“Really?” she asks slowly, propping a hip against the counter.
“Yes, really. Why not?” I question, mocking her position.
“I don’t know,” she says, glancing around the room. “Do you think you can handle keeping Max all day?” I know she doesn’t mean that in a bad way, she just knows that I’ve never watched a child for any extended period of time.
“Sure,” I nod. “Max and I have fun together. I can handle it.”
“You don’t have to work?” she asks.
“Nope.”
“Are you on-call?”
“Nope,” I chuckle. “But it’s okay, I understand if you’re not comfortable with me watching Max for a full day.”
“No. No, that’s not it.” Dropping her dishrag into the soapy water, she steps closer to me. “That’s not it at all. I just wanted to make sure you wouldn’t get called into work. If you want to keep him, he’s yours.”
“Yo, Max! Get in here, bud!” I yell, giving Harley a quick peck on the lips.
“What?” he asks breathlessly, skidding into the kitchen.
“You’re going to stay with me this Saturday while your mom works. What do you think about that?” His eyes go wide as he sidles in next to his mom.
“Really?” he asks. She nods, and Max busts out in a little dance.
“Cool!” he booms. “Can we do something fun?”
“Uh, yeah,” I say, looking at him like he’s crazy for even asking that question. “Now go get ready for bed, it’s getting late.” Once again he bounces off down the hall, and I briefly think that I would give anything for just a fraction of his energy.
Harley waits until Max leaves the room and then picks up her rag and starts absently washing a dirty pan. “So, are you still going to camp out with Max on Friday?” she asks timidly.
“Of course. I pinky swore.” Her eyes shift to mine, an amused grin gracing her face. “And I don’t break pinky swears,” I add, right before I snap her butt with the dishrag.
“HAVE YOU HAD FUN tonight?” Harley asks, zipping up Max’s sleeping bag.
“Yup,” he says, turning his head to face me. His eyes are sleepy, and I can tell that it’s only going to be a matter of minutes before he’s fast asleep.
“Are you gonna sleep here with us, mama?” he asks with a yawn.
Harley kisses his cheek and runs a hand through his hair. “No baby, I’m going to sleep in the house. This is a boys’ night, remember?” She winks at me and Max nods. “But I’ll stay here until you fall asleep.” Kissing him one more time, she scoots over to me and I pull her between my legs, resting her back against my front. We watch patiently as Max’s eyelids blink heavily several times.
“Ty?” he whispers, prying his eyes back open.
“Yeah, buddy?”
“I had fun camping out with you.”
“I had fun camping out with you too,” I whisper, leaning around Harley to run my hand through his hair. “It was the best campout ever.”
A lazy smile tugs at the corner of his mouth, but he’s too exhausted to keep it there. His eyes drift shut and when I think he’s finally dozed off, he mumbles four little words that rock my world to its core.
“I love you, Ty.”
I thought that when Harley told me she loved me, I had won the fucking lottery. But that doesn’t even compare to how it feels to hear Max say the exact same thing. There’s just something so innocent about it, and the way the words easily fell from his lips has left me stunned and fighting for air. I can’t explain it…it’s nothing I’ve ever felt before and something I want to feel again every single day.
I pick a shocked Harley up out of my lap and set her down next to me. Leaning forward, I swipe my hand across Max’s face, pushing his hair out of his eyes. Kissing him gently on the forehead, I whisper, “Max?” His drooping lids peel open, bobbing several times.
“Hmmm?” Waking him back up probably isn’t the best thing to do, bu