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He blinks up at me then a grin spreads across his face. “Cool.” I smile down at him and resist the urge to ruffle his hair.
After snapping more photos with Connor in front of the spotted cats, we continue on our way.
“Dad, what’s next?” He asks me.
“River Valley Aviary,” as he cocks his head with a confused frown, “Birds,” I clarify.
“Oh… neat,” then he’s running ahead again and urging us to follow him.
“I wish I had his energy,” I say ruefully to Anna.
She grins and shakes her head. “If we could only bottle it!” With her eyes on Connor ahead of us, she says, “You know, most of the time, he acts like he’s ten going on thirty. I like seeing him being a normal, carefree child again.”
Right then, Connor turns back and yells, “I hear them. The birds! Hurry!”
Eight
Anna
I look in the back seat and see Connor passed out. The only thing keeping him upright is his seatbelt. I turn back to the front with a soft smile on my face.
Carson glances over at me and then looks in the rearview mirror. I see the grin spread across his face as he says in a low voice, “This is the first time today he’s been still. I see he finally ran out of steam.” I see the fondness for our son in his eyes.
“Yes,” I nod, then hesitantly turn toward Carson in my seat. “Thank you for today. Connor really enjoyed himself. The zoo was the perfect outing.”
Carson keeps his eyes on the road as he nods in response to my words. “I enjoyed it, too.” He admits with a grin. “You’ve done a good job raising him, Anna. It shows.”
A wide smile blooms on my face because I know that was hard for him to admit. “Thank you. I like to think so.” As I turn forward in my seat, I continue. “When do you want us to move in?”
His eyes quickly slant my way, “That depends on how quickly you can settle things in Orlando. I’m not sure what transferring his school records involves…”
“We just had them transferred to Orlando, so I can request they forward them on. I can contact the school district tomorrow and start the process. His grades shouldn’t suffer if he misses a few more days. He’s a good student.”
“And your place in Orlando?”
I sigh with frustration, “Well, I’m on a temporary month-to-month lease because the sale of the house I wanted fell through. Everything that could have gone wrong did. Most of our possessions are still in moving boxes.”
“Why don’t you just have the moving company pick everything up and have it delivered here.”
I consider his suggestion, “That’s not a bad idea. I had ordered some basic furniture, but the delivery was delayed. I should be able to cancel the order.” I turn back to him, “I’ll do that. I’ll call them as well and ask if they can deliver our boxes to your place.”
I take a deep breath, willing the nervous flutter in my stomach to calm. “Carson, since I’m staying,” I begin, my voice firm. The words “not that I had much choice” flicker through my mind, but I bite them back. A smile, more hopeful than genuine, stretches across my face. “If we want Connor to feel secure, you’ll have to stop treating me like the enemy.”
I glance at him to see his jaw tight, and his eyes narrowed on the road. He doesn’t even glance my way. But at least he appears to be mulling things over. I give him that time. The ride to his apartment stretches on, the silence tense.
Once Carson pulls into the parking garage, Connor blinks, then rubs the sleep out of his eyes. “We’re home?”
“Yeah, Buddy,” Carson says with a smile and a look in the rearview mirror.
The elevator ride is mostly silent as Connor isn’t fully awake yet. But the moment we step into the apartment, he looks around and declares, “When’s dinner?”
I give a light laugh, “I’m not sure what your dad has on hand. I’ll do some grocery shopping tomorrow, though.”
We both turn and look at Carson, who seems at a loss, “There are plenty of restaurants around...”
I gently interject, “We could order a pizza.”
Connor’s face lights up. “Yeah, pizza would be great. Can we get pepperoni?”
