All About The Treats

by Weston Parker

  “Thank you, Mr. Saunders. I’m really sorry I had to bother you.”

  “It’s no bother,” I said. “We’ll see you soon.”

  I pushed the button and disconnected the call before looking at Sawyer to get his take on the situation. He was grinning at me like the Cheshire cat. “Wow.”

  “Wow, what?” I asked.

  “Look at you, taking charge.”

  I rolled my eyes. “The man was going to give himself a coronary. I don’t want that on my hands.”

  He nodded. “Of course not.”

  “When we get down there, you take over. I don’t know what the hell he is talking about. I do want to know why he waited this long to say something.”

  “He was probably worried he would disappoint you,” Sawyer suggested.

  “As if I’m some hard ass. That’s you.”

  He grinned. “Good cop, bad cop. Today, you were the bad cop.”

  “I wasn’t trying to be bad or mean,” I said. “I was just asking him specific questions.”

  “I’m giving you a hard time. You weren’t being mean.”

  “Is this an easy fix?” I asked him, knowing he would know better than I did.

  He grimaced. “I don’t know. I’m not a machinist, but I can definitely get someone in there who can fix it.”

  “Good.”

  “It’ll work out. We haven’t made any visits to the outlying factories in a while. It’s a good time to get the visits in.”

  “I’ll call and get the plane fueled and ready. You take care of whatever it is that needs taking care of here.”

  He nodded. “I’ll meet you at the airstrip in two hours?”

  I looked at the time. “Yes. That’ll give us both time to go home and pack. I hope this is wrapped up quickly.”

  “I’m sure it will be. We’ll put out the fire, and you’ll be back in your lady’s arms in no time.”

  I scoffed. “I’m not sure she wants me in her arms. She kind of kicked me to the curb in a very literal sense.”

  “Call her. Don’t leave town without letting her know you’re not around. If you want to win points with her, you need to keep her in the loop. That is ‘Woman one oh one.’ If and when she decides she wants to see you, you don’t want to be on the other side of the country. You’ll want to hop in your car and get your ass over there. Women can be finicky.”

  “Why? Why does it have to be a lot of games?”

  He slowly shook his head. “Women are one of the seven greatest mysteries of the world. Their moods change faster than the tides. You have to be ready to go with it. Placate and soothe when necessary and enjoy the good times while they are around.”

  “She’s always in a good mood. She used to be anyway. Then she wasn’t.”

  “Again, pretty damn normal. You can’t know the reason why. You just have to go with it.”

  Sawyer had a lot more experience in the women department than I did. I had to take his word for it. I had to trust his advice. He’d been the one to warn me away from the last woman I had dated. He had seen right through her games and warned me to cut her loose. I had put up a fight and ended up suffering the consequences.

  I nodded. “I’ll call her when I’m on my way home.”

  “Do it. Don’t put it off. You’ll be happier once you hear her voice and you guys can talk.”

  “You make it sound sappy.”

  He grinned. “It is a little sappy.”

  I couldn’t help but smile, thinking back to the happier moments we had shared. They had been good. They had been some of the best moments of my life. I hoped there would be more moments like that. It was like getting the tiniest taste of the best dessert and wanting more but being denied.

  “I’ll call her. I’ve got some stuff to get done.”

  “She better be your priority,” he said, launching into a new lecture.

  I waved him off, already dialing the number for the pilot I used. He was a good guy and was usually available on short notice. I was lucky he had another client cancel at the last minute and he was available for our flight. I grabbed my laptop and phone and headed out the door.

  I called Harper once I got in the car. “Hi,” I said when she answered, not sure how my phone call would be received. After our dinner date the other night, her texts had been very short and curt.

  “Hi, I was just thinking about calling you,” she said.

  I smiled, relieved to know she wasn’t pissed at me. “Really?”

  “Yes, I need to see you,” she said, her tone somewhat serious. “Tonight preferably.”

  “I can’t tonight. I’m actually calling to let you know I’ll be out of town for at least a day, maybe longer. There’s some emergency at one of the factories in Florida.”

  “Oh,” she mumbled.

  “Can I call you when I get back?”

  “Yes, please do. It’s important we talk. In person. Please.”

  I hated that phrase. Talk. That was never good. She didn’t want to talk about anything good. If that was the case, she wouldn’t sound so dire. “Yeah, sure. I’ll call when I get back.”

  “Thank you. Call anytime. I’m free all weekend. It’s really important I talk to you soon.”

  “You could just tell me now,” I said, biting back the anger.

  “Just call me when you get back.”

  “Harper—”

  “I’ll talk to you later, Theo.”

  I hit the button to end the call. I had been worried about her dumping me, and now I knew that was exactly what she had planned. She didn’t need to do it in person. Hell, she didn’t even need to tell me over the phone. She could just send me a damn text.

  I got home, my mood total shit. I threw some stuff in a bag and headed back out. I was about fifteen minutes early to the airport. I grabbed a Coke from the vending machine and paced while I waited for Sawyer. I couldn’t stop wondering what I had done to piss her off.

  “Hey, I’m here,” Sawyer announced.

  “Let’s go,” I mumbled, tossing the can into the trash and heading out to the waiting plane.

  We boarded the plane and took our seats. I stared out the window, trying to work it all out in my head. I retraced my steps, thinking back to what I had said and done on Sunday before we had parted ways. I didn’t sense anything had been wrong. She had seemed happy.

  And then she wasn’t.

  “What’s going on?” Sawyer asked.

  “Nothing.”

  “Did you call Harper?”

  “I did.”

  “And?”

  I turned to look at him. “She said we needed to talk.”

  He winced. “Ouch. That’s never good.”

  “Exactly what I thought,” I said.

  “Did she give you any hints?”

  “Yeah, she said it was important and we needed to talk in person.”

  “Maybe she’s knocked up,” he offered.

  “Shut up. That isn’t funny.”

  “You did use protection, right?”

  “I’m not talking to you about the intimate details of my life with her,” I snapped.

  “Shit. You didn’t. Jesus, Theo. What the hell were you thinking? Do you know how many women would love to have your baby? You’re a meal ticket. Anyone that has your baby has your money.”

  I shook my head, rejecting that idea. “Harper isn’t like that.”

  “Everyone is like that when billions of dollars are at stake.”

  “Harper doesn’t want my money.”

  He shrugged. “If she’s having your baby, she’ll want your money. Are you prepared to do that whole custody thing?”

  “You’re getting way ahead of yourself. She isn’t pregnant. She’s breaking up with me. Not that we were together, but by the way she spoke, I know it isn’t good news.”

  “You’re going to be a daddy,” he sang the words.

  “Shut up. I don’t understand what happened.”

  “Well, you put your thingy inside—”

  “
You’re a child.”

  “You asked.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t understand why she wants to end things. We had a lot of fun over the weekend. I thought things were good.”

  “You had dinner the other night. How were things?”

  I shrugged. “Not bad but not good. She talked about the kid thing, but I am pretty sure that was hypothetical. She likes to pick my brain, like she’s going to cure me of all my ails. I like being broken and having her fix me.”

  He chuckled. “Do you play doctor?” he asked, waggling his brows.

  I groaned. “You never take anything seriously.”

  “I take everything seriously. I think you’re freaking out over nothing. If she wants to end things with you, move on. That’s just how life goes. You win some and you lose some. You’ve really come a long way, and I bet you’ll be ready to start dating again. This time, you’ll have more luck.”

  “How do you know that?”

  He shrugged. “Because you want it now. You want to be in love. I can see it in the way you’ve changed. You’re a different guy now.”

  “I don’t want to be in love. I want to be with Harper.”

  “Same thing. Don’t let her have all the control. You fell hard and fast for this woman. It’s a little worrisome. I don’t want you to get hurt. Take your time and really think things through.”

  I ignored him, staring out the window once again. He got up and went to sit at the small table. He opened his laptop and began to work. I couldn’t stop thinking about what he had said about the baby thing. What if he was right? I knew the chances were slim, but it could have happened.

  I wasn’t a complete moron. I knew biology. I should have been more careful. What the hell would I do if she was? I wasn’t ready to be a father. I would never be ready. I wasn’t daddy material. I closed my eyes and reclined my chair.

  I woke when I felt the plane touch down. I sat forward and rubbed my eyes, looking out the window and finding it to be dusk.

  “Have a nice nap?” Sawyer asked.

  I turned my head to find him looking at me with an amused expression on his face. “Yes, I did actually.”

  We taxied down the runway. There was a car waiting to take us to the factory. Sawyer was on the phone, talking with the factory manager and letting him know we were on our way. I couldn’t help but think about the Harper situation.

  I wished she would have given me a hint. I didn’t like the unknown. If she was pregnant, things had to be said and done. Maybe she had been trying to tell me about the pregnancy at dinner and I had been too stupid to catch on to her hints.

  All I could do was hope we could get the situation with the factory resolved quickly so I could get back home and ask her what the hell was going on. My pride prevented me from texting her just then and pleading with her to tell me what she had to say.

  I could wait. I could play it cool. I could be nonchalant.

  Chapter 32

  Harper

  I flipped the perfectly shaped pancake and placed it on top of the stack before turning off the burner. “Breakfast is ready!” I shouted loud enough for Jace to hear me in his room.

  “Coming!”

  He appeared in the dining room a minute later. His hair stuck up in the back, a testament to a good night’s rest, which made me very happy. He was sleeping well and was happier in general. He sat down in his chair and grabbed two pancakes from the stack before dumping what looked like a gallon of syrup over the top.

  “Are you excited for today?” I asked him.

  He nodded. “I’m going to paint an abstract.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “An abstract? How do you know what that is?”

  He rolled his eyes with all the exasperation of a frustrated eight-year-old. “I know what art is, Mom. I study it.”

  “Oh, I had no idea I was dealing with an expert.”

  “Not yet, but I might be an artist when I grow up. That or an author.”

  “Why can’t you be both?”

  He stopped with a forkful of pancake halfway to his mouth. “I don’t know.”

  “You can do anything. You know that. You follow your heart.”

  He nodded. “I will.”

  I took a few bites of the pancakes. My stomach had already done the protesting for the morning. I was hoping it was finished for the day, and I could get on with my life. We ate our breakfast, talking about abstract art. He had to explain it to me. It seemed a bit messy for my taste, but I was happy he was interested in it.

  “I’ll clean up while you get dressed. The class starts at eleven.”

  He was up and out of the dining room in a flash. It made me happy to see him happy. We were going to be spending the whole day together. First thing on our agenda was an art class. It was geared more toward adults, but Jace was very mature for his age, and I had no doubt his art skills would be heads and shoulders above the rest.

  I drove to the community center, Jace talking the whole way. He was a chatterbox. That was a new one. It was like he’d been waiting eight long years to unburden himself. I paid our fees and walked into the class. We got some stares. I could feel Jace shrinking away, regressing back to the place he’d been in for so long.

  Oh, hell no.

  “Let’s find a seat,” I said, shooting glares at those who dared look at us as if we didn’t belong.

  I helped Jace into one of the tall chairs in front of a blank canvas. I looked at him and grinned. The canvas shielded him from some of the prying eyes. It put him at ease. His legs were swinging as he looked around the room.

  “I can’t wait to paint,” he said.

  “Me too. I’m going to hang it on the wall.”

  “What if it isn’t any good?” he asked.

  “It will be good. Anything you do is going to make me proud.”

  We quietly listened to the teacher give some basic instructions before putting up an image for us to try and paint. I knew I was probably going to end up with something that looked like it had been colored by a drunk two-year-old.

  We started painting. “How has school been?” I asked him.

  “If you’re asking if I’ve gotten beaten up lately, no. I have lots of new friends now. Theo made me kind of cool.”

  I grinned. “You were already cool. The other kids just now figured it out.”

  “Are we going to see Theo again?”

  “I hope so,” I answered honestly.

  “I bet he would have liked this class.”

  “I bet he would have. When he gets back from his trip, I’ll ask if he would like to try a class with us.”

  “I’d like that.”

  “Jace, have you ever thought about a little brother or sister?” I asked, hoping I sounded casual.

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. You’re not married.”

  “No, I’m not,” I said, feeling properly chastised without him realizing he was doing it. “But women can still have babies.”

  “I really want a little brother, but I would be cool with a sister. I’m old enough that I can take care of a baby. If you want to get one, I would be okay with it.”

  I burst into giggles. “I can’t exactly walk into Target and pick up a baby.”

  “Carrie’s mom and dad picked up two new brothers for her. They were already big, though.”

  I nodded, knowing exactly who he was talking about. The family had adopted twin siblings. “Well, if we were to add to our family, it would be done the old-fashioned way.”

  “What’s that?”

  “It would be me being pregnant for nine months and then bringing a baby home.”

  “Okay. We can do that.”

  I smiled. “Good to know.” I looked at his painting and smiled wider. It bore a striking resemblance to the beautiful mountain scene on the original painting, with some of that abstract flare he spoke of. Mine was nothing like his. Mine was something that resembled spilled paint with an attempt to clean it up.

  “Nice picture, Mom,” he said, looking a
t my sorry attempt.

  “You did not get your creative gene from me.”

  “My what?

  I laughed. “Your art skills are inherited, but not from me. Let’s go to the mall and get the new shoes you need. Then we’ll get lunch.”

  “Can we take our paintings?”

  I looked at mine. “Do I have to?”

  He laughed. “Come on, Mom. It’s not so bad.”

  We took our paintings, promised the teacher we would make the next class, and headed for the mall. As I browsed the children’s section, I couldn’t help but look over at the baby stuff. I was dying to inspect it closer but didn’t want to give Jace any hints just yet. I needed to keep my secret a bit longer.

  I caught a glimpse of a gorgeous Christmas dress and nearly melted. I hadn’t ever really wanted a boy or a girl. I was happy with either, but seeing that dress had me secretly hoping for a little girl that I could dress up.

  “How about this?” I asked Jace as I held up a new shirt.

  He shrugged. “I don’t care.”

  Another reason I wanted a girl. She would likely enjoy shopping more than my son. In that moment, he looked like I was dragging him to the dentist to get his teeth pulled. “All right, we’re good. Let’s buy these and we’ll go.”

  I took the shoes and a few other things I’d found to the checkout. I was going to be shopping for my own new wardrobe very soon. I had seen some of the latest maternity trends and was a little excited to wear the cute clothes.

  I drove to one of his favorite burger joints that resembled a fifties diner, complete with lots of checkered cloths and huge black and white square tiles on the floor. We both ordered burgers and milkshakes and settled into the upbeat atmosphere of the place. There was a big jukebox in a corner that only played old-school music.

  “Are we going to put up our Christmas tree soon?” he asked.

  “Christmas tree!” I exclaimed. “We just got through Halloween!”

  He shrugged. “I love the trees and stuff.”

  “Maybe after Thanksgiving. Which reminds me, we need to do some shopping for new Christmas decorations anyway. We could go to that new store that opened up. I’ve heard they have some good deals.”

  He took a bite of a fry. “Do you think Theo will come over for Christmas?” he asked.