I nodded at Hal. Since Jake was in the basement and Caleb was immersed in his game, we had a few minutes alone. I flashed my eyebrows up and down with a smile. Hal set down his wineglass and sauntered toward me, never letting his eyes leave mine. I set down my glass, too, and in one motion we swooped into an embrace. His arms around my waist, we wrapped ourselves together, and our mouths met. We kissed this way and that way, over here and over there. He kissed my neck and earlobe, my lips. I drank in his scent and we swayed gently, dancing without music. I smiled, and I was blushing. I was tingling. He stroked my hair. “I love you,” he said. We kissed again, swaying and dancing. Hal lifted his arm and I twirled under. He pulled me close and held me.

“Hello, it’s me,” a woman’s voice trilled, the door slammed, and we heard footsteps. High heels. Audrey.

Hal separated from our embrace, quickly let go as he had done at the front door, and gave me an apologetic face. I shrugged and picked up my wineglass.

“Just checking on Jake,” she said as she entered the kitchen. “Hello, Ruth. Hi, Caleb! So how is he?” Audrey directed her question at Hal.

“Jake? I’m sure he’s fine. I haven’t been down in the last hour or so,” said Hal, wiping a bit of lipstick from his cheek.

Audrey glanced at me as if I were the reason for Hal’s distraction.

“Mom,” said Caleb as he hopped up from the sofa and removed his headphones. “Can we go to Burger Town?” He shuffled toward his mother.

“Sure, but it looks like your dad just made goulash,” said Audrey.

“Yeah, but I don’t wanna be on their date,” said Caleb lowly, his head pressed into Audrey’s hug. I worried that he’d been watching us. Audrey kept her arm around him as if he were a poor creature who needed extra love and attention. In her clasp, his posture changed, his face relaxed, and he became strangely younger, sweeter, before our eyes. There was an ease between them, and he didn’t mind when Audrey tousled his hair; he shrugged gently and fixed a few strands.

Hal stood watching Audrey and Caleb, proudly grinning at his younger son and at Audrey’s ability to soften him. Even though divorced, these three were a family, and anyone would know that just by looking.

I knew I wanted that. I wanted to be someone’s mom. I wanted to be inside a microsphere like that with Hal. Where we could have our own clever teenager to tousle and hug and spoil. I didn’t want to stay out here on my own. I wanted in.

“It’s fine with me,” said Audrey, a question in her voice for Hal. “Do you mind if he eats at Burger Town?”