150.

Shalel Kitchen and Bar, located about fifteen blocks north of the Tucker apartment, was identified on the street only by a menu displayed in a glass case and was very easy to miss. To enter, patrons descended a set of metal stairs lined with rose petals. Inside, the cavernous, brick-lined space was illuminated mostly by candlelight and a few ornate chandeliers. Ed had never been there before, but, on the recommendation of his Twitter friends, he decided to give it a try. He pretended not to have any idea where they were going when they left home, but when he "randomly" spotted the entrance after crossing West 70th Street, Olivia suspected credit for the find was due to more than mere coincidence.

"Like it?" Ed asked after they opted for seats at the bar. The chairs looked like wire baskets but were unexpectedly comfortable. Olivia was wearing one of her edgy leather jackets and looked even more attractive with the romantic ambience as a backdrop. Ed was content to sit and stare at her for as long as she could stand to be away from home.

"I love it," Olivia replied. "Why didn't we find this place when we first started seeing each other? It would've been perfect."

"We never woulda gone anywhere else."

"Nope." Resting her elbow on the bar and poking her cheek with a knuckle, Olivia turned to him, "Those days were a little inconvenient, but they were exciting. And special."

Ed adoringly gazed at her. "I remember counting the minutes until I could see you. Going to work everyday and hoping to hear from you." He reached for her hand. "And crossing my fingers you felt the same way about me. I didn't care that we kept it all to ourselves, all I wanted was you."

Olivia leaned forward for a kiss. "I love you."

"I love you."

When the bartender came over, Olivia encouraged Ed to order a cocktail rather than his typical neat bourbon. Following her suggestion, he chose the Sahara Moon, a drink for which the bartender claimed they were famous, and Olivia opted for a lychee concoction that arrived garnished with intricate orange zest swirls. After a toast, they swapped glasses and Ed made a face when he tried her drink.

"Too sweet?" She asked.

"Not really, just, uh, much different than mine."

"I like yours. I'm going to get that next."

Ed grinned, "I always loved it when you mentioned a second drink. Or a nightcap."

"Once I was with you I never wanted the night to end."

Ed puffed out his chest and smirked, "Now that's a great compliment." He slid the food menus aside and asked if she and G had gotten anywhere with the fundraising plans.

"She thinks a certain dollar per head dinner might be better than an auction," Olivia said, "If we leverage the book and the people I already know, we can probably have an attractive slate of speakers and attendees. She didn't seem too concerned about reaching the goal. "Apparently schools have to raise much more which is why most go the auction route."

"I like no auction. I don't get the...art."

Ed grimaced when he pronounced "art" causing Olivia to laugh. "One of my favorite things is watching you page through the pictures and their prices."

"One of your favorite things, huh?"

"Yes. Absolutely."

"You don't care that I'm such a philistine?"

Olivia chuckled, "I don't think a genuine philistine would actually know that word. And," she bit her lip and cocked her eyebrow, knowing both drove him crazy, "No. I don't."

…

While Ed and Olivia enjoyed a quiet, peaceful evening, the Tucker kids had no intention of letting the babysitter off so easily. By the time all three were in their pajamas, toys were strewn across nearly every square foot of flooring and included the bowling set, basketball hoop, and the balancing pods. They had sung songs, built Lego towers, bulldozed the towers, and pretended to be in airports, prehistoric dinosaur villages, and a school. When Maggie and Wyatt tried to wrestle their scooters from the foyer closet, G decided it was time to start the twins' bedtime routine, and Noah stepped in to help.

Olivia had already laid out pajamas on their beds, but getting the twins changed took at least twenty minutes. Even the typically cooperative Wyatt tried to dart out of the room, following his sister's lead, but they were both easily caught before they ran too far. G couldn't help but join in when Noah tickled his brother and sister and sent them into fits of deep, belly laughter. Eventually, all three laid on their backs, huffing and puffing, and, finally, they huddled around G while she read every word of the three books they'd chosen.

"I get another half hour," Noah reminded G after the twins were tucked in and they hustled out of the room.

"Yup. What are you going to do?"

Noah shrugged. "What are you gonna do? Work on your laptop?"

G's computer was still open and sitting on the dining room table. "No, I'm done working for tonight and tomorrow for that matter. Want to play a game? Uno?"

"Sure!" Noah exclaimed, albeit in a hushed voice, cognizant of disturbing his siblings. He found the cards, climbed onto the chair his mother usually occupied, and looked on with interest when G shut down her device. "What are you and Mommy workin' on?"

"A fundraiser for the Benson Center. She needs to raise some money to make sure the people who work there can still get paid."

"And buy hot chocolate!"

"Huh?"

"Dere's a machine at da Center that makes hot chocolate!" Noah rubbed his belly, "It's YUM!"

"Oh, I see," G replied. She shuffled the cards and started dealing, "Do you go there a lot?"

"No," Noah said, "It's not a kid place. It's kinda like police."

"Yeah, that's true. Well, I bet you'll get to go to the fundraiser," G said brightly, hoping she wasn't unintentionally lying to Noah, "You'll get to dress up all fancy!"

Noah grinned, "And wear my shiny shoes like Daddy's!" He examined his cards and plucked one to play. "G, we're goin' to Ireland with Grandma so it hasta be after that, okay?"

"Okay. Don't worry. It'll probably be in the fall. After summer."

"When I'm in second grade?"

"Yep." G played a skip card and expected Noah to groan but he took the setback in stride. "How's first grade going?"

"S'good," Noah reported, "We don't haveta wear masks anymore 'cause da virus is gone but we still don't share stuff and wash our hands a lot! And you know what else? We eat lunch in da class where we work! And no sharing food either! But sometimes…" Noah trailed off and his gaze fell to his lap.

"Sometimes what?"

"I give cookies to Mia," Noah mumbled, "Gramma makes 'em and Mia loves 'em."

"I think that's okay," G said reassuringly, "If you're washing your hands so much I bet it's perfectly safe. And the virus doesn't live on cookies. Or any food. And besides, Mia was here playing with you, so she's sort of like family!"

The smile returned to Noah's face either because he was convinced he'd done nothing wrong or because he played a Draw Four and was down to two cards.

"Did you play any games with Mia?" G asked.

"C'nect Four," Noah replied, "We were gonna play Trouble but then Wyatt started playin' his drum so we made a band and had a concert."

"Wow. You've had a busy day. Oh! Uno!"

Noah immediately slapped down another Draw Four, uttered an "uno" of his own, and dropped the last card into the pile. "Play again?"

"One more."

Noah yawned. "Kay. It was a busy day, G! I dunno if t'morrow's gonna be busy."

"I think it's supposed to be sunny," G said, "I bet you'll go to the park and ride your bike and the twins can ride their scooters like they wanted to earlier."

Noah giggled, "Those babies love dose scooters now. They go fast! When they get bikes Mommy said we'll all go for a ride."

"Do you ride by the river?"

"Yup. All da way to the statue. Last time we stopped at da playground in Chelsea and then ate some food. It was fun."

The way Noah spoke of the city and its neighborhoods and landmarks was both endearing and impressive. G dealt the cards again and asked, "There are a lot of playgrounds on the way, aren't there?"

"Uh huh! Lots of places to stop. You have a bike?"

"No."

"You should get a bike."

"I'll look into it."

By the time they finished the second game, Noah struggled to keep his eyes open. Nevertheless, he remembered to brush his teeth but stopped in confusion when he couldn't locate his toothbrush. After a few seconds of thinking, he said, "Oh! S'in Mommy and Daddy's room. I brushed in there this morning. C'you get it for me, G?"

"Um, okay."

It felt weird to enter the sanctum that was Ed's and Olivia's room. G flipped on the light and immediately recalled Sarah joking about the space often being in disarray, and she was absolutely not exaggerating. The bed was made but only in the sense that the covers were pulled up and over the pillows. Clothes had been thrown over both arms and the back of the chair, books and magazines were spread out on the ottoman, and a mat and exercise bands occupied the floor space between the far side of the bed and the opposite wall. Framed photographs were everywhere and chronicled their lives from Noah's infancy to what looked like a fairly recent snap of the five of them posing in the kitchen. The kids were sitting on the island in front of Ed and Olivia. G assumed they'd set a camera on a timer to take the picture. Olivia seemed like the kind of person who would organize an impromptu photo shoot at any time of day.

The room's color palette included soft blues and grays. There were a few splashes of lavender both in the throw blanket and in the pattern on the duvet cover. It was impossible not to feel comfortable and at ease in the room, even for an outsider, and G soaked up the peaceful atmosphere for as long as she could until Noah called for her and asked if she found the toothbrush. She ducked into the bathroom and spotted it-a red spinbrush painted with superheroes-and quickly took it to Noah. He finished in the bathroom and eagerly hopped into bed.

"Night G," he said in a drowsy voice after she hugged him.

"Night Noah. Have a good Sunday tomorrow."

"I will."

Noah hugged Bernie to his chest, rolled onto his side, and closed his eyes. G was barely out of the room when she heard his breathing deepen so much it almost sounded like he was snoring. She spun her heels on the slick parquet to go back into the living room, but saw she'd left on the light in the master. Again, she approached the doorway with hesitation, but instead of flipping the switch and going to watch a movie or read the book she brought, she wandered back into the bedroom. She stepped slowly inside, careful not to make noise and paying close attention to the apartment's noises in case Ed and Olivia returned earlier than expected.

This is wrong, she thought. Get out of here! These people have been nothing but nice and welcoming and here you are, betraying their trust!

But her conscience lost the battle, and her curiosity oustripped any guilt.

A few minutes. Only a few minutes.

A few minutes won't hurt a thing.

….

On the way to Olivia's apartment, Ed Tucker wrestled with two polar opposite yet intertwined emotions. On one hand, he was on cloud nine. The past month had been chock full of dinner and drink dates, sex, deep conversations, sex, and more sex. He felt like he was in one of those corny romantic comedies where the main character can barely function because he's so consumed with being in love. There was no telling what could trigger thoughts of Olivia in the course of the day, but her voice, her body, and her smile were never far from his mind. Nagging at him, though, was the very essence of what had him so enamored with this new aspect of his life. Was it too much? It certainly wasn't too soon, but Olivia had tapped the breaks before, would she do so again? Was their near-nightly routine going to eventually overwhelm her? Did she feel obligated rather than eager and hungry to spend all this time with him? In the lobby he waved to the doorman and worked up the courage to bring up his concerns during the elevator ride to her floor.

"Ed! I gotta new book!" Noah greeted him as if they were in mid-conversation. He held up the book and clamored to be picked up.

Ed examined the cover and hoisted Noah onto his hip. "Cars and Trucks and Things That Go," he read, "Looks like a good one, bud. Ready to read now?"

"Gotta find Go'bug," Noah tapped the cover with an index finger.

Confused, Ed furrowed his brow.

"Goldbug," Olivia explained. She gave Ed a kiss and continued the explanation. "Goldbug's hiding in each scene."

"Shouldn't be a problem for this old cop," he said.

Olivia raised an eyebrow. "You don't seem that old."

He smirked and shrugged and felt his cheeks flush.

"C'mon, Noah. Time for bed."

"What about the book?" Ed asked.

"We read two stories already," Olivia said, "He's playing you."

"Ed read!" Noah insisted, wrapping his arms around Ed's neck.

Unsure how to respond, Ed met Olivia's eyes. She was grinning and he knew she'd give in to her son's demand. "I'll be quick," he said.

"I'll be out here," she replied and kissed Noah's head. "Goodnight, sweet boy."

"Ni'night Mommy," Noah said in his sweetest voice.

Ed raced through the book, grateful Noah didn't pick up on his haste. Gradually, he bunched up his blanket in his fists and started to drift off to sleep halfway through. Ed finished the entire thing just in case and gently laid the little boy onto his pillow. He kissed Noah's forehead, whispered "goodnight," and his heart swelled when Noah mumbled a response and patted Ed's cheek as if to apologize for the slurred words.

Olivia was stretched out on the couch paging through a magazine with a glass of wine in her hand. At the sight of Ed, she put both items on the coffee table and lifted her legs so he could take a seat. He rubbed her bare calves and thanked her for pouring him a bourbon even though he wasn't quite ready to take the first sip.

"Something wrong?"

He couldn't stand seeing her frown. "No, no," he answered quickly, "I, uh, I wanted to talk a little."

"About what?"

Ed could see the doubt and uncertainty suddenly etched on her face. She was kicking herself for some unknown misstep. He had to stop it. "It's actually a good thing."

"Okay," she replied slowly.

Out of nervousness, Ed's calf rub turned into a deep tissue calf massage. Olivia sat up and tucked her legs beneath her body, removing all distractions. "Just say it," she said.

"Are we having too much sex?" He blurted out.

Olivia's jaw dropped. "Are you serious?"

"Yes."

"Do you think we're having too much sex?"

"No. I mean, well, uh, Liv," he took a deep breath and there was desperation in his voice and his expression, "I'm thrilled with where we're at. Honestly. But it seems like, we, uh, the past few weeks it's been different. Before we were puttin' so much thought into every single move we made and now-"

"-we're not thinking so much."

"Yeah," he said softly, "That's exactly it. Liv, I just want to make sure you don't feel like you have to do any of this. It kinda feels like a whirlwind right now and I'm all for it, I, uh, just want to make sure you are too. I-"

Olivia rose to her knees and shoved him backwards onto the throw pillows. She lowered herself and a few locks of her hair that had escaped the clip dangled in his face. "I like the whirlwind," she said. "And we need to take advantage of it while things at both our jobs are slow for once. If I need space, I'll tell you. It won't be like before, I promise."

"Okay," Ed replied with a shy smile, "I guess I should stop thinkin' so much."

"Maybe," Olivia cooed back at him and slowly aimed her lips toward his, "But, whatever you do, don't ever, ever worry we're having too much sex, Ed Tucker. Ever."

"Yes ma'am."

….

G was sound asleep on the couch when Ed and Olivia returned. Olivia caught a glimpse of herself in the foyer mirror as she kicked off her boots and ran a finger along the edges of her lips. "You smeared my lipstick," she whispered.

"I don't know why you insisted on putting it back on after the first time," he retorted sassily under his breath. "I'll call G a car. Wanna wake her up?"

Olivia nodded. She tiptoed to the couch and gently shook her shoulder. "G? Honey? We're back."

G sniffed, made a few noises, and twisted her lips. Olivia shook her again and this time she shot up, startled, but when she saw Olivia she broke into an embarrassed, sleepy grin. "Oh, wow," she said, "I'm sorry...I was trying to stay awake."

"No, no. We're a little later than we planned," Olivia said, "And I'm sorry I had to wake you."

G stretched and stood up. Being roused from a deep slumber activated some adrenaline and she felt energized until she remembered her unauthorized field trip into the Tucker bedroom. "No problem," she checked the time on the phone, "It's actually not that late. I guess I was tired."

"Were the kids okay?"

"They were great."

"Are you sure? They calmed down? Went to bed okay?"

"Yep. I think they were tired, too. Maggie didn't even trick me into letting her get up."

Olivia smiled, "Well, I consider that a successful night then. Thank you again."

"Car's downstairs," Ed came into the room and put his arm around Olivia. "You're the best, G. We really appreciate it."

"Anytime. Thanks for the Uber."

"It's the least we can do," Olivia said, "Please let us pay you."

G waved her hand in the air. "Nope. It's really fine. Um, goodnight."

"Let us know when you get home," Olivia said.

"I will."

"Thanks again," Ed added.

G closed the door and, instead of locking it, Ed put his other arm around Olivia's waist. "Dance with me," he whispered into her neck.

"With no music?"

"Don't need music," he murmured, "One dance. Right here in the dark. Pretend you can see the stars."

Olivia cupped the back of his head, "I don't need to," she said, "I see you."

Ed continued kissing her, "One dance," he intoned into her skin, "Then...I think we have a little of that sweet bourbon left...you up for a nightcap?"

Olivia gasped at the sensation of Ed sucking gently in the spot under her jaw that drove her crazy. "Oh, God…"

"Is that a yes?"

She took another sharp breath. "You're not playing fair, but yes...yes it is."

…

Wyatt floated on the gentle waves to shore until the water became so shallow he had no choice but to stand up. Olivia followed with the wakeboard she'd been holding as she watched her son make effortless cuts through the waist-deep water. The only complaint Wyatt had about leaving the city during the summer was missing workouts with his swim team, and this year Olivia finally agreed to let him swim laps in the calm early morning ocean waters as long as she or Ed was nearby and there were no strong current or hazardous marine life warnings. Wyatt had missed a few days because he had fallen into the habit of staying up late with the others, but he managed to wake up early on this particular morning.

Once out of the water, Olivia and Wyatt dried off and sat at the shore in low chairs. Wyatt drank from his trusty school logo water bottle and logged his time into his phone. Once he was on his way to rehydration and his laps were accounted for, he let his hands dangle from the armrest and dug into the sand with his toes.

"Good swim?" Olivia asked. "You looked so fast."

"Good swim," Wyatt said, "My coach says it's easier to go fast in the ocean because of the salt."

"I remember when I went snorkeling once. It was so easy to swim because the water was so salty and held me up."

"Hope I don't sink in da pool when I go back!" Wyatt giggled but, as always, there was a tiny hint of gravity in his voice.

"I seriously doubt that, Wyatt Edward." She smiled and eyed him as he gazed into the water. He'd pushed his goggles onto his forehead and some of his hair was standing up, drying in crisp spikes. The sun both deepened the hue of his olive skin and added a glow. In the morning light her younger son looked like an angel.

"Mom, you think Captain Don and Eileen are in New Jersey now?"

"I think so. If not, they're really close."

"It's sad he's not gonna have the boat anymore."

"Well, honey, when people move or they get older they don't use certain things and it's best to let other people enjoy them. And they still have the pontoon boat in Florida. They'll use that a lot more often. A sailboat is a lot of work."

Wyatt pondered his mother's last sentence for a few minutes. "I'm gonna have a sailboat when I grow up. And Captain Don can teach me how to do everything."

He was adamant, and Olivia had no doubt he would one day own a boat; however, her heart broke at his innocent inability to account for other people getting older at a rate equal to his. She ran into the same hurdle with Noah, although he was Wyatt's age when Caroline passed away and was forced to accept the reality that people get old and eventually die. Wyatt, and probably Maggie, still could believe people lived forever.

"We can also get you some lessons," Olivia offered, "They have them in the city."

"They do?"

"Yes. Would you like to do that?"

"Uh-huh!" Wyatt grinned and bounced up and down in the chair, probably imagining himself at the helm of a huge sailboat and barking all the verbiage Cragen had taught him to his crew. "I'm gonna tell Captain Don when he sends me the picture of Asbury Park!"

Olivia wasn't sure if Wyatt realized Asbury Park was a beachfront town and not an actual park, but she decided to let him discover the truth on his own.

"He said he has your number," Wyatt added.

"He does."

"Captain Don's like a Grandpa."

Wyatt spoke hesitantly. He rarely held back when he wanted to express himself, but even at the tender age of eight he was careful not to hurt anyone's feelings. Olivia could tell he was uncertain if she was going to construe his comparison as a complaint that he didn't have a living grandfather of his own.

"He is a Grandpa," Olivia said, "When he married Eileen, her grandchildren became his grandchildren too."

"He doesn't have any kids?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I'm not sure," Olivia replied, "But I do know he spent a lot of time at work when he was the Captain. Maybe he didn't think he would have enough time to spend with kids. But, later on, he met Eileen and got to have grandkids, so it all worked out." She reached over and ruffled Wyatt's damp hair, "You never got a chance to meet your Grandpas, did you?"

"No...but that's okay, we have a lotta people."

"We sure do. But? You know what? I think we should see Captain Don and Eileen more often."

"We could go see them in Florida! We can get on an airplane and ZOOM down there!" Wyatt punctuated his suggestion by slicing his hand through the air in front of him.

"We could. Let's do that. Don't let me forget, okay?"

Wyatt nodded dutifully. "I won't."

…..

Despite the late night, Ed woke up early and prepared an elaborate breakfast for the family. He included everyone's favorites-pancakes for Wyatt, waffles for Maggie, and over easy eggs for Noah. He loved to mop up the yolk with buttered toast like his Daddy. Olivia awoke to the smell of bacon and the sounds of the kids chattering while they "helped" in the kitchen. She stretched, flipped the pillow to its cool side, lounged in bed for a few extra minutes, and thought about how lucky she was to be surrounded by so much love. When she eventually shuffled out of the bedroom, Ed dropped what he was doing and poured her coffee. All three kids ran to her for hugs and kisses.

"G'mornin, sleepyhead!" Noah said.

"Good morning, sweet boy! You four let me sleep in...thank you!"

"Daddy said keep it down but those babies don't follow d'rections."

Olivia threw her head back and laughed. "Well, that's okay. I forgive them. Did you have a good time last night?"

"Uh-huh!"

"You were good?"

"Yup! Three good kids!"

"No?" Ed asked, "You want to cut up the melon?"

"Yes!"

Ed handed Noah a very dull knife that would easily slice through the ripe cantaloupe and Noah got to work. Maggie and Wyatt looked on. Wyatt's mouth hung open and he concentrated on Noah's every move. Maggie scrunched up her nose, and, taking account of the shape of the cut fruit, she grinned and said "Froo blocks!"

Ed and Olivia laughed.

"That's right honey," Olivia cooed, "We're going to have some fruit blocks with our breakfast." She sidled up to Ed and kissed his cheek. "Smells so good in here. You're ambitious this morning."

"I was hungry," he said with a hint of naughtiness in his tone.

"How's your shoulder and your elbow today?"

"Like new," he replied and raised his eyebrows with exaggerated concern, "Did they seem like they weren't one-hundred percent last night?"

"Oh no," Olivia said in a sing-songy voice, "Everything was one-hundred percent last night."

Ed smirked proudly and kissed her on the lips. He transferred the bacon from paper towels to a regular plate, fed her a piece, and kissed her again. "Got about five minutes on the waffles."

"Okay."

"Oh, and, looks like G forgot her computer."

Olivia whirled around and saw G's bag resting against the credenza. "I'll text her. We can take it later. I feel like getting out today."

"Sixty-seven and sunny."

"Perfect."

"I'm invited, right?"

Olivia swatted his chest. "Don't be silly," she said, "It wouldn't be a gorgeous spring day without you in it."

…

#Tuckson