Chapter 16

Philip pushed himself back into the seat heavily, "Man, how long do you think we'll be stuck here? I'm getting hungry and thirsty."

"There are some sandwiches and water in the cooler behind the seat if you want to grab one."

"Thanks, Mom. Does anyone else want something?"

"Yes, please," came from everyone. Philip hopped onto his knees, twisted himself so he could reach the items in the back, and dug around until he found the cooler. He then pulled out four bottles, four sandwiches, and passed them out to everyone. Once Philip settled back down in the seat, silence filled the car.

Jamie was the first to break it. "Will we be moving?"

Amanda swung around quickly to face Jamie and curiously inquired, "Why would we be moving, Jamie?"

"Well, with you guys getting married and Lee eventually moving in, our house is full already. With Lee's stuff, it will be even tighter. I was just wondering if we were going to need to move."

Amanda gave Lee a questioning look. Lee shrugged his shoulders and addressed both boys. "I don't know for sure. We really haven't discussed it at all. Would it be a problem if we did decide to move?"

Jamie and Philip glanced at each other, and Jamie answered first. "That depends on a few things." Philip nodded at Jamie, and they turned their attention back to Amanda and Lee. Jamie counted off on his fingers as he responded, "Would we have to change schools? Would we be near a park, like we are now? Would we be able to help you pick out the new house? Would it have a big backyard? Would it have a basketball hoop? Would we be able to have our own rooms? Will you guys have any babies? Would Grandma move with us? Can we get a dog?"

Lee and Amanda shook their heads at all the questions he came up with. Lee smiled and countered with, "Well, obviously, you've been thinking about this a little. I think we can answer most of your questions. But first, I have a question for you. How would you both feel if you had to change schools?"

Philip quickly jumped in with, "I don't know about Jamie, but if we had a choice, I would like to stay in the same school." Philip looked at Jamie, and he smiled in agreement. "However, if we found the perfect house out of our school district, I would be open to possibly going to a different school."

"Okay, so we will start searching for houses in your current school district, near a park, with a big backyard, a basketball hoop, with enough rooms for everyone, including Dotty, and I will defer the question about the dog to your mom. However, I would be all in for some kind of pet, other than my fish, that is." He smiled at Amanda with a hopeful twinkle in his eyes. "Now, did I answer all your questions?"

Jamie and Philip gleamed with excitement at all the possibilities. However, Philip's face soon changed to a scowl, which did not go unnoticed by Amanda. "What is it, Philip? I get the feeling you're unhappy about something."

"No, I'm not unhappy, but I don't think you answered all of our questions." He scrutinized Jamie, who was mentally going through all of his questions. Jamie's eye's lit up when he realized which question was missed. He nodded in acknowledgment to Philip as he politely reminded them which question they missed. Philip smirked at both his mom and Lee. "You didn't answer the question of if you two are going to have any babies."

Amanda and Lee incredulously stared at each other with eyes wide open. Neither of them knew what to say. Lee took the lead. "Well...to be honest with you guys, we haven't even talked about it. However, I have started to think about it recently."

With love in her eyes, Amanda responded with wonder, "You have?"

Lee sheepishly smiled, "I have."

"For how long?"

"Oh, for a few months now." Amanda smiled lovingly at him. "At first, I started to dream about you carrying my child, and I would just play it off as a crazy dream. Then it would happen at work, and now I think about it all the time. I would love for you to be the mother of my children. I just didn't know how to approach the subject with you. I mean, this isn't something you discuss with someone you're just dating."

Amanda reached over and took his hands and caressed them tenderly. "Sweetheart, that is so sweet of you. It has crossed my mind as well, but I wasn't sure if you felt the same way. When we first met, you told me you were a loner, and I kind of got the impression you didn't want any kids." Lee sheepishly lowered his head, then lifted it to grin at her softly as she proudly exclaimed, "I would love to have more kids with you!" Lee and Amanda leaned in and tenderly kissed as his hand lightly grazed the side of her cheek. They pulled back from one another and noticed both boys staring at them with huge grins on their faces. "Would you fellas be okay if we did have kids?"

"I would love to be a big brother!" Jamie spoke with his chest puffed out proudly.

"Yeah, me too. I mean, I'm already a big brother but wouldn't mind having another brother or sister. And Lee is so good with us. I think he needs to have his own kids." The three of them smiled at each other, then they peered at Lee to try to and gauge his reaction.

With unshed tears in his eyes, he softly spoke and emotionally reacted, "Umm...you guys are the best, and I already feel like you two are my own kids, but I know what you mean." Lee deeply gazed into Amanda's eyes and asked with hope in his voice. "So, does this mean what I think it means?"

"I think it does." They both shared a sweet and tender kiss that was quickly interrupted by Philip.

"Look! Here comes that policeman again."

Lee turned forward in his seat to wait for the officer. When he approached them, he crouched down slightly and announced through the open window, "Good evening, I just wanted to tell you we got the accident cleaned up, but it will take a few minutes to get traffic moving. It shouldn't be long before you're back on the road."

Lee nodded. "Thank you, Officer. We appreciate it." The officer left and continued to advise the rest of the cars behind them of the same news. Lee spun his head towards the boys and stated, "Okay, guys, let's clean up and get back into our seatbelts. It looks like we'll be moving shortly."

Jamie exclaimed, "Yes!" while Philip muttered, "It's about time."

Within the next fifteen minutes, the cars ahead of them started to move. Lee started the car, winked at everyone, and said, "Let's go home, shall we." Everyone nodded, and they headed towards home.