Perfect Summer by Bethany Lopez
Faith
“Good afternoon, Ms. Jackson,” I said as I walked down Town Square.
“Afternoon, Faith. How’s your darling girl?” she asked.
“Hope’s wonderful, thanks for asking.”
I kept walking, enjoying the sun on my face as I came to my destination. Queen’s Unmentionables, Liv’s lingerie shop.
“Hello, hello,” I called out when I walked inside.
“Faith?” a voice asked from the back room.
“The one and only,” I replied, walking over to the mannequin on display to feel the silkiness of the lingerie it wore.
“Someone sounds chipper today,” Liv said, coming out of the back with a box in her arms.
“Can’t complain,” I said, moving to look inside the box. “New inventory?”
“Yup, just came in. You want first dibs?” she asked, placing the box on the counter by the register.
“You know it,” I said eagerly, sticking my hands in like a kid at Christmas. “Oh, this is gorgeous.”
It was lavender silk with a lace bodice and cutout back.
“I bet I know a certain someone who would fall over if he saw you in that.”
I held the lingerie up against me and looked at her.
“Well, we’re not quite at that level yet, but yeah … I think Mitch would enjoy this. Until then, it’ll be a treat just for me.”
“Atta girl.”
I put the piece to the side and kept digging.
“How are things with you and Ryder? Any closer to finalizing the divorce?” I asked.
They’d been legally separated almost a year but could not come to an agreement over custody of their parrot, Kiwi. I knew how hard it had been on Olivia, and I had to wonder if this divorce was what she really wanted. Still, she was my best friend, so I was there for her in any capacity she needed.
“Not yet. We’ve been talking about going to therapy.”
“That would be good,” I assured her, plucking out a lavender bra and panty set. “I am loving this color.”
“I can see that,” Liv said with a smile. “it’ll look great on you. Anyway, enough talk about Ryder, tell me about your date with Mitch.”
I told her all about our trip out to Billings and by the time I finished with the story of my dad finding us making out in the car, we were both laughing so hard we were practically crying.
“Oh my gosh, I can picture your dad … and Mitch. He must have been horrified.”
“It was a moment none of us will soon forget, that’s for sure,” I said once I caught my breath. “I’ll take all of these.”
“You got it,” she said, moving to the register.
Olivia always insisted on giving me the friends discount, even though I tried to tell her not to. It worked out, though, since I gave her a discount on all of her appointments with me as well.
“We should do dinner sometime this week,” I said as I took my bag of goodies from her.
“That sounds perfect. I’ll call you.”
“Okay, love you.”
“Love you, too, girl,” Liv called as I turned to the door.
Once I was back on the street, I turned my feet toward the school so I could be there to pick up Hope.
“Well, if it isn’t my partner in crime.”
I turned my head to see Mitch coming out of Java Jitters. My tummy tickled and my heart lifted at the sight of him.
“Hey, how are you?” I asked as I walked over to him.
“It’s a beautiful day,” he replied.
“Isn’t it?”
Mitch grinned and looked at the bag in my hand.
“Oh, what have you got there?” he asked, making a grab for it.
“None of your business,” I joked, keeping it out of his reach.
“Hmmm,” he murmured teasingly. “I was about to call you. I was wondering if I could take you and Hope to Sauce it Up for dinner tonight.”
“That sounds great. She’ll love that,” I replied and thought, so would I.
“Great, it’s a date. Should I pick you guys up?”
“Sure. How about six-thirty? That’ll give me enough time to get us both cleaned up and ready.”
“Sounds good.”
My phone went off in my pocket, so I pulled it out and said, “Excuse me. I just need to check this.”
Having a child meant I always had to check my phone to make sure nothing was wrong. Luckily it wasn’t the school, but it was a client in trouble.
“Oh no,” I whispered as I read the text.
“Everything okay?” Mitch asked.
“It’s a client. Her daughter took scissors to her hair and now mom’s texting me with a Mayday. Her daughter refuses to leave her room looking the way she does now.”
“You’d better go. Let me know if you need to push back the dinner.”
“Yeah, shoot, I was going to pick up Hope from school. I’ll need to call my parents and see if one of them can get her.”
“Why don’t I pick her up?” Mitch suggested.
My gaze flew to his and I asked, “Are you serious?”
He shrugged and said, “Well, yeah. We’re getting together tonight for dinner anyway, right? I can pick her up, we can go for ice cream, and then we can go back to your place and wait for you … or I could take her to mine. Whatever you need.”
“Wow, that would really help me out,” I said, my mind spinning. “I’ll call the school and let them know and Hope knows where I keep the spare key in case we get locked out. I’ll meet you both there as soon as I’m done.”
One of the perks of living in a small town … here, a phone call would suffice, but in Chicago, Mitch would have already had to be on file as allowed to pick Hope up and would have to show picture ID.
“Perfect.”
“Thanks so much,” I said, and on impulse, I leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. “You’re a lifesaver.”