A Simple Wish About love - Karice Bolton Page 0,21
her home bright and early for their day of hiking. Her son was at school, so it would just be the two of them.
Before he had a chance to walk up to the front door, she bounded out with two backpacks. She looked amazing in her jeans and hiking boots. She’d tied a lightweight rain jacket around her waist and waved at him before making her way over.
“I got us plenty of snacks and water because aren’t snacks what hiking is really about?”
“The water or the snacks?” Slade joked.
He wanted to reach in and give her a hug as if she’d been a longtime friend, but he didn’t.
Instead, she gave him a quick hug and slung a backpack in his direction.
“All yours. I’ve got freshly made jerky from the Silver Ridge smokehouse, turkey sandwiches, raspberry thumbprint cookies, which probably aren’t as good as what you can whip up, and water.”
“You made cookies last night?” he asked, surprised.
She laughed and shook her head. “No way. I bought them this morning when I went out to get the supplies for today.”
“I could have picked up some stuff,” Slade offered.
“I just stopped off after I dropped off Scott at school.”
“Oh, and Dew is meeting us at the trailhead.”
Slade felt a dash of disappointment run through him, but he completely understood. They barely knew each other, and it wouldn’t exactly be a great idea for a woman to take a guy out to the middle of the woods by herself.
“Awesome.” Slade smiled and held up his backpack and turned around to put it in the trunk of his rental car.
“We can take my Jeep if you want,” Erika offered.
“Okay. Sure. That might make it up any dicey areas a little better than this coupe.”
“I’m guessing so.” She eyed the car. “Did you pick that out?”
“No. It was all they had left. Well, this or a convertible with no room for luggage.”
“I didn’t think it looked like your kind of car. You remind me of a truck or SUV guy.”
“You don’t see me cruising in a sportscar? Pedal to the metal and all that?”
She shoved her backpack in the rear of her Jeep, and he did the same.
“No.” She laughed and climbed into the driver’s seat.
“Okay, buddy,” she began as soon as he climbed in. “I hope you’ve got some endurance.”
“As long as I’ve got jerky, I’m good to go.”
“That’s what I like to hear. You’re no wuss.”
Slade smiled at Erika as she backed out of the driveway. He liked her home. It looked exactly like what Slade would have pictured for her and Scott.
It was a bungalow with a wraparound porch and four rocking chairs on the porch. Wildflowers had taken over the front yard, and she had several potted plants on the steps leading up to the porch.
“I see you have four rocking chairs?”
She nodded. “Scott always has friends over. It just made sense to give them all a place to sit rather than on my porch rail where they could fall off.”
“You have a really full life.” Slade gave Erika a sideways glance and saw her smile.
“I do. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. It might not have worked out with Scott’s dad, but I wouldn’t do a thing differently.”
Slade drew a breath and thought about some of his regrets in life. They were doozies, and he didn’t have the ability to magically make the disappointment vanish.
He looked over at Erika. “I’ve noticed I’ve never heard you mention his name.”
Her brows furrowed. “Scott’s dad?”
Slade nodded.
Erika shrugged as she turned down a side street that led away from town.
“I try not to think about him, but that’s kind of hard to do since he’s the father of my child.”
“I can imagine.” Slade nodded. “Does Scott see him a lot?”
Erika clenched the steering wheel. “He’s never met Scott.”
Slade wheezed astonishment, and Erika nodded.
“I know. I can’t believe it myself.” She didn’t lessen her grip on the wheel. “It’s been twelve years, and it still makes me as angry as the day it happened.”
“Scott has never met his dad?” Slade couldn’t imagine not meeting his son if he had one, which he didn’t think he did.
“Never.”
“Do you think he wants to meet him?” Slade asked, unsure of the dynamics at play.
She let out a low whistle. “I don’t know. I’d imagine there is some sort of curiosity. I know I’d be curious.”
Slade wasn’t sure where to go with this. Had Scott not met him because Erika didn’t let him, or did Scott’s dad not