The Fling

15

I told Shawn I had to think about his suggestion, and he graciously said to take all the time I needed. I was unsurprisingly up most of the night trying to decide what to do.

On the one hand, I felt the same way he did about losing that last night together. I'd been looking forward to it for obvious reasons, but more than that, it would have given us closure. Saying goodbye after hours of mind-blowing sex would have been so much better than the way things went down.

On the other hand, I'd made up my mind about not continuing things outside of Palm Springs. Saying it was one final time together was fine in theory, but once the seal was broken on us hooking up in LA, it was going to be really hard to stick to my plan. If he reached out to me, which he could do now that he had my number, I might cave. And then what? I'd grow attached and when he eventually realized that he didn't want to spend the rest of his life with someone my age, or when he inevitably found out I was a mom, I'd be dumped and broken-hearted. Again.

More than that, I wasn't sure how my dating someone would impact my kids, and as famous as he was, it would be hard to keep it a secret for long. The divorce had been hard on them, and they were currently coping with their dad remarrying. Introducing a man into the equation could be very upsetting for Hannah and Bertie, and Lizzie would probably freak out since he'd been her crush.

I still hadn't given him an answer by Friday. After spending the morning proofreading a geology textbook, I went to my favorite garden center and bought six rose bushes, each in a different shade of pink. While Cosmo watched, I dug holes and planted them along the back fence.

"No peeing on these, got it?" I said to my dog. If he understood, he kept it to himself.

When I was done in the yard, I packed Bertie and Han's overnight bags since their dad was picking them up at five for his first weekend with them since the wedding.

Eloise, Mia, and I carpooled to and from school, and it was El's day to bring them home. She came inside with her son Nathan, who was Bertie's best friend. They took Cosmo into the back yard and began running around while he barked excitedly, and I was positive one of my new bushes was going to get trampled or uprooted.

"Glass of wine?" I asked my friend.

"I wish I could, but we have dinner with the in-laws tonight and I have to be sharp or Queen Lucille will cause me to say something I regret."

I laughed. "We don't want that!"

"Actually, I kinda do want it, but I don't need to start the weekend off with a fight with Paul. He's been so on edge since they canceled his latest show." Her husband was a television producer who made it big in the 2000's but hadn't made a hit show in over a decade.

I thought about telling her about my encounter with Shawn, but I didn't want anyone influencing my decision, and El tended to have very strong opinions. Once my mind was made up, I'd fill her and Mia in.

After she left, I insisted both kids take baths since Bert wasn't really on top of that kind of thing. He was twenty minutes late, blaming traffic for his tardiness, which was the excuse he used all the time when he was cheating, so my blood pressure spiked a bit.

"You look good, Abi," he commented as he looked me up and down. "Nice to see you taking care of yourself again." I half expected him to add that I should have done this when we were still married, but for once, he held his tongue.

"Have a great weekend," I told him, refusing to reply to the comment on my appearance or tell him he looked good, too, which he did. "You'll drop them off at seven on Sunday?"

"It will be a little earlier. Lizzie is staying at her mom's, and I'm picking her up at six. I figured I'd swing by here first."

"Not a problem."

He hustled the kids into his Mercedes and took off, going too fast for our residential street, as I went into my empty house and sighed. Several of my friends were divorced, and they'd told me that the weekends without their children were hard at first, but over time they learned to enjoy them. I wasn't there yet. I missed my family, and quite honestly, I still sometimes missed my ex-husband.

"There's one way you could enjoy yourself this weekend," I muttered to myself as I surveyed my dinner options in the refrigerator. I shut the door and swiveled around, picking my phone up from the counter. I stared at it for several minutes before sending Shawn a text.

Are you free tomorrow night?

I waited for him to reply, knowing that he always had his phone on him, but no message alert appeared on my screen.

I took Cosmo for a long walk around the neighborhood, paying special attention to my neighbors' rose bushes since I knew very little about growing them. When we got home, I put kibble in his bowl and made myself a simple dinner of leftover chicken parm casserole and a salad.

By seven-thirty, I was feeling weirdly stir-crazy, so I started cleaning out and reorganizing my kitchen cabinets. I'd sorted through all the plastic containers and lids, recycling those that didn't have a mate, when a call came in. I smiled when I saw who it was. "Hi," I said brightly.

"Hey. Sorry I didn't respond earlier, but I was out with a friend who has a crazy no-phones rule. I am free tomorrow, and I'm glad you want to get together." I could tell he was smiling by the sound of his voice.

"Good," I said as a tingle shot to my core. "But it's just a one time thing, right?"

"If that's what you want, then yes. Can I take you someplace nice for dinner? I'm sure someone will give me a last minute reservation."

"We can't be seen together."

"You're definitely not married?" he laughed.

"I can send you a copy of my divorce papers. It's more because you are famous and if someone spots us and takes a photo, it'll be weird for me."

"Because of the age thing."

"Partly, but mostly it's that I'm private and I don't need everyone I know speculating about my love life," I explained. I meant the kids in particular, but he didn't need to know this.

"I'm so used to the speculation that I forget it impacts others. We can eat in. Your place or mine?"

I glanced around my home. It would take hours to hide all the evidence that pointed to the fact that I was a mom. "I'd love to see your house since I am interested in knowing what your decor style is."

"You're gonna be disappointed, because my place is barely decorated at this point. I've been buying furniture as I find things I like, but mostly I have empty rooms."

"As long as there's a place to sit and eat, then it's fine." And a bed, I thought to myself.

"It's settled then. Come over around seven? I'll cook."

"Why am I surprised that you know how to do that?" I teased.

"I can only make a few things, but I'm pretty good at them. Are there any foods you hate so that I avoid them?"

"I'll eat anything. Want me to bring a bottle of wine?"

"That would be amazing," he replied happily.

Shawn told me his address, I entered it in my phone, and then we said goodbye.

I continued the cabinet project, and by the time I was done, it was quite late. After changing into my pajamas and completing my bathroom routine, I crawled into bed, letting my thoughts spin in circles, mainly about one thing.

Tomorrow I was going to have an incredible time. Obviously this was bittersweet since it was our last encounter, but I was going to do everything I could to make it perfect.