I answered without looking at the screen. “Hey.”
“I’m heading out now,” Ethan said. His voice was tired but warm—the way it always sounded after a long day. “I just need to stop at the store. The kids won’t stop talking about that gift.”
I smiled, pressing the phone closer. “They won’t riot if it shows up under the tree tomorrow.”
He chuckled, soft and familiar. I can still hear that sound.
“You say that now, but you know how they are. I kind of promised.”
“Dinner’s already on the table,” I said. “Everything’s hot.”
“I know,” he replied gently. “I can almost smell it. You made that chicken I like, didn’t you?”
“The one you always steal extra pieces from.”
A comfortable pause followed—the kind that only exists between two people who know each other completely.
