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you at home about five,” to Jimmy, who stayed behind.
    Now he wished he knew how long Jimmy had stayed. Randy kicked some gravel with the toe of his shoe before he got into his car and drove to work.
    In the evening, when Randy went to pick up Jimmy, he watched a familiar car pull into the lot. Kaye emerged, held a hand up to block the glare of the setting sun, and then brushed back her heavy swath of hair set free from the confining net she wore at work. He stayed still against the warmth of his own car door, still as a deer caught in headlights, hoping not to be noticed so he could keep on watching her. She saw him anyway, waved, and sauntered over.
    “It was a nice day. I hope the kids had a good time,” she said, skipping over a greeting.
    “Hmm.”
    “Jimmy goes back Sunday?”
    Not a moment too soon. “Yes, I’ll drive him up home. School starts soon.”
    “Look, Randy, I think you should know something.” She held her hand up to her eyes again, turning toward the road as if to spy the bus. Randy slumped against the side of his car and crossed his arms, head bent, sure of the news to come.
    “You know I’m not really much into the parenting scene. I love Tanya, but she’s easy, not like when we were kids, you know?”
    Randy shifted against the warm side of the car, irritable. Of course he knew. He sighed. “Yes.”
    “We had a good talk, your boy and me. He’s nice, Randy. You and Jenny did well with him.”
    “Jenny did, you mean.”
    “You, too, Randy. I mean it. But Tanya’s not ready for anything serious. I don’t want that for her. She’s never asked me for time off before, like yesterday—and today. I already said yes to this trip before Jimmy came, so that was okay. But, yesterday? You know they spent the whole time together, don’t you?”
    He hadn’t. Jimmy hadn’t said anything besides “hung out with some peeps” when he’d asked yesterday evening what Jimmy had done all day. “Thanks for telling me. They just met, and Jimmy’s leaving. They’ll forget about this by the time school starts. Don’t worry.”
    “I hope you’re right.”
    The bus pulled in. Parents herded over to pick up their various progeny and friends. Kaye held up her hand again, shielding her eyes from the last blast of sunset. She caught her breath and Randy turned to look, too. All the kids had exited the bus except for one last couple tangled together in the back. Randy beetled his brows under his aviator sunglasses and he started forward. Kaye put her hand on his arm.
    “Wait. Randy, it’s only a kid thing. Don’t fuel it or make it worse. Please.”
    Randy looked down at her neat hand and let out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding.
    “If we make a big deal out of it that will only encourage them,” she said.
    “You’re right. Okay.” Randy sighed. “Yeah. Jimmy goes back on Sunday.”
    One of the chaperons hustled the kids off the bus. Randy thrust aside the old, old feeling of regret he had every time he thought about Jenny. When he saw his ex-wife again, he had to be collected or she would wonder if something was wrong. He didn’t see enough of his boy as it was, and he did not want to alienate Jimmy or his mother. Not this late in the game. Jimmy was almost a man. He forced a smile. “You sure you’re not into the motherhood thing? You seem to have good instincts around Tanya.”
    His compensation was the pleased look on her face, the softening expression in her eyes. It would have to be enough to hold him. She’d rejected him once but she’d never gotten over his rebound to her best friend either. He watched her lead Tanya to her car, whispering heatedly in the girl’s ear. Tanya turned for one last look at Jimmy. Neither waved or acknowledged the other.
    Jimmy got silently into their car. Randy hesitated at the wheel, wondering what to say.
    “Save it, Dad,” Jimmy stated. Randy immediately bristled until he realized his son was simply on guard against what he assumed