his smile that usually means trouble. “Let’s just say, we have options.” Vivian kisses me and leaves the bathroom.
I follow him. “Options? What options?”
He grabs a card out of his bag and holds it up. I snatch it from him. It’s a business card. “Roz?”
“Yup. They want me to call them.”
“About what? A job?” Then a thought hits me, and I grab his arm. “What if they want you to perform with them in Vegas?”
“Slow down. That’s unlikely. The point is, we have options. And nothing has to be decided today.”
“So, San Diego is still a possibility?”
“All this time, I didn’t feel like I was part of the family. But I was so wrong. You and Dad and Carolynda and Maisy and Baby Hank?—”
“No. Never.”
“You’re all my family. And now that I have it, I don’t want to give it up.”
“So, you’re going to continue living in Hopeview?”
“Oh, hell no. Roz has a place in California. But they also have a place in Kansas City. And it’s not too far from Mule Creek.” He grins at me. “Know anyone looking for a roommate?”
