Free Huntress by Nicole Hamlett Page B

father. Nodding to myself I continued into the kitchen.
    Steak or chicken? I suppose that if that was the only decision I had to make today, it was a good day. I didn’t have to decide. A pot roast was simmering in the crock pot.
    Damn I loved having a live-in. I peeked into the pot and inhaled. This was probably the reason my stomach was growling. Seasoned baby red potatoes were waiting in a pan waiting to go into the oven. I checked the timer on the microwave and pre-heated the oven.
    “Hey Mom!”
    Little arms wrapped around my waist and I turned into the hug and squeezed him for all that I was worth.
    “What’s up chicken butt?”
    “Nothin’. I was just talking to Dad. He wants me to spend next weekend with him.”
    “Ok,” I replied, squelching down emotions I couldn’t put a name to. “Are you done with your homework? Do you need any help?”
    “Yes annnnnd nope. Drew helped me with my math earlier.”
    “Cool! Want to play some Halo before dinner?”
    “Uh, heck yeah!” He exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air.
    “Race ya!” I yelled and dodged around the island running for the couch.
    He squealed in delight before cutting me off, hip bumping me out of the way and dashing into the living room. I bounced off the wall laughing.
    Hopping over the side of the couch I landed next to him, and then flopped on top of him. “My bones are so heavy! I don’t think I can move.” I groaned.
    “Ack!” he grunted. “I can’t breathe.”
    “Oh noes! However will I get up so that my bubby can breathe?”
    He started giggling and then his little fingers dug into my ribs, tickling me until I rolled off onto the floor shaking with laughter.
    “Schneh!” he yelled.
    “Schneh on you buddy. I’m about to kick your ass.”
    He had the game loaded up on the screen before I even sat up. I grabbed the controller and leaned back against his legs. We sat like that, playing and trash talking for a while.  It was these moments that I treasured. I was horrible at this game, but spending the time with him made it fun.  The best part was listening to his grunts, oomphs and dialogue as he “became” the character on the screen.
    “Hey, you two. Dinner’s up.”
    I looked back and smiled at Drew. “Thanks for taking care of that. I appreciate it.”
    “Hey lady, it’s why you pay me the big bucks.”
    I raised an eyebrow at him and he just smiled back at me.
    “Ok kiddo, turn off the Xbox and let’s get some grub.”
    “Awww Mom!”
    “Don’t you aww Mom me. You need to eat a decent meal, mister. However will you rule the world if you’re malnourished? People aren’t going to follow a skinny guy with patchy hair and no teeth, buddy. It’s just not DONE.”
    “Har,” he grumbled at me and preceded us into the dining room. My eyebrows shot up in surprise. There were serving dishes on what was once the dumping ground for all things miscellaneous.
    The table was set for three on china that I hadn’t seen since my wedding day and in the center was a rosemary encrusted roast beef surrounded by roasted baby reds. Steamed broccoli and carrots sat in small serving dishes flanking the main course, with crusty bread topping the entire thing off as the perfect meal.
    I honestly couldn’t remember the last time we’d eaten at this table - much less used the good dishes.
    “Nice,” I said in awe.
    “Thanks. I figured from the state of the table that you guys didn’t do much eating here, so I thought that it would be nice.”
    He looked a little nervous - like he thought I was going to bite his head off.
    I let my eyes fill with the gratitude I was feeling. This was nice and I let him know with my smile that I appreciated it.
    “Well it is nice. I forgot that this was actually a table and not a dumping ground. We should use it more often.”
    “Think of it as a last meal. Tomorrow we start the personal training portion of our agreement.” He smiled and took a bite of carrots.
    “Ugh.” I groaned. Then,