Candy Apple Red - Book Two

Chapter 36 - Moving Day

I wake up early Sunday morning and get myself groomed for the day. Around 7:30 am, I bid my boys farewell before heading to Momma's house to meet her and Hank for our trip. The u-haul is parked in front of the house along with Hank's truck. I park my mustang next to his truck, walk up the front porch and respectfully ring the doorbell instead of entering. Momma answers, "Lord child! You don't ring the doorbell when I know you are coming." she belts out with a chuckle. 

I shrug my shoulders, "Well, you never know. I'm trying to respect your privacy." I tell her. 

She squeezes my arm, "Well, I appreciate that. You've already seen too much." 

Hank comes in from the kitchen, "Are we ready to go?" He asks. 

Momma and I nod our heads as Hank leads us out. Hank jumps into his pick-up, "I'll follow you ladies, down there." he says. 

Momma blows him a kiss, "Bye, baby." 

He nods in her direction and winks, "See you, sugar."

I bite my lip to keep from laughing before we climb into the u-haul and set off on our trip with Hank following close behind. 

I nudge Momma playfully down the road, "So I need details, Momma. When and where did you meet Hank?" 

"His mother is a resident at the assisted living facility. He's been coming there for years. He was married for a while and got divorced last year. He asked me for my number earlier this summer before you came home, and I gave it to him. We have seen each other ever since." she tells me. 

"You look like a serious couple to me." 

She grins, "We are. He's such a good guy. He's a homebody, though. I'm not sure how that will affect my retirement plan because I want to move to Florida. He's not in favor of leaving Laurel, but we will see where the road takes us. We love spending time with each other." 

"Well, good, Momma. I'm glad you are doing well and have someone to spend time with." 

She reaches out her hand for mine, "Thank you, sweetie."

"So Momma, I need your opinion on something. Seth wants me to think about whether I want to be a stay at home step-mommy to John Luke or get a job. He's had a terrible time finding a babysitter, and this last one is a piece of work, but he wants me to think about what I want to do. What do you think I should do?"

"Well, have you thought about it?" she asks curiously.

"I have, and I think I'm leaning towards staying home with John Luke at least until he's in school, but I'd hate to have Seth pay my bills for me." 

"Oh, lord, honey. I'm telling you that Seth is not concerned with paying your bills to have you stay home. I know he's had a terrible time finding someone reliable. If you enjoy being home with John Luke, then I'd say just stay home with him. It's only for a couple of years unless you two have kids of your own." She says. 

I shrug my shoulders, "Yeah, I want to have kids. I also want to help provide for my family as well." 

She snickers, "Who says that stay-at-home moms don't provide for their families? Seth?" 

"Oh, God, no! He says it's amazing having me stay with John Luke." 

"See, that's what I thought. I think you are overthinking things. What's the harm if you stay home with John Luke and possibly a couple more kids after that before you go job hunting? You will be able to find a job easily once you start looking. You are still so young. You have your whole life ahead of you. At least you got the schooling out of the way. I know that Linemen make really good money so I'm not concerned with you all financially. Look at the rock on your finger. I guarantee Seth had paid for that outright."