Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 27792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 139(@200wpm)___ 111(@250wpm)___ 93(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 139(@200wpm)___ 111(@250wpm)___ 93(@300wpm)
“And I don’t need a girlfriend or want one. I’ve had plenty of opportunities, and I turned them all down because I want to be a pro.” He picks up the cola and starts chugging it like it’s water after a marathon.
“You can’t have a girlfriend and be pro at the same time?”
“I mean, of course I can. I can do all of that if I want,” he says.
“What are we talking about doing?” Sera strolls in and perches on the side of my chair.
“How Asher is definitely not, ever in a million years, in this lifetime or the next, going to have a girlfriend because football is all he cares about, and he doesn’t think he can have both a girlfriend and be a pro ball player at the same time.”
Sera, my still beautiful, still heart-attack inducing, still driving me mad with lust wife, plucks the can out of my hand and takes a sip before she replies. “Sounds like we have to meet this girl who is shaking the foundations of our son’s world.”
“That’s what I said.”
Asher drops his head against the back of the sofa. “Stop it, you guys.”
Sera laughs and goes over to give him a hug. “You’ll work it out. I know you and trust in you.”
Asher allows the affection for all of about a half second before wriggling free. “I’ve got a call to make.” He disappears up the stairs, passing his sister, who is coming down.
“Where’s the fire?” she asks.
Asher mumbles something and then is gone.
“Oh, it’s about her again?” Evan says.
“Who is her, Evangeline?” Sera asks, motioning for our daughter to join us.
Our second child, age fourteen, doesn’t need a second invitation to sit by her mother. She trips down the remaining stairs and hurries over to snuggle up against Sera’s side. “She is Naya Montero. Naya is seventeen and works at Los Tres Tacos. I think her aunt or some relative owns it but not her mother because Naya’s mother died of breast cancer when Naya was ten. Anyway, her dad is kind of a deadbeat who shows up like every couple of months to leech money off Naya’s aunt. He’s always making promises to Naya like he’s going to buy her a car for her birthday or get Paper Gang, the band, to play at her graduation party.”
“How do you know all this?” Sera wonders. “Are you two friends?”
“Nope. I heard Isla Nielsen explain this to Asher at Two Scoops, that ice cream shop that serves the really boss blueberry milkshakes.”
“I remember that place,” Sera says. “Go on.”
“Anyway, she was warning him off because Naya has a lot of sh—" She cuts herself off and slides a glance toward her mother. “Stuff going on in her life, and she doesn’t need a rich boy who never had to work at nothing and doesn’t like anything but playing with balls walk in, knock her up, and walk out.”
“You have an amazing gift for recall,” I marvel.
Evan beams at me. “Thanks.” She blows on her knuckles and then wipes them across her shirt. “That’ll be a hundred.” She lays her hand out.
Without hesitation, I reach into my back pocket for my wallet.
“Jericho, don’t encourage her,” Sera chides.
I hand Evan the bill she asked for. “I can’t not reward genius.”
Sera rolls her eyes but smiles as Evan presses a kiss against her mother’s forehead as she skips out. Sera gets to her feet and slides onto my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck. My chest tightens in pleasure and the fullness of joy. Every day she gets more beautiful. Every day I marvel at my good fortune. Every day I thank Michael for making it possible for us to be together.
“Our baby is all grown up,” she sighs. She tips her head and places it against mine.
“How long do you think it takes Asher to come to his senses?”
“Less than twenty-four hours.”
“Do we have room for one Naya Montero?”
“You think he’s going to marry her? They aren’t even out of high school yet.”
“It’ll be soon.” If he’s like me, and I know he is, he won’t be able to wait. He’ll want to claim Naya for his own.
“Then yes, we have room for one Naya Montero.”
“Perfect. Enough about our kids.” I nudge her chin until her lips are in kissing range. “Let’s talk about us.”