“Ha, I had a feeling you might be.”
“Are you sure, though? We’re a lot…”
“She can’t wait to meet you and wants all the details on the kids so she can go shopping.”
“She doesn’t have to do that.”
“I said the same thing, but when you meet Mimi, you’ll understand that she does need to. She said it’ll be fun to have kids to shop for again.”
“That’s so sweet of her.”
“She’s the best person I know—after you, of course.”
“You don’t need to qualify it. I know how important she and her husband are to you.”
“I’m closer to them than my own parents.”
“Funny how that happens.”
“Yeah, it is. I also might’ve mentioned that I’m seeing someone when I posted about telling my mother-in-law about you.”
“Oh, that’s big news. Are you ready for that outpouring?”
“I guess I’ll find out. So am I allowed to buy tickets to fly south on the evening of the twenty-fifth? That way, we have Christmas Eve with my family and Christmas Day with yours and Mike’s?”
“That works for me. Thank you for taking us.”
“I can’t wait. Mimi and Stan have a gorgeous pool, and they’re right by the beach. Maybe we can even take the kids up to Disney for an overnight.”
“Whoa, cowboy. You have to plan Disney months in advance these days, so let’s not add that to the mix. They’ll be perfectly happy with the pool and the beach.”
“We’ll do Disney another time.”
“Gage…”
“Yes, Iris?”
“This is feeling an awful lot like a relationship.”
I laugh like I do every time she says that. I laugh more than I have in years around her. “We probably ought to talk about that one of these days, huh?”
“Perhaps.”
“I can’t wait to surprise the kids with the trip.”
“They’ll flip out. We haven’t been anywhere since before Mike died. Laney doesn’t remember flying.”
“We’ll have a great time.”
“When is your work party?”
“Around two.”
“Come see me after that?”
“I’ll be right there.”
IRIS