Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 77980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
“Hey, you,” he returned.
August opened his mouth to say something else, but he was cut off by Reese’s, “Did you meet my pop, Clint?”
Clint smiled at Reese. “I was just about to. Hey, I’m Clint. I’ve heard a lot about you.” Clint held his hand out, and they shook.
“Same about you. Thanks for helping Reese learn to weld. I love the wine rack he brought me.”
“No need to thank me. He’s a great kid. I have fun with him, and he’s a natural.” Was that okay to say? Did it sound like he was trying too hard? What he’d said was true, but he didn’t know if it was weird to say to the ex-husband of your boyfriend about their son.
“We still have to work on that other thing,” Reese said, but he wasn’t quite looking Clint in the eyes. He figured Reese wasn’t sure how he felt about Clint and his dad being a couple, and he was testing the waters. Maybe he thought Clint didn’t really want to spend time with him, or now that they were together, it would become all about August and not about Reese.
“Absolutely. I’ve been excited to get started. You name the time, and I’ll make it happen.” And he would. He would do everything in his power to make sure Reese knew that Clint loving August didn’t mean they wouldn’t have time for him.
“What other thing?” August asked.
“None of your business, Dad.” Reese grinned at his father, then Clint.
Lewis cleared his throat just as Scout shouted. “Reese? Wanna go swimming?”
“Yeah, I’ll be right there. Pop, you wanna go swimming with us?”
“I will in a bit,” Lewis said.
Clint’s gaze flickered to August, wondering if he got his feelings hurt, but then Reese said, “You too, Dad.”
“Sure. I’ll go in a bit too.”
Reese took off with the boys just as the rest of the group approached. August introduced Lewis to everyone, each of Clint’s friends glancing his way after saying hello. Yes, his boyfriend’s ex-husband was there, but that didn’t mean things had to be weird, did it?
“Anyone want a drink?” Deke asked.
“Yes,” Clint and August said at the same time, then chuckled. “I missed you,” August added softly.
“I missed you too.” He had, even though it had only been a day since they’d seen each other.
He could feel Lewis watching them, dissecting them. He figured it had to be strange for him to see August with another man for the first time.
“Do you have any kids?” Lewis asked, and they played that game for a few minutes, getting to know each other politely. That somehow veered into stories of the past, where Lewis talked about when Reese was little and random things he and August used to do. It didn’t seem like he was trying to be an asshole, just making conversation about things they had in common, but it still made Clint feel more alone than he’d like to admit.
Grady was the first adult in the pool, running and landing with a massive cannonball beside the kids, who laughed. Roe and Holden found their way there next, then Vince. Deke was manning the grill, Colby chatting with him, the group trying to leave the three of them alone for a bit.
After a while, Lewis said, “I think I’m going to go swim with Reese.” His gaze shot toward August.
August looked at Clint before replying, “I’ll be there soon.”
Lewis nodded, tugged his shirt, shoes, and socks off, then made his way to the water.
“Did you bring swim trunks?” August asked Clint, lingering close. August was already wearing his.
“In the truck. You should go out there. It’s okay that you want to.” He knew August well enough to know he would want to be out there with Reese.
“I know.” August reached out, brushed his thumb over Clint’s hand. “You good?”
He smiled. “Yeah, I am.” And he was. Sure, he was being a little weird, and he couldn’t figure out why, but he was good. “He tell you whatever he came to say yet?”
August shook his head. “Reese has been around, and he said we have to talk alone first.” He was quiet for a moment, the two of them looking toward the pool where everyone was playing, dunking and splashing each other. “It’s strange having him here. He’s been so engaged in a way he hadn’t been in a long time, and hearing from Reese, he’s been like that the whole time Reese has been with him.”
Did it make him an asshole that hearing those words made his chest tighten? Not that he didn’t want Reese and August to have a strong relationship with Lewis. He did. Clint would never wish that away, but he also couldn’t stop all the ridiculous questions running circles around his brain. What if he didn’t have a place in that? What if Lewis wanted August back? They’d shared a life together and had a son together. Maybe August would like to build that up again if Lewis wanted to. “That’s good, though. Y’all deserve that. Must have realized what he was missing.”