Page 4 of A Place to Call Home
“You’re both impossible.” Bianca pushed her chair back from the table and stood. She skewered Craig with a look of frustration and pity. “I don’t know why you’re so opposed to dating.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to. I don’t feel the need to. So I’m not desperately clawing around for a girlfriend.”
Bianca huffed. “There’s nothing ‘desperately clawing’ about asking someone out if you think she’s amazing.”
“Yousaid she was amazing,” he reminded her.
“Don’t you think she is? Or at least might be? You should see her again, Craig. You really should.” Bianca was too easy to string along.
“I’m seeing her Friday, actually. Jack will be at his mom’s, so I have the evening free.”
She clapped her hands in excitement. Craig didn’t dare meet his brother’s eyes.
“We’re going to look at a couple more properties,” Craig added casually.
“‘Look at a couple of properties’?” Rob repeated. “Is that code for something? Dinner and a movie? Coffee and dessert?”
“Dog walking?” Craig tossed in.
“So it’s not a date?” Bianca demanded, hands on her hips.
“She’s my real estate agent. Nothing more.”
Another of Bianca’s signature huffs was cut off by the sound of the back door opening.
“Dad! I got ten!” Jack came running in, basketball under his arm. “I totally made ten shots in a row.”
“Up top, little man!” Craig high-fived his son. “Layups or dunks?”
“Daaaaad.” Jack always drew his name out long when he thought Craig was being ridiculous. “I can’t dunk on a regulation hoop. I’m only nine.”
Bianca nudged Jack’s untouched dinner plate closer to him. “Nine or not, you need to eat,” Bianca insisted. “You ran out of here so fast that you’ve hardly eaten anything.”
“Yes, Aunt Bianca.” Jack set his ball on the table and reached for a dinner roll.
“Jack,” Craig warned.
“Sorry, Dad.” He moved the ball to the floor. “There’s only two weeks left of school,” he said to no one in particular. “Then we’re going to go to the beach to watch the seagulls attack tourists. It’s gonna be awesome.”
“Time well spent,” Rob said.
Jack looked over at Craig. “Mom says I need a new swimsuit ’cause mine’s too small.” Breadcrumbs sprayed everywhere as he spoke. They’d need to work on table manners.
“Does she want you to have it before you go to her house this weekend?”
Jack grabbed another roll. “I don’t know.”
“I’ll call her.” He ruffled Jack’s dark hair. “In the meantime, you need to eat and then go do your homework.”
“I want to go shoot some more hoops,” he protested.
“Two more weeks, and you can shoot hoops all summer long.”
“Can I eat while I do my homework?” Jack asked.
Craig nodded. Jack tucked his basketball under one arm, as always, and grabbed his plate of food, then made his way down the hall toward his room.
“How does he feel about the move?” Rob asked.
