I looked at him in the rearview mirror. “He looks like a Melvin.” When we found him and put him in Hayley’s car, he refused to get out. We tried pushing him, pulling him, and giving him treats, but he wouldn’t leave the car. I said that I would have to get the crowbar to lift him off the seat. His ears perked up and he stared at me. “Crowbar?” He wagged his tail and jumped out. “You should hear me try to explain his name to the team. The owner looked at me like I abused him.”

“Back to Parker,” Hayley said. She muffled the phone and gave somebody instructions on what bag of chips to grab and how many they each could have. “What did you talk about?”

“She talked about her kids and showed me photos.”

“Heartless!” Hayley hissed.

I tried to pretend it didn’t sting. “She asked about you. We talked about my dad. It was kind of a catch-up conversation. She seems happy.”

“Yeah, well, I’ll forever hate her for what she did.”

I smiled. “I know. It was a shitty time in my life. But you know what? We went down the paths we were supposed to. She was supposed to get married and have kids and do churchy things with her parents and I was supposed to coach football and live an authentic life. Even if I need to break up with my girlfriend soon because we’re totally unhappy. I know I’m only delaying the inevitable.”

“You’ll figure it out. You always do. And I’m super proud of you for all your accomplishments. Speaking of football, the boys are excited to play catch with Auntie Sutton.”

Hayley’s husband, Mike, was a very successful engineer but he was athletically-challenged. He couldn’t throw, catch, or kick a ball. The responsibility fell to me. “Bring them by the practice field anytime. I’ll have them run plays with the guys.”

“Let’s wait until Cameron is a little older. He has zero life skills. What four-year-old runs directly into traffic? Mine, that’s who,” Hayley said. I heard a commotion in the background and something heavy shattered on the ground. “Sis, I have to go. Major cleanup ahead. Just kill it on Sunday and know that I’ll be watching like always.”

“I love you. Kiss the boys from Auntie Sutton.”

“I love you, too.”

I disconnected the call as I pulled into the garage. I paused before opening the car door. I didn’t want to have the conversation with Lexi because my stress level was already at a nine. “Hi. We’re home,” I called out when we walked in. I was greeted by silence and was relieved. I checked the Lyft account. Lexi had taken one downtown an hour before.