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Caleb nodded, then hugged him.
Wilda patted Caleb’s back with a trembling hand, then went to Milo. “Thank you. I thought for sure he was going to hit the ground.”
Milo rubbed his shoulder. “That was close.”
“Are you hurt?”
“The chain got me. It’s fine.”
Mathias walked over to them. “Nice save.”
“Welcome back.”
“Thanks.” The two men shook hands. “Do you want to show me the pool table I’ve been hearing so much about?”
Wilda put her hands on her hips. “Wow. That didn’t take long.”
Milo laughed. “Priorities.”
Mathias put Caleb down, and they all headed inside to check out the pool table. Mathias stopped a few feet away from it.
“Wow. It’s beautiful.” He moved closer, then leaned down and looked across the felt surface. “I’ve got to try this out.”
Milo handed him a cue, and Mathias turned to Wilda. “Not a whole game. Just…”
“Go for it.”
Milo set up the balls, then Mathias took the first shot, sending the balls across the table. When Milo leaned over to take a shot, he groaned. He straightened for a moment, rubbed his shoulder, then leaned down again and took his shot.
Mathias watched him. “Is your shoulder okay?”
“I sank the ball, didn’t I?”
A few minutes later, Mathias sank the winning ball and set his cue on the table. “Okay, I’ll stop ignoring my family now.”
Wilda looked at him. “You can start by telling me how nice this room looks.”
Mathias looked around the room. “It looks great. The paint color is perfect. I love the white trim. Excellent job.”
“Thank you.”
She showed him what she’d been doing in the dining room, then they all went to the living room. Milo stayed on his feet while Mathias and Wilda sat down.
“I’m going to let you two catch up. I need to run into town and get some snacks and beer for tonight. Do we need anything for the house?”
Wilda shook her head. “I went to the store yesterday. I think we’re good.”
“Okay. I’ll, ah…be back in a bit.”
Wilda watched him go out the front door, then turned back to Mathias, who raised an eyebrow. “Seems you two have settled into a routine.”
“Yeah. It’s been great.”
“Hmm.”
“So, tell me about Boise.”
“You don’t really want to know about Boise.”
