She set down the dish towel she had in her hand. “Okay.”
“Where’s Dad?”
“Watching a movie. What’s going on, Landry?”
“Can we go for a drive?”
“Of course. Let me grab my coat.”
“What will you tell him?”
“Your father?”
I nodded.
“I’ll come up with something.” My mom, bless her heart, winked at me before walking away. She was back in not much longer than it would’ve taken for her to get the coat she hadn’t yet put on. She held it out for me to help her with it. “I told him we were going for ice cream.”
“In the dead of winter?”
“Why not? We used to go for ice cream all the time. The weather didn’t matter.”
Once she buttoned her coat, I hugged her. “Thanks, Mom.”
“Come on, let’s get out of here before he decides to come with us.”
“I’m guessing this has something to do with Sloane,” she said after I’d backed my car out of the garage and the door had closed.
I put my foot on the brake. “What makes you say that?”
“The two of you have tiptoed around each other long enough. For goodness’ sake, why don’t you admit what everyone else already knows?”
“Who knows what already?”
“The two of you are crazy about each other.”
I backed the rest of the way out of the driveway and drove a mile down the road to the town park.
“Why are you stopping here?” my mother asked when I pulled up to the curb.
“What do you mean?”
“I thought we were going to get ice cream.”
“I thought that’s just what you told Dad. Do you really want to?”
“Of course I do.”
“Okay, but wait. Before we do that, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Go ahead.”
“Sloane’s pregnant.”
“I see.” My mother turned in her seat so she was facing me. “Your baby, I take it?”
I raised a brow, and she put her hand on mine. “How far along is she?”
“I don’t know.” I counted on my fingers. “Five months?”