I held up the toilet paper. “Did you turn my toilet roll the wrong way?” And it was the wrong way. He had to be aware of that.
Jeremy gave me his best What? Me? look. He had an art to it.
“Did Dean put you up to this?” Jeremy pursed his lips, trying to hide his smile. He shook his head. “Don’t you lie to me, Jeremy.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
That was it. I raced over there, dropped the toilet paper, and tickled him. Jeremy screamed and squealed, giggling. He was always giggling and I loved it. It made me feel like he was a happy child.
Once we both calmed a little, I ruffled his hair. “Don’t do that again.” Boy, did I have a bone to pick with Dean tomorrow.
“You were funny, Mommy.” He smiled brightly and my chest tightened. How could I even begin to act put out when he smiled at me like that.
“Well, I’m glad I could entertain you.”
Jeremy giggled again and lay down in his bed. “Are you going to see Dean again?”
I nodded with a smile. “Yes, we’re seeing him tomorrow. Hopefully, you’ll get to meet his friend Jimmy, too. I will also ring Tara and see if she wants to come around.”
Jeremy beamed. “Good. I like Dean. Do you like Dean, Mommy?”
I smiled and stroked his hair. “Yes, I like Dean. I like him very much.”
The next day, there was a ring on the doorbell. Jeremy jumped up, thinking it was Dean, but I had to tell him to hold his horses. They all weren’t due for another three hours yet. When I rang and asked Tara, she was thrilled. It would seem that she and Jimmy had been joined at the hip ever since he came back.
I peeped through the keyhole and someone was standing there holding a big bunch of roses.
“Who is it, Mommy?”
I opened the door. A man with glasses greeted me with a big smile. “I have a delivery for Miss Florentino.”
I nodded. “That’s me.”
He held a clipboard out to me. “Can you sign here?”
I did and he handed me the flowers. “Have a good day, ma’am.”
“Thank you. You, too.” I shut the door behind me and peeked inside the bouquet to find a note.
“Who got you those, Mommy?”
I sat down on the sofa. “I’m not sure. I guess we’ll find out in a bit, won’t we?” I had an inkling who they would be from, so I opened the card straight away. Sure enough, they were from Dean.
Tyler,
I always said you were the type of girl who deserved flowers every day, so here you go. Call this day one of the rest of your life.
If you’ll have me, I promise to make you the happiest woman alive. I can’t wait to see you and Jeremy later. Make sure he knows that for me.
All my love,
Dean
I tried my best not to cry, but it was hard. Jeremy was still looking at me expectantly.
“They’re from Dean. He says to make sure I tell you he’s looking forward to seeing you later.”
“Are you crying again, Mommy?”
I wasn’t, but it was close. “I’m fine, darling. Don’t worry.”
Jeremy shrugged. “I won’t if they’re happy tears. Are they happy tears?”
I nodded. “Yes, they are.”
“Does Dean want to marry you? Because only husbands buy wives flowers.”
I laughed. “Well, that’s not entirely true, Jeremy. Sometimes people buy other people flowers to say thank you, or I love you, or even if there has been a loss of some sort.”
Jeremy’s forehead crinkled a little. “So, why is Dean sending flowers?”
Well, this was awkward. “Erm, I guess it’s because we’ve known each other a very, very long time. He has always been very special to me.”
Jeremy kicked his leg up and down. “Do you love him?”
I couldn’t lie to him. Love could be said in so many ways with so many different meanings. “Yes, I do. We have always been very close.”
“You’re not going to send him away like Evan, are you?”
I felt the guilt come. I had been through this conversation with Jeremy in regards to Evan. I explained that we were still friends, but we would not see each other like we used to anymore. He took it rather well, despite the fact he had kind of known him all his life, but hearing him now made me think he was hiding his true feelings.
“I know I’ve asked you this before, but are you upset over Evan not being around as much?”
Jeremy shrugged. “I like Evan. He’s nice, but he’s not my daddy.”
I nodded. I always made sure he knew that. “Yes, you’re right. He’s not your daddy.”
“I like Dean. He’s funny.” He giggled again, like he remembered something. “When is he coming?”