“No, you don’t have to do that,” I say, not wanting to ruin Jack’s time with his dad. “It’s only a small scratch and a goose egg. I got her right inside, cleaned the area with peroxide, put some triple antibiotic ointment on the cut, and now she’s happy as a clam, sitting on the couch with an icepack and watching Mickey Mouse.”
There’s a pause. I pull the phone away and look at it to make sure he’s still on the line, and then he talks.
“You did all of that?”
“Yep. And now I’m going to make them pizza for lunch and give them ice cream for a snack because I feel like the worst babysitter in the world.”
Grayson laughs. “Thank God I stocked the fridge this morning before you came over.”
“No kidding,” I say, relieved he isn’t yelling at me.
“And you aren’t the worst babysitter in the world. Stuff like this happens all the time.”
“To you, maybe, but not to me. I was scared to death. There was so much blood when it first happened.”
“Head wounds tend to bleed a lot. Are you okay?”
Me? Surely, he means Emma. “Yes, Emma is fine. She’s smiling and laughing with Henry. Dare I suggest she’s already forgotten about it?”
“You already told me Emma was fine. I’m asking about you.”
No one ever asks about me, except for Nick, but he’s family, so he doesn’t count.
“Oh. I’m fine too. A little shaken up, but I feel like that’s par for the course.”
“It is. Hey, hold on a sec. Jack is trying to talk to me.”
The phone muffles. I hear Grayson and Jack talking, but I can’t make out what they’re saying. When he comes back on the phone he says, “Are you there?”
“I’m here.”
“Jack and I are going to come home. We’ll have pizza and ice cream with you.”
“Oh no. No, don’t do that. I don’t want you to cut your time together short.”
“It’s his idea. In fact, Jack has asked about you several times since we left, wondering what you’re doing with Emma and Henry today.”
“Is that right?”
“Uh-huh. My kid is having a severe case of FOMO. I think he wants to spend time with you.”
What about you? Do you want to spend time with me too?
“Ask him if he wants a meat lover’s pizza or just cheese.”
“Cheese!” Jack yells.
“He heard you.”
I laugh. “Cheese it is.”
With Grayson’s promise to be home in ten minutes, I hang up the phone and preheat the oven. Since we’re all eating, I go ahead and put both pizzas in.
By the time the boys arrive, the pizzas are almost done. Jack barrels through the front door, excited to tell me about the time he spent with his dad. It wasn’t much time, but enough for him to have some stories.
“We went to the batting cages. Dad rented it for a whole forty-five minutes.”
“Wow. That sounds like fun. I didn’t know you played baseball.”