Going Full Throttle

Chapter 40

"How's our boy been?" Twyla asked as she sank into the lawn chair next to me.

"Finn's been good," I sighed. "His fever hasn't been back since it spiked last week. The tests his family doctor ordered all came back good. For all intents and purposes, he's a healthy kid. Even though I still have a hard time relaxing sometimes because I'm terrified something will happen."

"That's all good. Except for the not relaxing part. Welcome to parenting," Twyla smiled, "but I was actually talking about Tyler."

"Oh," I laughed as I watched the man in question. Tyler pushed his hair out of his face as he crouched down next to Finn on the lawn. Tyler picked up a log so that Finn could look underneath it for worms. His biceps and bare back flexed as he easily lifted the weight, making my mouth go a little dry. Finn's health had taken precedent this week, obviously. Tyler still spent the night but we mostly talked and took turns checking on Finn. It was sweet how much he cared about my kid, but I was getting a little desperate for some adult time.

"He's good too," I responded to Twyla's question. "He's been amazing actually. I can't believe he hasn't run yet."

"He's a good man," Twyla agreed with a smile toward the boys as they shouted and laughed over how many worms they found. "I always knew that he'd settle down eventually. That whole playboy act didn't sit right with the man he showed himself to be."

"I don't know if you could really say he's settled down," I said. "I mean, we aren't even technically dating. We haven't had any conversations about what will happen when he leaves. I'm pretty sure whatever this is won't continue."

"Do you want it to?" Twyla asked.

I hesitated to answer. Honestly, I forced myself not to think about the end of summer. There was something natural about Finn, Tyler, and I together. I knew I should have tried harder to keep Tyler and Finn from getting too attached, but it was impossible. The three of us clicked into place like puzzle pieces. We fell into a routine as rhythmically as the waves washed up on the sand.

Yet, I knew that in a little over a month at best, Tyler would leave.

I was saved from answering when Tyler and Finn came barrelling over to show us their finds.

"Look, Aunty!" Finn shrieked, "We found so many wowms!"

"I see," I said as I stretched my neck back to avoid a face full of the wiggly little things. "What are you going to do with them?"

"They awe fow fishing!" Finn announced proudly.

"Come on, kiddo," Twyla said with a sigh as she pulled herself out of the seat, "let's go put them in Beau's boat."

Twyla and Finn walked away together to the end of the dock where Beau's boat bobbed in the water. He kept a bin of soil out there so that when they went fishing, they already had live bait. It had been the highlight of Finn's summer to help him keep it stocked. I watched them go for a moment then turned to smile at Tyler who had filled Twyla's empty seat.

"Hey you," he grinned as he reached his hand out to grab mine.

"Ew-" my arm shot away from his, "-you were touching worms."

"I didn't touch them. Just Finn did." Tyler tilted his face toward me and rounded his eyes while he dramatically stuck out his bottom lip. It was the exact face that Finn and I gave him on a regular basis to get what we wanted. Somehow it didn't quite resonate the same way coming from a rugged man. It was worse. The ridiculous pout paired with his sharp jaw and deep eyes created an odd mixture of butterflies and giggles in my stomach.