The Happiest Season by Rosemarie Naramore Page A

asked, puzzled.
    Maggie sent a glance at John, who smiled at the confused
little boy.
    “You know what, let’s go upstairs and I’ll explain,” Maggie
said, taking his hand and leading him back upstairs.
    They soon returned to the family room, dressed and ready to
go.
    “I’m hungry,” Rickey declared, and Maggie gasped.  She had
nearly forgotten to feed her child.
    “I imagine you are, sweetie.”
    “Would you both like to go out for lunch?” John asked.
    Maggie turned toward him, her features surprised. 
    He gave a shrug.  “I’m hungry too.”
    “Please, Mama!  Please!”
    She glanced between John and Rickey, noting both watched her
with hopeful anticipation.  How could she say ‘no’ to them?
    They apparently sensed her resolve crumble, since John sprang
from the sofa.  “Lunch it is,” he said.
    “Lunch it is,” Maggie parroted, giving him a rueful glance. 
She raised her pointer finger, requesting a moment.  She hurried to pull a
breakfast bar out of the pantry, since it was nearly lunch time and Rickey hadn’t
eaten anything yet.
    “Ah, Mama,” he protested.
    “Eat half,” she told him.  “You have to have a little
something to tide you over until lunch.”
    He broke it in half and walked over to John.  He gave him
the other half.  “It will tide you over until lunch.”
    John ate the bar in two bites and nodded his gratitude. 
Rickey followed suit, eating the bar in quick bites.  “Are you ready then?”
John asked.
    “Yep!” Rickey cried enthusiastically.
    “Would you like me to drive?” Maggie asked, but immediately
remembered she couldn’t very well haul much sod in her wagon.  “Oh,” she said
chuckling.  “I guess that won’t work very well at the nursery.”
    “Probably not,” John acknowledged.
    “I’ll chip in for gas,” she said, but he shook his head.
    “Not necessary.  Shall we go?”
    “I’ll get Rickey’s booster seat and meet you at the truck.” 
She hurried off, but found the men waiting for her return.  John relieved her
of the booster seat.  She smiled her thanks, having grown unaccustomed to
having a man lighten her load—both literally and figuratively.
    Inside John’s big truck, Rickey grinned with delight as they
pulled away from the curb.  “Where are we going for lunch?” he asked.
    “What sounds good to you?” John asked him, turning toward
him briefly.
    “Chuck E. Cheese’s,” he answered, without a second’s
hesitation.
    John leaned forward and glanced around him, meeting Maggie’s
eyes.  He gave a shrug, as if it was all right with him.  She gave a brisk
shake of her head, and then turned to her son.  “Not today, honey,” she said. 
“I have a headache and don’t think I could handle all the noise.”
    John watched her with concern.  He hoped she was feeling up
to going out, and that he hadn’t been too pushy.  “Somewhere quiet then,” he
mused aloud, and then declared, “I know just the place.”
    Maggie was surprised when she soon found herself sitting
beside her son, and across from John, at a window table at one of the town’s
premiere waterfront restaurants.  Although the place was bustling with patrons,
the noise level was comfortable and they could easily hear one another talking.
     “This is really nice,” Maggie said, smiling her gratitude.
    He nodded.  “I thought it would be a nice compromise. 
Rickey won’t be able to interact with a giant mouse, but he will be able to
watch the boats sail and motor by.”
    “I like boats!” Rickey said agreeably.  He pointed out a
particularly opulent yacht.  “I want that one!”
    “You and me both,” John said, smiling.
    “Which one do you want, Mama?” Rickey asked.
    Maggie stared out over the water, considering each and every
one.  She finally pointed to a particularly small boat, which was clearly old. 
Its seaworthiness was questionable, based upon the burst of smoke coming off
the prop.
    Even Rickey recognized it wasn’t a very