Dan clarified, “Not to ten-year-old boys.”
Valerie understood national traditions like New Year’s celebrations and Fourth of July parties. Simple traditions escaped her. But Jason understood Ben and what kids liked. Dan and Jason had teamed up to sway their parents to agree to Sunday-morning treats and Friday-night outings. They’d been so successful that root beer floats and doughnuts should’ve been a staple food group in their childhood diet.
“Fine.” Valerie rubbed her hands together as if preparing to toss glitter to celebrate her even-better idea. “We’ll order french fries with dessert after the fourth course. It’ll be different and fun.”
Ten-year-old boys ate one continuous course, preferably with their hands and using their sleeves as napkins. Not that Ben couldn’t behave at a nice dinner. He just shouldn’t have to tonight.
Okay, Dan thought. This was small. Inconsequential. But it was the first ripple of change Valerie caused. What more waited?
Ben stepped back, clearly hoping to escape the glitter.
“Why don’t you try something different tomorrow night?” Brooke suggested. Her voice was grounded and reasonable, not dazzling and enchanting.
Or never. Dan stomped on his worry.
“Tonight, Ben should celebrate with his team.” Brooke touched Ben’s shoulder. “Ben told me it’s a tradition to go to Roadside Burgers whenever his team wins. He wouldn’t want to be the one to break any traditions this close to the playoffs.”
Brooke recognized the significance to Ben. Dan couldn’t let that matter. Couldn’t let that slide her out of the friend zone. Nor would he appreciate Brooke’s assistance as anything more than friendly support. He could fight his own battles. That he liked Brooke standing beside him wasn’t a critical misstep in his feelings.
The smile Ben aimed at Brooke covered his entire face and steadied Dan.
Ben grabbed his grandfather’s hand. “Come on, Grandpa. Everyone is waiting for us.”
“I’m part of the tradition that pays for dinner and this is my cue to leave.” Rick hugged each of the women.
Dan called Ben back, stopping him midzip on his soccer bag and before his cleats sprinted across the field. “You need to say goodbye to your uncle, Brooke and your mom.”
Ben fist-bumped his uncle again and mentioned the park. Then he fist-bumped Brooke and promised to help walk the dogs. Finally, he offered a wave and polite goodbye to Valerie, then hustled toward his team.
Rick glanced between Dan and Valerie. “Can I suggest that the adults head to Valerie’s restaurant and work things out like grown-ups for Ben’s sake?”
“That sounds splendid.” Valerie transferred her delight from Rick to Dan. “We’ll meet you at seven for dinner.”
Valerie hugged Brooke and added the dress attire for the evening. Then she joined Jason and left as if everything was decided. No more discussion required. Dan agreed with his dad. They needed to talk. Yet a four-course meal in an upscale restaurant gave Dan indigestion. There’d be no easy out. Too much holding back. Too much forced reserve in a public setting.
Dan glanced at Brooke. “I understand if you’d rather not go to dinner. But I’d really like you to be there.”
“Why?” Brooke asked.
I like knowing I can take your hand, if I’m so inclined. Not that he ever would. He said, “You can talk to Valerie better than I can.”
At her hesitation, he added, “There’s Wagyu beef on the menu.”
“But there’s french fries and homemade milkshakes at Roadside Burger.” Brooke tapped her chin. “Ben invited me to join them.”
“Did he?” Dan asked. Ben often reserved postgame dining for his teammates, his grandpa and Dan. Ava had only gone once, and she held honorary auntie status. Often Rick and Ben celebrated while Dan prepared for work.
“You can order french fries with dessert.” Dan clenched his teeth together, biting into the desperation he heard in his own voice. He accepted that Valerie and he had to talk. Accepted that he didn’t want to have that conversation with her alone. But that Brooke was the only one he wanted with him. Well, that made him slightly anxious on a whole different level.
“That might be one adventure too many for the same night.” Brooke touched his arm. “I’ll stick to the Wagyu beef.”
“Then you’ll come with me.” Relief flowed through Dan. Along with the reminder that he was leaning on her like he would Ava or Nichole. Nothing more.
Brooke nodded. Hesitation, not confidence, leaked into her tone. “If you’ll walk the dogs with me in morning.”
As if he’d refuse. “I’ll walk them tonight after dinner.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
DAN STARED AT his menu and tried to ignore the small talk at the table. Red wine was preferred over white. Valerie would pick the bottle. Brooke and Jason chose lobster-stuffed mushrooms over calamari. Dan wanted water, three less courses and to get to the important stuff: Valerie’s plans.
The waiter memorized their orders, collected the menus and slipped away as discreetly as he’d arrived.
Valerie beamed at Brooke as if more than content to continue the get-to-know-you portion of the evening. “Do you ever travel?”
“I used to.” Brooke arranged her silverware on the table as if organizing her thoughts.
The wistful catch in Brooke’s voice pulled Dan into the conversation. Brooke must’ve traveled with her late husband. How much had her life changed after his death? How much did she regret?
Dan missed those brief pauses in the routine. Would a night away be enough for Brooke or would she want something more extravagant?
Brooke continued, “It’s more complicated to travel now with my pets.”
What if Brooke could bring her pets? Dan stilled. Traveling with Brooke and her dogs wasn’t the focus tonight. Or ever. “Traveling is Valerie’s life.”
“There’s nothing wrong with following your passion.” Valerie passed the water glasses from the waiter around the table. “People would be happier if they did what they loved.”
Brooke squeezed a lemon into her water. Nothing sour squeezed into her tone. “Sometimes people have to do things they don’t like, to get to do what they love.”
What did Brooke love to do? Dan picked up a lemon from the small plate, considered sticking it in his mouth. Maybe the bitter taste would force him to focus. This dinner wasn’t about Brooke and learning more about her.
Jason picked up his water and tipped the glass at Brooke and Dan. “Sometimes doing things with the people you love is more than enough.”
“It’s more magical when you’re all in an exotic location.” Valerie dropped dinner rolls on everyone’s plates.
“Only to you,” Jason countered. He pushed away the roll and the beer Valerie had ordered for him.
If Jason had meant to dent her resolve, he’d failed. Valerie’s optimism required no time to recover. “Well, Jason is a professional poker player. He also gets to do what he loves and travel.”
“I’ve never been good at cards,” Brooke said. “Sounds like you must have better skills.”
“Or better luck,” Jason said.
“Don’t let him fool you,” Dan said. “He’s been patiently and diligently studying poker and the players since high school. It’s more than luck.”
Jason grinned and relaxed into his chair as if relaxing into a good memory. “You never had good luck.”
“You’d think my little brother would’ve helped me out with some advice.” Dan speared a stuffed mushroom on his fork, comfortable in the memory and the common ground with his brother. “Instead, Jason invited me and my friends over for poker tournaments and took all our pizza-delivery money.”
“I did give you a cut of the winnings for filling up the tables.” Jason aimed his knife at Dan.
“Quite enterprising,” Brooke said.
“And fun,” Dan said. “We even invited our dad and his friends to join in.”
“I’m not sure Dad has played since that night,” Jason said. Laughter lingered in Jason’s tone, as if hesitant to come out. As if his brother hadn’t laughed in far too long.
Dan let his own laughter roll across the table. “Dad has worse luck than me.”
“Jason is quite talented. Recently, though, luck hasn’t been a very kind companion.” The softness in Valerie’s voice only added a sharper point to her words. “Wonder what side of the family that comes from.”
Valerie had always preferred to veil her criticism inside a compliment. His brother’s laughter quieted.
“Poker is a long-term game.” Both Jason’s face and demeanor stiffened. “And you have to know when to leave the table.”
“You also have to play again to win,” Valerie quipped.
Dan eyed his brother. He used to be able to read him. Yet Jason mastered the art of masking his emotions. Now his face was much leaner, giving him a harder edge. Even the laugh lines around his eyes looked shallow. Dan asked, “You haven’t been playing?”
Jason shook his head but offered nothing more.
Dan wanted to press. But this wasn’t the time. His brother had always lived for the next game. The next shuffle. The next deal. What had changed?
Valerie sampled the wine and gave her approval to the waiter. That was where her approval ended. Disapproval twisted her mouth into a grimace. “Jason calls it bankroll management.”
Not a surprise. Jason had always excelled with finances, budgets and numbers. Math had never been Valerie’s forte. Then again, her father had funded Valerie’s every whim until his death. Dan had taken over their household finances, assuming that responsibility in their marriage, as well. Dan had expected she’d have learned on her own. The money in her trust fund wasn’t endless. “Budgeting isn’t bad, Valerie.”
“You sound just like your brother.” Valerie pierced her mushroom cap with her fork.
“Thanks for the compliment.” Dan toasted Jason and earned something from his brother he hadn’t seen in a long time: a genuine smile.
“Enough money talk. Ben needs a passport.” Valerie grinned around her bite of mushroom as if she’d suggested Ben should get a new haircut.
Dan blinked. The connection between him and his brother disconnected like a dropped call. While Valerie’s comment splattered on the table as if the waiter dropped Valerie’s fish, whole and still breathing, in front of them all. Dan opened and closed his mouth. “Why would Ben need a passport?”
“So he can travel with me.” Valerie straightened and waved her fork absently between herself and Jason. “Or us.”
“You want to take Ben with you?” Dan asked. Clearly, he was like that fish, gasping for air and clarification.
“Absolutely.” Valerie pointed her fork at Dan. “He’s old enough to start experiencing more of the world, Dan.”
“Ben is ten.” A child. A kid who loved soccer, basketball and game night with his family and friends. How much more of the world did a ten-year-old need to see? Dan pushed away his plate. The lobster and mushroom were at war in his stomach.
“I’ve met ten-year-olds who speak multiple languages and have been flying international flights alone since they were six.” Valerie served the remaining appetizers to everyone as if being the proper hostess was her only concern.
But those weren’t Dan’s kids. Or his responsibility. Or his concern.
“You want Ben to have a passport,” he repeated, desperate to believe he’d heard her wrong.
“Ben should travel,” Valerie said.
“Why?” Dan asked.
“I always wanted to travel as a child, but Father’s work kept us home,” Valerie said.
Her father’s work had provided a large estate in the city and comforts few knew growing up. Dan also knew from Luann that Valerie’s father had promised Valerie the world, but he’d passed away before he’d given it to her. Apparently, Valerie still expected to have it.
“I want to give Ben the chance that I didn’t have.” Both of Valerie’s palms flattened on the table as if she needed help supporting her claim. “As his mom, I have that right.”
Dan had rights, too. Like to refuse. “I have full custody—legal and physical. You signed the divorce papers.”
Valerie stacked the appetizer plates, set them aside along with his argument. “I’m still his mother. The courts want children to spend time with both parents.”
“But not out of the country.” Without his father. Exasperated, Dan wasn’t sure if his statement was true or not. But the panic surged like multiple defibrillator charges on his chest. She wanted him to put Ben on a plane to fly overseas. Alone.
“Why not?” Valerie challenged. “I’m talking ten days to two weeks. Nothing permanent.”
The only permanent thing in Valerie’s life was her continuous travel.
Dan looked across the table at his brother. Jason had retreated again, his face impassive as if he’d checked his hand and simply waited for the table to place their bets. Had Jason known this was what Valerie wanted? Ironic that Dan would insist Jason be there from the minute Ben stepped off the plane to the second Ben boarded for his return flight home. As if Dan was going to agree to this. As if Dan trusted Jason more than Valerie. How could that be?
Jason hadn’t been a part of Dan’s inner circle for more than six years. And yet, clearly, the bond was difficult to sever. The trust difficult to break. Or was that only more useless wishing on Dan’s part? It’d been a long while after all.
He tried to focus instead on Brooke. She sat beside him: steady, calm, unfazed. He shouldn’t have asked her to come tonight. He should tell her to leave and enjoy her evening.
Brooke reached over, slipped her hand into his.
The chaos inside him receded. The gentle strength in her touch grounded him. Her grin was small, but endearing. Quick, but encouraging. Dan swallowed his offer to walk her out.
Brooke aimed her smile at Valerie, compassion in her voice. “I’m not sure Dan is comfortable with Ben traveling outside the country without him.”
Brooke understood Dan. Why couldn’t Valerie? Dan held on to Brooke’s hand as if she anchored him. Selfish, he knew. This wasn’t Brooke’s fight. His fingers remained locked around Brooke’s as if they belonged together. As if they were meant to conquer the world side by side.
Valerie picked up the wine cork and lifted her arms up as if she’d won the jackpot and the round. “Then Dan can join us, too.”
“I can’t just fly to Europe or wherever you are, Valerie.” Dan struggled to silence the impatience in his voice. Valerie had never wanted to understand. That clearly hadn’t changed. “I have a job. Responsibilities here.”
“You always did have too many responsibilities.” Valerie tapped the cork on the table and eyed him. “But our son should come first.”
How many sleepless nights had he spent at the hospital with Ben? Even more at home. Then there were the frantic phone calls for advice to the doctors and nurses he knew from work. The uncertainty. The constant worry. The fear of being unable to fix his own son. The helplessness. Ben had never come second. Not then. Not now.
Brooke’s grip tightened around his hand, reminding Dan that he wasn’t alone. That he had support. Then and now.
“Everything Dan does is for Ben. Always,” Brooke said. Her voice was kind but firm. “But I’m certain you already know that, Valerie.”
“I know that Ben deserves the opportunity to see the world.” Valerie twirled her wineglass between her fingers. The resolve in Valerie’s tone matched Brooke’s. “I believe Ben should be given the choice.”
“He’s ten years old,” Dan repeated. Brooke’s touch was like a mute button on his frustration. His voice never slipped past mild. Perfectly suited for the hushed a
tmosphere in the upscale restaurant.
“That’s certainly old enough to have an opinion,” Valerie countered.
Also, old enough to get hurt if Valerie changed her mind at the last minute. That said nothing about caring for him, making sure he had the right medicine and proper supplies. “Ben doesn’t need to travel for you to spend time with him. You only need to come here.”
“He has you here in the city, Dan.” Valerie raised her hands as if spreading out a map of the world in front of them. “I can show him so much more.”
“Where would you take Ben?” Brooke asked, her voice interested, her manner calm.
Everything Dan was pretending to be. He kept Brooke’s hand tucked inside his. He liked the idea of Brooke being with him and his family too much. He’d come to his senses at some point. Then he’d let go. But that was later.
Even Jason leaned forward as if interested, too.
Valerie tapped her chin. “Monaco. The coast of Italy.”
Those were the same places Valerie had wanted Dan to visit, despite his full-time job and obligations. Places, if Dan was honest, he’d like to visit. If not for his job and those obligations that came first. If not for wanting to give Ben the best home he could afford.
Jason frowned. “The Amalfi Coast is too hard to get around. And Monaco is better suited to adults.”
His brother sounded as perplexed by Valerie’s suggestions as Dan felt.
“Fine.” Valerie pressed a napkin into the corner of her mouth and recovered her smile. “There’s always Venice and Scandinavia.”
Jason rubbed his hand over his chin, his gaze narrowed, a look of uncertainty overtaking his expression. “Dan and I would’ve only wanted to swim in the canals in Venice when we were Ben’s age.”
“Or at least get into daily splash wars,” Dan suggested. That earned a grin from Jason and a scowl from Valerie.
“We’d have gotten into a sleep-off in Scandinavia, daring each other not to fall asleep since it would’ve been daylight all day,” Jason said.
“They have sleep masks,” Valerie said.
Single Dad to the Rescue Page 13