87: Dating Fun Part 1
Easton
“Morning Luci.” I whisper to wake Luci. She stretches, smiling before she looks around the guest room confused. “I brought you in here after you fell asleep last night. I figured we might have some early morning visitors.” I prop up the pillows so she can sit against them and remain facing her. “We are to wait here for some sort of surprise. Strict orders from the
rascals.”
“Oh no. Did they wake you?”
“They did about ten minutes ago. Bursting with whatever secret they are up to.”
There is a tap on the door and I call out “Come in.”
Cole and Barrett walk in with Becker holding the door open. He is struggling to hold in his laughter. Barrett carries two glasses of juice and Cole has one plate. Becker holds a tray with another plate and coffee cups. “Morning.” Cole calls out cheerfully, concentrating hard on the
plate he’s carrying.
“Good morning. Are you delivering breakfast?” Luci smiles at them.
“Yes. It’s a romance breakfast Luci.” Cole answers her. To her credit, her face stays mostly impassive. Becker is in danger of losing it as she eyes him hard.
“Like in the movie Nanna watched while she was cooking.” Barrett adds. “But he brought some funny egg thing. We asked Baker for waffles. We didn’t have flowers for the tray.” He frowns
hard with that.
“Remind me to talk to Nanna.” Luci says mildly.
“I think we’re good on the flowers, Barrett.” I ruffle his hair and he smiles.
Becker sets the tray down and helps Cole hand Luci the plate.
I take the juice glasses from Barrett. “You two aren’t joining us?”
They look hopeful. “It’s ‘sposed to only be you.” Cole says wistfully.
“Isn’t today family date day? Shouldn’t that include breakfast?” Luci smiles at them. Cole nods
excitedly.
Becker calls over his shoulder. “I’ll be back with your plates, boys.”
Barrett stares at us. “I’m not….”
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87: Dating Fun Part 1
“Barrett Samuel Olmos, you are family. Get up here.” Luci holds her hand out and he takes it before curling against her for a hug.
“What are we doing today, Daddy?” Cole steals a strawberry off Luci’s plate and she offers another to Barrett.
“I thought this morning we would go play hockey. Let Barrett try out his skates. Maybe Luci can practice her skating too.”
Their faces light up and it doesn’t take long for them to finish their food when Becker drops it off. Luci catches my eye and I nod slowly. “Coco, come sit here.” She pats the mattress next to her and moves slightly so she’s facing him too. “We wanted to talk about yesterday. Barrett,
you can stay if you want.” He nods before Luci continues. “Coco, yesterday was hard. You
heard some not nice answers. Do you want to talk about it?”
“I was sad. Am I still the boss if I want to talk to her?”
I answer him. “Yes you are. Do you want to talk to her?” I keep all judgment out of my voice.
“No. I done with her. Maybe long time later.”
“If that’s what you want or need Cole.” I hope he never wants to see her again.
“Coco, do you know you didn’t make her leave?” Luci scoots closer to him.
“Yes. She left cause work was better. Like Barrett’s daddy, but he calls him.”
Luci is quietly thoughtful for a minute. She shifts Barrett to sit beside Cole. I can see where
Cole got his distinctive thoughts about this from now.
“She thought her work was better. That was what she picked; Lorelei’s choice. That doesn’t
mean work for everyone else is better than you. Either of you.” She looks at Barrett now. “Your
daddy has to leave sometimes, Barrett, but he always comes back to you and calls you when
he can. He thinks about you all the time when he’s gone. It’s his job and he won’t have to do
that much longer. It hurts him to leave you. Sometimes adults do have to pick things over
what we’d like to do instead. Because it’s our job or because if we don’t, something bad could
happen. Like when I have to study for school so I can graduate instead of watching a movie.
Or like a doctor having to leave his kids to help someone who got hurt at the hospital.
Watching the stove while cooking instead of playing Batman with you for a little bit. The
difference is what happens after we are done with our other responsibilities. You come first
though up here. Your dads both think about you even when you are apart. Even for only the
day at school.” She points to her head. “And right here most importantly, you come first over
other things we love.” She points to their hearts. “Like cookies.” She gives them each a little
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+8 Pain
87: Dating Fun Part 1
tickle on their stomachs.
“Cole, you said you weren’t real….” I bring up.
He looks up at me. “Not for her. I’m real for you.”
“Coco, you are real for EVERYONE even though she didn’t send you words or videos. Do you know how we can tell you are real?” Luci answers him.
“How?” He tilts his head curiously.
“Because you bring joy to people. The smiles people get from your hugs and your love. Only real people can give out real love.” Luci tells him as she holds his hand and takes Barrett’s hand too. “Remember, not everyone loves you, but that’s their problem. Some people cannot love. Their heart isn’t able to do it. Because something in them is broken. Sometimes someone hurt them and they never learned how to get better. They keep hurting people
because they don’t know how to fix their hearts.”
“They need better hugs.” Cole says and Barrett nods.
“Nanna says a hug can fix a lot of things.”
“Nanna’s right, but sometimes it takes a lot more than hugs. And I wish it didn’t. Never think
you aren’t real Cole Reed.”
“Luci’s right. You are both very special real boys. And you have a long list of people who love
you and will do anything to protect you.”
“We know Daddy.” I hold out my arms and both come to me.
“Go hug Luci and let me round up the uncles for some fun.” I whisper to them. I turn back to see both of them wrapped up in her. My feet finally move reluctantly to head for the kitchen.
“I’m going to take Barrett and Cole to skate and practice at the rink. Any other takers?” The
three of them consider it.
“I’m in.” Jackson says.
“Me too. But I thought you had a date today.” Becker raises one eyebrow.
“Later. Barrett is with us until lunch. Luci’s coming to watch. Or maybe I can convince her to play. Gotta pick up her skates.”
“Definitely coming to watch that.” Kingston grins.
“We’ll leave in thirty minutes because I need to grab Luci’s skates from her place.” I leave them
to get ready.
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+8 Points
87: Dating Fun Part 1
Vince
“He put a tracker on her car on his way here.” I can’t believe this guy. Marco closes the door as he joins me.
“Guess he’s a motivated douchebag.” Marco frowns. Maxton moves to the table at the corner
of the cafe’s outdoor seating area. I bet she’s coming to meet him here.
“He like his flowers this morning?” Marco sips his coffee.
I snort. “Too much. He didn’t even act suspicious of it. You’d think for the guy stalking a girl for
weeks, he’d be wary of an anonymous gift. Took the box and the flowers right inside. Never
been easier to get a bug into an apartment.”
“Plan?”
“Stalk him and unnerve him a little. Let him see what it feels like per Jason Reed. Not enough
to cause him to snap though. Once he goes for her, he gets arrested or dies. Not sure which
one is going to happen quite frankly. Easton catches him near her, he’s probably no longer
breathing.”
“I like it. Luci’s a nice girl from what I heard from Mrs. Hutchins.”
“Hey Marco. You ever been part of a throuple?” I ask with a half grin.
“Nope, but I’m game to join one today, I think. You think he’s a little spoon kinda guy? I can’t wait to ask him. I hope he likes dark obsessive romance.” He grins slowly. “Good thing my wife
reads me pieces of those for this.”
“Dominant one?” I look at him and he nods.
We get out and walk his way. Marco makes sure we are close together. We are about to pass
his table when I stop and grab his arm. “Big M, there he is….” I say lowly but loud enough
Maxton hears me. He glances up and his eyes widen a little.
“Hi handsome. It must be fate we ran into you again.” I open the gate and we move next to his
table boxing him in.
“Look pal, I told you. I’m not interested. I don’t swing that way.” He’s looking pretty desperate already. Trying his hardest to convince me.
“You never know what you’re missing till you try it. We’ve been looking for a third and I think you’d be a very, very good boy for us. I like a good….chase.” Marco leans down and makes his voice deep and dominant. Now Maxton looks afraid. I’m not small but Marco is f*****g huge
and he looks like the villain in some murder mystery not a romance story. I bite back the
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87: Dating Fun Part 1
amused chuckle fighting to escape.
He tries to push his chair back, but can’t because Marco is there. “Maxton….who are your friends?” She smiles at me. “Oh I saw you the other day. You look even better this close up.”
“Who the f**k are you? You passing us up for her?” Marco asks him.
She grins slowly, taking a seat. “Well, I’m not sorry to see you again. What do you guys do? You look like a model or an actor.” She points to me.
“That’s my side job, modeling.” I flash her a bright smile as she sets her purse on top of the table. “Here let me show you a few pics.” I open my phone and hold it over her purse to show
her. “I still haven’t gotten your name….” She glances up from my phone grinning.
“Lorelei Winters. Nice headshots. So nice to meet you….” She gives me a questioning look.
“Vincent Martin. Sorry we thought Maxton here might be available. But I guess you two?” I
leave it open and he glares at me.
“Shame you’re together. I’m recently single.” She tosses her strawberry blonde hair over her
shoulders with a flirty smile.
“We’ll leave you two alone.” I drop a piece of paper with my number for Maxton though. “Call
- me. I’m sure we’ll bump into you again handsome. The big guy here does love a chase. Bye.”
Marco pats him on the shoulder hard several times and steps away. While they are distracted, I snap a photo of them and then turn my video on for a second. We make it around the
building and I pause it. Marco works on his phone and their voices come through clearly. “I got
his jacket with one of the small ones.”
“Slipped one in her purse, so we have her when they separate.”
We circle back to the edge of the building and I make sure to grab more video of them
together while they discuss almost nothing. “They are dumber than we thought. Instead of
talking about it right now, they wrote it down and have paper copies.” Marco stares in disbelief. “At least we’ll have this wrapped up quickly.”
Ivory Row
14
A taste of his own medicine. Rest of their date coming later today. We had to take care of Coco’s mindset after their romance breakfast.
