“How long have they been asl
eep?” Ethan asked, turning the TV off rather than putting a new video on.
“Um, I think the part where the gorilla dad escapes to see his son perform,” Laura replied. “It hasn't been that long.”
“How come you didn't say anything?” Ethan asked her.
“Because I wanted to see how it ended,” she replied. She shrugged. “It was better than I expected.”
He laughed and shook his head. “Fair enough. Are you ready for some dinner?” he asked. “We can eat while they sleep.”
“Okay,” she agreed. Her stomach rumbled. She was definitely hungry for that burger from Sandy's.
Chapter 11
Laura
Being very careful not to wake the small humans, Laura slipped off the couch. She gently put Ivy's head on a pillow and tucked her in while Ethan did the same for Dallas. When they were done, they both headed into the kitchen to wash their hands. Laura had them do it twice, just to be on the safe side.
While she was microwaving their food, Ethan went to the bag of DVDs and pulled out something. She wasn't sure what it was until she turned around and found that he had a little candle on the center of the table. It flickered and cast a warm light on the small wooden table.
“You didn't have to clear the table,” she said gently, bringing the food over. It was still in the paper take-out containers, but she didn't want to do dishes.
“Yeah, but where else would we eat?” he asked. She could see he'd neatly stacked all the bills, homework, and art projects on one of the empty chairs. “Next time, I really do want to bring you someplace nice, but for now, would you join me for a candlelight dinner?”
“I would love to.” She giggled, feeling warm and fuzzy. It wasn't a big gesture, but it was such a sweet one that she felt overwhelmed. He was taking care of her. It had been a long time since someone had looked after her. She'd forgotten what it felt like.
He went and pulled out her chair for her to sit. She felt like a princess, rather than a harried caretaker in sweatpants as she sat down at the table.
“This burger is fantastic,” Ethan announced after taking his first bite. He sounded slightly surprised as he held up the big bun to look at it closer.
“Sandy's is the best place in Silver Springs,” Laura agreed. Her green-chile burger was amazing as always. Even after two hours, it was still delicious. “I don't know how they do it, but I always get good food there.”
“I just picked it because it was on the way,” Ethan admitted. “Now, I'm really glad I did.” He took another big mouthful of burger and sighed with contentment.
Laura wiped a drop of green-chile from her chin. “Out of curiosity, where were we going to go tonight? I mean, if the kids hadn't gotten sick.”
“The science museum,” he said with a shrug. He looked up and winked at her before smiling. “I had reservations for us downtown at Lance's Steakhouse.”
“The football guy's restaurant?” Laura asked, impressed. “I think that might be the fanciest place in Denver.”
“According to the internet, it is,” Ethan replied. He held up the last bite of his burger. “But this is probably better.”
Laura laughed. She'd never eaten at Lance's, but it would be hard to make a meal better than Sandy's burgers. Even a fancy one.
“So, how's work coming along?” she asked, finishing off her own burger. She was hungrier than she thought.
He shrugged, popping a french fry into his mouth. “Carter really wants an R&D office down in Denver. It's a work in progress. There's a lot of bureaucracy and zoning issues I have to work through to put it where he wants.”
“Sounds fun,” Laura replied. The French fries smelled amazing. They were always crispy and salty at Sandy's.
“Oh, loads,” he replied sarcastically. “It's basically like a Disneyland for lawyers.” He ate another fry. “And I am not a lawyer.”
She chuckled. Carter was the visionary designer of the W Motor cars. He enjoyed making them and testing them. He hated the business aspect of it, which was why he had partnered with Ethan when he wanted to start his company. Ethan was now the CEO while Carter just played with cars all day.
“What about you?” Ethan asked, his green eyes focusing on hers. “How's your work going?”
“Great actually,” she replied with a smile. “Mia's foster kid charity camp is set to open in a couple of weeks, so we've just been getting everything together for that.”