Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 97592 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97592 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
He shakes his head but climbs up on the stool next to Seth all the same. “I want nuggs. So does Sal.”
“Nuggs?” I ask with a raise of my brows.
“Chicken nuggets,” Seth explains helpfully. “Mom says he might as well be a chicken nugget.”
“Shut up, Seth,” Grant replies, offended.
“No. You shut up, Grant.”
“You’re a funky butt lover!”
Funky butt lover? Why does that remind me of something?
“No! You’re a funky butt lover!”
“Hold on,” I chime in, holding a hand between the two of them. “Where did you two hear that from?”
“It’s from a movie,” Seth explains.
“Yeah! It’s from Rookie!” Grant exclaims a little too loudly. “My favorite movie! When I get my cast off, I hope I’m just like Henry and can throw super-fast so I can pitch for the Yankees!”
“It’s called Rookie of the Year, Grant,” Seth corrects on a sigh. “Get it right.”
“Shut up, Seth! You—”
“Guys,” I cut in, fearful that their escalating voices will wake their exhausted mother. They both eye me closely, and I know that right now, this moment—on the precipice of an insult battle—I will make or break the respect they have for me. “You’re both funky butt lovers who like to sniff stinky, funky butts because you’re such funky butt lovers.”
They both break out in a hysterical laugh, and Grant even waves his casted arm around like one of those windsock dancer guys businesses always use for grand openings.
“Now that we have that settled,” I insert with a teasing grin. “Seth, eat your soup before it gets cold. Grant, I’ll make you and Sal some nuggs. And in the meantime, let’s try to keep it down so Mom can rest. Cool?”
Both boys nod enthusiastically. “Cool!”
For the next hour or so, the boys eat while we quietly shoot the shit. I glance over occasionally to see that Sammy’s still sleeping, and then I clean up the kitchen when the boys are done.
At a little after eight, Seth informs me that they’re supposed to get ready for bed, and I play supervisor while they brush their teeth. Grant convinces me to read them a bedtime story, and as I turn the last page, both of their eyes are drifting to sleep.
After I get a quick hug from both of them, Seth groggily climbs from Grant’s bed and gets in his own, and I shut off the lights, pulling their door halfway closed before I make my way back into the living room.
Sammy is still sound asleep on the couch, and even though I absolutely hate disturbing her, I don’t want her to wake up not knowing what happened or where I went or the state of the boys either.
Gently, I rub a hand down her arm, and her eyes flit open. It only takes a second of semiconsciousness for her to shoot up to sitting ramrod straight, panic in her eyes.
“Oh my God. I fell asleep!” Her eyes look around the room maniacally. “What time is it?”
“A little after nine.”
“Nine?” Her eyes grow even wider. “Noah, I’m so sorry!”
“Hey, everything is okay.” I reach out and put a calming hand to her shoulder. “I’m glad you got some rest. Honestly, I was hoping you’d do just that when I came over.”
“Have the boys gotten out of bed?”
I nod. “Both of them have been fed. Seth ate two bowls of chicken noodle soup with bread and kept it down like a champ. Pretty sure he’s officially on the mend. I cleaned up the kitchen, but I can make you some soup now if you want before I head out.”
“No,” she says adamantly. “You don’t need to do that.” She looks around for a minute, trying to get her bearings a little more, through her sleepiness. “Wait… You fed the boys?”
I nod again. “They even brushed their teeth, talked me into a bedtime story, and are now sound asleep in their beds. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Mind? You feeding my kids and putting them to bed?” Sammy laughs. “Yeah, I think I’ll get over it.”
I grin at her. “I wish I could say I got Grant to eat some soup, but it was all chicken nuggets for my guy.”
She rolls her eyes. “That’s expected.”
“Hey, at least it’s protein,” I offer as consolation, and her eyes turn serious as she reaches out to grip my hand with a gentle squeeze.
“Thank you, Noah. Thank you for everything you did tonight.”
“Trust me, Sammy. You and your boys are always worth it.” I press a gentle kiss to her lips, and even though every cell inside my body wants to deepen the kiss, I rise to my feet. “I’m going to take off now and let you guys get more rest.”
“Okay.” She rises from the couch to walk me to the door.
But when I turn to face her again to say goodbye, she catches me off guard by covering my lips with hers and wrapping her arms around my shoulders. She’s on her tiptoes now, and my arms wrap around her back all on their own.