Maxwells Smile

thinking about all the kids and their parents—will have a better experience during their hospital stay because of you.”
    She bent down and pulled him into a long overdue hug. She wasn’t a huggy kind of person, and sometimes she forgot that a few moments of contact was the best way to parent. Sam was right. A kid shouldn’t be stuck doing homework all day, even if it was the child who insisted on doing said homework. Maxwell needed to go outside, run around and learn a sport, or just track insects across the lawn with a spyglass.
    “Let’s stop by the science store on the way to your checkup tomorrow,” she suggested. “You need a hobby.”
    Maxwell arched brow in suspicion.
    “It’s almost summer, sweetie. You need to go outside, get some sun, toss around a football.”
    “You’ve been talking to Sam too much.”
    She sighed. Yes, but their last conversation had been tense. She wasn’t hitting it off with the man as well as Maxwell seemed to believe she was.
    “I know you enjoy your schoolwork, and working on the computer, and I would never tell you to stop. But the smartest kids have a wide variety of interests and passions.”
    “The human brain is my passion, Mom. As well as math.”
    “So bring that passion for mathematics outdoors. Calculate the velocity of a football tossed from one end of the yard to the other.” “Hmm…” He thumbed his lower lip. “That is a possibility. But only if Sam tosses the football.”
    She smiled at Maxwell, but inside she felt her stomach squeeze with gentle warning. He had developed an infatuation for the man.
    “Let’s take things slowly with Sam,” she said.
    “I understand, Mom. He’s someone we both like, for the first time ever. We won’t mess this one up, I know it. “She tousled his hair and rose to leave his room before he could see another mutinous teardrop fall from her eye. Mess things up?
    It seemed Maxwell had won over Sam. Now it was her turn. Did she dare to step up to the challenge of opening her heart to the man?

Chapter Six
    A phone call from Sam led to Rachel meeting the handsome carpenter at a local coffee shop about an hour before school let out. He had the final invoice, and she suggested they meet in town, since they both were in the vicinity. A public place felt safer, not as intimate as her house.
    They sat in a back corner by a window. Bright sunshine highlighted the freckles on Sam’s nose, and Rachel stole more than a few lingering gazes at him over the rim of her steaming brew. Maybe a little intimacy wasn’t so bad. In fact, she was glad they’d found the private corner.
    All right, do this, her heart said. Take the chance you’ve been wanting to take.
    “So could this be construed as a date?” she suggested in a hopeful tone.
    Sam smirked and tapped the envelope on the table. “Do all your dates hand over bills for their services?”
    “No,” she said with a laugh. “Thus far I’ve been avoiding the gigolo option. Would make for a rather expensive dating life.”
    His smile warmed her soul, and he touched her hand and slid his fingers to her wrist, the skin on skin contact feeling so right. “I’ve been trying to move slow with you. I’m not even sure I’m doing this right, or that you’re keen on the two of us doing the ‘us’ thing.”
    “I know I’ve been sending you mixed signals. It’s an inner struggle I have to learn to deal with. The whole dating-when-you-have-a-child thing.”
    “I get that.”
    “I think I’m ready to take it further. Maybe a movie and some popcorn? That is, if you’re interested.”
    “Rachel, are you kidding me? Of course I’m interested. You’re the prettiest woman I know, and I’ve known a lot of women. Well, you know what I mean. You’re smart and sexy and I like talking to you. You also have this great kid I enjoy spending time with.”
    “I think that’s what throws me a little about you. The fact that you seem to enjoy chumming around with Maxwell.”
    “Why should that be so weird?”
    “I don’t know. It shouldn’t be. It’s just that I’ve had some bad experiences with dating men and introducing them to my son.”
    “I’m sure it’s not easy. But we’ve got things out in the open. I know who you are and what being in your life entails. You know me—“
    “Not as well as I’d like.”
    “Oh yeah? What do you want to know?”
    “What about your family? Are you close with them? Do they live in town? Why aren’t you dating right now? I