Page 58 of Dibs
Chase shrugged. “I have no idea, but I can’t risk having the kids find out because of people gossiping. We think we should tell them. Tonight.”
“Okay. You know you have my support.”
“Will you stay with us while we tell them?” he asked her.
Jamie smiled. “Of course.
The three of us walked back to her room, and I turned off the TV when we entered. “We have something we want to talk to you all about.”
Once I had everyone’s attention, I glanced at Chase, who leaned against the wall next to me. Even though it wasn’t the first time I had to tell my kids I was dating someone, it felt different. A small part of it may have been because Chase was a man, and Tyler and Dylan probably hadn’t expected me to bring home a boyfriend. I had raised them to be open-minded, so I hoped they’d be accepting. Still, we were in uncharted territory.
“So, Chase and I have some news.” Four pairs of eyes watched me intently. Figuring the best way to tell them was just to be matter-of-fact about it. “The two of us are dating.”
“The two of who?” Tyler asked and then gestured between Chase and me. “You guys?”
“We know this probably comes as a surprise, and we’re happy to answer any questions you might have,” Chase offered.
Everyone was quiet for a moment, and then Jase spoke up. “Does that mean me and Dylan will be step-brothers?”
Chase turned his head toward me before responding. “Uh … no one is talking about getting married. We’re just dating.”
“That would be so cool though,” Dylan added, and he high-fived Jase.
I chuckled. At least they didn’t seem to be bothered by our announcement.
“Does Mom know?” Tyler asked.
I shook my head. “Not yet.”
“Oh,” he responded but didn’t say anything else.
“Cam, are you okay with me and Gage spending a lot of time together?” Chase asked.
She shrugged. “Yeah, sure.”
Given Cammie was only seven, she might not have understood what the big deal was, but the boys had taken it just as well as I’d hoped.
“Are there any other questions?” All of them shook their heads. “All right. Then I think it’s time to call it a night,” I suggested.
“Can I still stay here with Jase?” Dylan asked.
I glanced at Chase, who nodded. “Sure, but you boys need to actually sleep, so you’re ready to play in the morning.”
“We will,” they said in unison and ran to the bedroom.
Jamie and Cammie went back to their room, and Tyler stepped into the hallway to head to ours.
“Go on to our room,” I said to Tyler. “Make sure you take a shower and I’ll be there shortly.”
I wasn’t entirely sure he was okay with my dating status since he was quiet and his only concern was if Lisa knew.
“That went better than I could have hoped. You think they’re really okay with all of this?” Chase asked.
“They might have more questions for us later, but yeah, I think they’re fine.” I smiled.
“It’s not quite the night we had planned though.”
“Nope, but now that everyone knows, it might be easier for us to spend time together.”
