Page 8 of Hometown Harbor 3
“Yes, just like the billion other times I’ve called you. Everything is fine, and I was calling to say we’ll be about an hour late. We took a shortcut, or Carmine took a shortcut, and we got lost. Feel free to have food ready for me when I get home.”
“I can’t read your mind. What do you want?” April asked although she knew what he was going to ask for.
“Noodles with butter and cheese would be great,” Kylen said. “I’ll take rotini if you have it.”
“How very original. Rotini differs from the usual shells, and I appreciate the bold choice. I’ll have a plate ready when you make it home. Are you staying in tonight?”
“It depends on what Deenie has planned,” Kylen said.
“I just got home, and I’m not sure, but I haven’t seen her without Dalton since you’ve been gone,” April said.
“I called that one from the moment he first walked into the room. Her eyes lit up like firecrackers,” Kylen said.
“Young love is such fun,” she said wistfully.
“Carmine wants you on speaker so he can say a word. Keep it clean because I’m right here, and I’ll jump out of this moving car if it even gets PG-rated.”
“Hey, I’m hungry, too,” Carmine said. “I’ll have noodles, too, but throw something on them to jazz them up.”
“I’m starting to feel like a short-order cook, but you’ve got it,” April said.
April started the noodles and looked at the weather forecast, which was sunny for days, and then a few clouds moved in while Hurricane Martha swept past Cuba before heading out to sea. That was the norm at that time of year since it was officially hurricane season. Any Florida resident knew what to expect and hoped the major storms would remain at sea. April spent most of her life in Florida and knew when to listen to evacuation orders and when they were nonsense. Hurricanes were to be taken very seriously, but she had learned to read the signs as well as a meteorologist like most Floridians.
April put half the noodles into a container of leftover chicken cacciatore, which would make a delightful meal for Carmine. She tossed Kylen’s in butter, and she’d nuke them both when they arrived home. April laid back on the couch and decided to catch a few winks in the air-conditioned house. Tabitha was out painting, and Deb was with Nathaniel.
The phone chimed, and it was Greg. They hadn’t spoken in months except when it concerned Kylen because he was an important part of her son’s life. April was too embarrassed to tell anyone what they were arguing about. It was over the stupid sports memorabilia collection their father left behind. Greg wanted it, and April wanted it for Kylen. The humor came in when they had it appraised, and most of it was fake and the signatures forged. They didn’t even laugh about it together. Instead, they each simmered in their anger.
“Hi, Greg. Kylen will be here in about thirty minutes,” April said.
“No. I wanted to talk to you. I’m feeling depressed, and you’re the only one I can talk to to get me out of my doldrums. I also need your medical advice,” Greg said.
“Okay, medical advice first. What’s up? Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m fine, but I have Addie, who’s eleven months old, and I can’t get her to eat anything. Julie hasn’t addressed it to my satisfaction, and now I’m worried.”
“Is she running a fever?”
“No, but she’s irritable like I would be if I didn’t eat anything. Julie is getting a ‘mommy makeover,’ so I have Addie for a week while she recovers. What should I do?”
“You’d think you were a first-time parent. First, you should take her to her pediatrician. In the meantime, make sure she has fluids like Pedialyte. I can hear her laughing in the background, and that’s a good sign. It sounds like food allergies to me, or she could just be a picky eater. She’s not even a year yet, so don’t expect her to eat a cheeseburger and fries with you at the drive-in,” April said. “If her pediatrician isn’t available, take her to an urgent clinic but not the emergency department. This is not an emergency but a concern you’ll get to the bottom of.”
“Thanks. I feel better just talking to you,” Greg said. “Tabitha took care of all of this with Deenie. I should have given her more credit.”
“That’s what I’m here for. Put Addie on the phone.”
April talked to Addie, who cooed and said a few unintelligible words. They were probably just grunts but they were the beginning of forming words. She was definitely meeting that milestone. April wasn’t too worried because children were picky eaters and if it was food allergies, it was a good thing to know about now. Kylen was seventeen and rarely ate anything adventurous. She hoped he’d branch out someday, and he would when he got out in the world.
“I’m glad Addie managed to break the ice for us because I missed you, big brother. We don’t have a large family and need to stick together,” April said.
“I’ll call again when my hands aren’t so full.”
“Good. I want to fill you in on the man in my life.”
“What? Why am I just now hearing about this? Kylen is supposed to keep me up to date on these things,” Greg said.
“I’ll call you,” April said. She heard footsteps clomping up the stairs to the deck.
“We’re home,” Kylen called out.