Owen rips open one of the velvet boxes and pops a piece of chocolate in his mouth. He talks and chews. “I’ll be good!” he declares.
“Manners, Owen. Don’t speak with food in your mouth,” I remind him.
“Yes, ma’am,” he says, covering his mouth. “Want one?” He holds the box out toward Loretta and Elliot, but they shake their heads.
“I’ve had so much sugar this weekend I’m surprised I’m not a candy heart right now,” Loretta laughs as she tells Owen.
“Candy hearts are nasty, Mimi.”
“They’re my favorite,” she gushes.
“They are gross,” Elliot agrees with Owen, then looks at Loretta with a devilish grin.
“More for me then!” she exclaims, taking a sip of her tea.
After Owen puts batteries in his remote-control car and drives it all over the house, Elliot and Loretta say their goodbyes.
“He really can come stay next weekend if you’d like to get some uninterrupted work done on the house,” Elliot tells me as we walk them to the door.
“I know. I really appreciate it. I’m sure he’d love that too!”
Owen runs up and gives them another hug. “Love you!”
“Love you too,” they say. “Be good for your mom. Don’t eat too much chocolate, even if it is Valentine’s Day.” Loretta flashes him a wink, then turns toward me.
“You know…” She lowers her voice. “It’s been years since you’ve had a serious relationship, Katie. You should get back out there and date again.”
All I can do is laugh. “With all my spare time?” I tease. “They say you find love when you’re not looking for it. And well, I ain’t lookin’.” I shrug
She gives me a smile. “You’re right, but it’d be okay if you did,” she says genuinely. “Bye, Owen! Mimi and Pawpaw love you!” Loretta blows a kiss as they walk to their car.
Owen nods with a big cheeky grin. “See you this week!”
“Thank you again,” I tell them as we wave. Once they’re out of sight, I shut the front door. Owen’s already bouncing around the house, but I can’t even be mad about it.
“Want some, Mom?” He holds up one of the chocolates.
I snag a piece and pop it in my mouth, then immediately scrunch up my nose. “Eww!” I hurry and swallow it. “What flavor was that?”
Owen thinks it’s the funniest thing as I try to wash down the disgusting taste. He grabs the key and tries to match it with the one I had.
“It was coconut raspberry,” he explains, then finds another one in the batch and eats it. “Mmm, it’s good, Mom!”
I laugh at how he’s struggling to eat it just like I had. “Mm-hmm. I can tell by the look on your face.”
He quickly realizes how gross it is and runs to the kitchen. I hear him being dramatic as he spits it in the trash. Owen returns and pretends to scrape his tongue. “You’re right. That was disgusting!”
“I always loved these chocolates and never looked to see what kind they were. I wanted to be surprised. However, I’d learned to take a small bite before eating the whole thing because I didn’t want to commit to the ones I ended up not liking. Your grandma would find half-eaten chocolate every year.”
Owen snickers. “You’re funny.”
“You are,” I say, reaching over and poking his side. Immediately, he flinches, and I wiggle my fingers in a tickling motion.
“Noooooo,” he screeches, moving away from me. I motion with my eyes to clean up his mess, and he reluctantly does.
“Thank you,” I say, grabbing the empty glasses to take to the kitchen. After a while, I tell Owen to take a bath as I cook dinner.
When he’s out of the tub, I make our plates, and we sit at the table. “All your homework is done, right?” I ask, just as I do every Sunday night. Instead of checking for myself, I give him the responsibility to make sure it is. I’ve tried to teach him that his grades are his and not mine, so he has no one to blame but himself if he does poorly. Of course, I’ll always help if he asks for it, but for the most part, he’s good about finishing his assignments and turning them in on time.
“Yes, ma’am,” he tells me with a grin before taking a huge bite of his cheeseburger. As we eat, he tells me about his latest school project. Then asks how long until summer because he wants to go to Disney World like a few of his friends have gotten to.
“We’d have to plan that months in advance, sweetie. Maybe next year,” I say, though a trip like that would cost me most of what’s left in my savings. I’ve always wanted to surprise him, but right now, all my extra money is going into the new house.
Once our plates are cleared and the kitchen is clean, Owen and I watch Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown. He snuggles in close to me, and I soak in these little moments with him since he won’t want to much longer. Eventually, he’ll grow up and move out, then I’ll have to adopt a few dogs and cats to keep me company in that big ole house I bought. I squeeze him just a little tighter, knowing his teenage years are right around the corner.
Owen laughs at Lucy and Charlie Brown as I’m lost in my thoughts. Gabe would’ve loved spending time with Owen. Though years have passed, it’ll never erase the pain of my son not having a father to bond with and have these special times with him. Though he doesn’t have a dad in his life, I try hard to make sure he doesn’t feel any less loved.
When the movie ends, Owen brushes his teeth, then I walk him to his room. After he climbs into bed, I sit on the edge and admire the features he shares with his dad.
“Love you, sweetie,” I say as I cover him up, then hand him his stuffed bear my mom got him for Christmas last year.
“Love you too, Mom.”
“Sweet dreams. Good night, my love.” I kiss his forehead, then turn on his night-light.
On the way to my bedroom, I realize how secluded it feels to sleep alone. It’s been my life for so long now, so I should be used to it, but Valentine’s Day only reminds me that I’m still single.
Chapter Six
NOAH
It's been over two weeks since I was released from prison. I've wanted to go to Katie’s house and beg her to listen to me on more than one occasion, but I know it's a bad idea, considering how frustrated she was with me at the bank.
It’s another Monday, so this morning, I decide to do something special for my sister and Tyler. There's a donut shop that Gemma’s always adored that makes special pastries. I park my truck in the side lot at the gym, then walk into the donut shop.
Years may have passed, but Lawton Ridge is a time capsule. I take in the cool breeze and breathe in the fresh air. It's crazy how everything looks the same—the buildings, businesses, and town square. Before my life drastically changed, this was the last place I expected to be long-term because it was so boring. But now I realized how much I took that for granted because I can’t imagine ever leaving again.
The woman who owns the shop greets me with a smile. I lean over the glass case and look at everything. Food like this wasn't available in prison, so I feel like a king as I choose a dozen different cake donuts. If I remember correctly, Gemma's favorite is the blueberry, so I get an extra six of those.