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“I like to go running,” Prescott explained as he carried him into the store.
“Me, too!” Ethan exclaimed.
Prescott found the push strollers. “I’m going to put you in this when I run.”
“I want to run with you.”
“We can do that, but when I run fast, I need to put you in here. It’ll be fun, like a race car.”
“Can Loki come?”
“Sure. We’ll invite Jack and Loki.”
He sat Ethan in one and pushed it around, then transferred him to another. He found a third and tried that. They all felt about the same, so he jumped online to check out the reviews.
When he finished reading a few, he glanced down. No Ethan. His heart slammed into his chest. “Ethan! Ethan, where are you?”
He took off down the aisle, calling out his name. No Ethan. He bolted toward a toy aisle shouting for his nephew.
Ethan wandered into view, a LEGO box in his hand, a gigantic smile on his face. “Can I have this?”
“Do noteverwalk away from me in a store. Do you understand?”
Tears filled Ethan’s eyes. “Uh-huh. Okay.”
Prescott pulled him into his arms and hugged him. “You scared me. I want you safe. That means you stay with me. No running off, okay?”
He wiped his eyes. “Okay. Can I have this?”
And just like that, Ethan had moved on.
“Let’s find one that’s the right age for you.” After a few minutes of searching, they found one. With a LEGO DUPLO box in hand, they returned to the strollers. Prescott pulled a box off the shelf and they checked out.
Fifteen minutes later, they were home. For a man who had excellent control over his emotions, Ethan had taught him a valuable lesson. Secure him in a shopping cart so he doesn’t wander off.
Ethan waited for Prescott to unbuckle him, then beelined inside, calling for Loki the second he set foot in the house.
The first five minutes were utter chaos. Child and puppy fed off each other’s energy, giggling and barking through the first floor like they were propelled by jet engines. Prescott and Jack stood in the foyer while the mayhem ensued.
“This is crazy,” he murmured before dipping down and kissing her, then kissing her again.
Being around her grounded him, yet the second he touched her, the energy shifted. It palpitated through him while he peered into her eyes.
“I’ll bet you never imagined this when you came back to town,” he said.
“Hell, no,” she replied.
“I like the mayhem… and the noise. It was too damn quiet.”
“It’s a big house for one person.”
“It’s a big house for ten people,” he said.
She spied the stroller box. “You can take some alone time and go for that run, if you want.”
“And leave you here with these two? I’m not doing that to you. I’ll set it up later and use it tomorrow.”
They took the wild ones out back to let them use up their energy.
