Page 8 of The Maverick

“Euww. Mommy!”

“Oh, I know. You think you’re too big for me to kiss you in public. But I don’t accept that. I’m your mother, and I get to kiss you whenever I want.”

He gazed over at Nick. “Tell her it’s not okay to kiss in public.”

Nick raised his hands, palms out. “Hey, keep me out of this argument.”

“But—”

Rachel rested a hand on Jake’s shoulder. “Sometimes, people kiss in public. It’s okay. They’re allowed.”

Jake slumped in the booth. “I think it’s gross.”

Rachel chuckled. “You won’t feel that way when you get older, trust me.”

The boy crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m never gonna kiss a girl or anyone else. It’s nasty.”

Nick boomed out a guffaw. “We’ll see, young Mr. Bennett. We’ll see. You’ll remember this conversation and owe your mom an apology.”

Shaking his head, he sat straighter. “Nope. Never gonna happen. No way no how.”

Nick laughed.

So did Rachel.

The server returned with their drinks. “Are you ready to order, or do you need more time?”

“I’m ready.” Rachel looked around the table at the guys.

“I’m ready, too,” said Nick.

“What about you, honey.” Rachel placed an arm around Jake’s shoulders. “Do you know what you want?”

“Yup.” Jake nodded. “I want the chicken strips with macaroni and cheese.”

Rachel looked up at the server. “I’ll have the chicken fried steak, with mashed potatoes and seasoned green beans.” She picked up the menus and handed them to the woman.

She shoved them under her arm.

“And for you, sir?’

“I’ll have the same as she’s having.” Nick nodded toward Rachel.

“Very good.” She punched the order in on the little tablet she carried. “Okay, I’ll be back in a moment.” She turned and headed toward the back of the restaurant.

Nick picked up his glass and took a sip. “So, Jake. Tell me a little about yourself. What do you like to do?”

“I like playing Roblox, but Mommy doesn’t let me play it that often.” He gave Rachel an accusatory glare.

“Yeah, I’m the bad guy here because I want him to get some fresh air and sunshine once in a while.”

Nick chuckled. “Looks like mother and son have a bit of an issue. Let me tell you a story, young Jake. When your mother and I were your age, we wanted to play video games all the time, too. But our mothers, who were friends, refused to let us. We ended up running in the woods and swimming at the lake, and playing cops and robbers around the backyards. I don’t think it hurt us one bit. Your mom is a well-respected doctor, and I’ve started a couple of companies that have done okay.”

Rachel snorted. “Okay? That’s the way you describe your companies. You’re a billionaire, Nick. Don’t sugarcoat it and make it sound like you didn’t work your behind off to get there.”

Nick shrugged and raised his hands, palms up. “Okay, I did work my bu...er...behind off, but the moral of the story is that playing outside, made me...made us,” he ran a hand in the air between him and Rachel. “Made us use our imaginations and learn to do things on our own. That made us able to study harder and focus on getting ahead in life. Don’t you want to do that? Or would you rather that your mother support you for the rest of your life?”

Jake looked down at the table and uncrossed his arms. “I want to grow up to be a good man, not like my dad.” He turned his gaze back to Nick. “But I don’t have anyone to play with here. In New York, the only time I got outside to play was at the park and Mom had to make play dates with my friends’ moms to do that. She can’t even do that here because we don’t know nobody.”