“MRS. K SAID we have to read a whole book every day this weekend. I have to give a book report on them when we go back on Tuesday.” Carter had his Tow Mater backpack perched high on his shoulders while I carried his Lightning McQueen suitcase and Natalie walked alongside us.
“Three books, since Monday’s a holiday?” I asked.
“What holiday?”
“It’s not really a holiday, I don’t think. It’s just a teacher in-service day.”
“Is that jail for teachers or something?”
I laughed. “You’d have to ask Mrs. Kuchner.”
“I think it’s jail.”
“Whether it’s jail or not, you’ve got the day off.”
“Right. She said we can take Monday off. Just two books.”
“You sure about that?” I asked. Something told me he might be either remembering incorrectly or telling me a fib to get out of doing the work. But it wasn’t really in his nature to not be truthful, so I knew I should give him the benefit of the doubt. His days of making up lies were sure to come somewhere down the line, but I hoped I had almost another decade before I had to worry about that.
Carter jumped over a painted line in the parking lot, picking up his usual game. “Positive. Just two books this weekend.”
“Still, that’s a lot of reading,” I said, biting back a grin. “How are you going to have time for all that when we have hockey games to go to?”
He turned around and grinned at me and Natalie. “Back-to-back, right? Two home games this weekend.” He turned around, skipped across another line, and stood on one foot for as long as he could maintain his balance, then made another big leap to get to a clearing.
“That’s right. One tomorrow night and another on Sunday afternoon.”
“I can bring my book to the games and read at inna-mission.”
“You won’t be watching all the fun?” Natalie caught my eye, barely containing her laughter over the way he’d mispronounced the word.
I winked at her.
“Nah. That stuff’s boring. I’d rather watch the hockey.”
I noticed that she didn’t try to correct him, though. One more way she was a perfect fit in our lives. I just hoped I could convince her to agree—and to accept and admit that she loved me.
She did. I knew it. She was just scared, which was understandable, given her history. Eventually, she’d come to accept that opening herself up to love was the only way to get through life, even though she’d been through hell and back.
I already knew how Carter and Snoopy felt about the matter without even asking them. They were both open books. If you showed them kindness, they loved you in return. Simple. Which meant they loved Natalie.
And Kinsey approved, even though she hadn’t met Natalie yet. My ex didn’t need to meet her to approve of my choice. Carter’s mom had always wanted the best for me, and as long as I was happy, she was happy, too. She knew I wouldn’t invite a woman into my life—and Carter’s life, by extension—if it wasn’t someone who belonged with us.
I trusted her in the same way. She hadn’t dated anyone in a while, but I hoped that would change soon. She deserved to have love in her life again, and it could only be a good thing for Carter to have more role models to look up to.
Three or four parents had to be better than two, right? Something like that.
He wobbled and almost fell over, but he reached up and grabbed hold of Natalie’s hand to steady himself. She was still wearing the boot these days, but she never even used the crutches for balance anymore. It wouldn’t be much longer before she was back to whatever her new normal would be.
And I intended for me, Carter, and Snoopy to be a big part of that new normal.
“And we can read together before bed, too,” I added.
“No! I have to read it myself.” He was offended almost to the point of being scandalized. I loved that he wouldn’t take the easy path and was determined to do things for himself. It would serve him well for years to come.
“Well, you can read it to me. Bedtime reading doesn’t have to be me reading to you,” I pointed out.
“Maybe Natalie can come read with me and Snoopy.”
I chortled at his less-than-subtle hint. My kid knew what he wanted. “Maybe she can,” I said.
“She can,” Natalie put in. “What books are you reading?”
“I’ve got The Adventures of Taxi Dog and Dogku.”
She glanced at me with a question in her eyes, and I shrugged. I hadn’t ever heard of them, but that didn’t mean much.
“They sound fun,” she said.
“I thought Snoopy would like them because they’re about dogs. I got ’em at the libary.”
“It’s always important to think about what books your puppy will enjoy most,” I said, trying to keep a straight face.
“Don’t make fun, Dad. Snoopy likes to read with me.”
“Snoopy likes to do anything with you. Because you’re you. He’s your dog, and you’re his kid, and that’s what dogs do. They like hanging out with their kids.”
“I think Snoopy’s pretty smart that way,” Natalie said.
“He knows he’s got a good deal with you, bud,” I added. “He lucked out, getting the best kid in the world to have as his boy.”
“He’s a really smart dog,” Carter added matter-of-factly. “I’m gonna teach him how to read.”
Natalie chuckled. “Sounds like quite a task. I’ve never heard of a dog that can read.”
“Snoopy will learn. He can already find which cup has a ball under it. He’s magic.”
“He can?”
“Yup!”
Because he watches Carter hide the ball, I mouthed to Natalie over Carter’s head as I fished my keys out of my pocket and clicked the button to open my trunk.
She had the good grace not to laugh out loud, but her amusement was fully evident in her eyes.
“Everything in the back,” I said, loading Carter’s suitcase inside before reaching for his backpack.
“Can I keep my iPad to play in the car?”
I narrowed my eyes in mock scorn. “Depends. What are you playing?”
“Angry Birds Blast! And I’m stuck on level seventy-nine.”
“That’s a tough one,” I said, not that I had any idea what level seventy-nine was. I’d never played the game before. “Better work hard on it in the car.”
He climbed into the back and buckled himself into his booster seat while Natalie and I both got in the front. “Are we getting Braum’s for dinner?” Carter asked.
The last time I’d promised him Braum’s was the day I’d pulled Natalie out of that house. Our ice cream date hadn’t quite panned out, and there weren’t any Braum’s locations in Michigan. His only opportunity to pig out on their burgers, crinkle-cut fries, and ice cream was when he came to visit me.
“You okay with burgers tonight?” I asked Natalie as I pulled out into traffic. “They’ve got some healthier things, too. Salads and chicken sandwiches and whatnot.”
“And ice cream!” Carter said.
“I’m always down for ice cream.”
“Then it’s a date,” I said.
She didn’t attempt to correct me or deflect the idea of us going on a date. And it didn’t matter to me that Carter would be with us—in my mind, it was a date. A family date.
I could get used to this idea.
No, that wasn’t exactly true. I was already used to it, and I wanted it to become our permanent reality.
Carter, Snoopy, and I needed Natalie in our lives every bit as much as she needed us.