Ditched

"Oh," was all Lauren could say, as she shivered in the warm car.

"And while I know I'm...a little younger than you..."

Lauren's eyes got wide again at his use of 'a little younger', but she didn't say anything.

"I have no idea how you see me, but I'm pretty much crazy about you, and I've wanted to ask you out since we had dinner together. So here I am...asking you. Lauren? Will you go to the policeman's ball with me?"

When she didn't answer immediately, Jake smiled, raised his eyebrows again then said, "Please?"

Lauren's case of dry mouth was now like the Sahara Desert. She tried to speak but couldn't. There was nothing to swallow, but she felt like she had to. All she could do was sit there and stare at him.

Jake reached over and put his hand on hers and said, "Please say 'yes'."

After a good five seconds of silence, she tried to look at him then croaked, "Yes?"

"Really?" he said, ignoring her replying with a question.

Lauren coughed and found her voice.

"Yes. Really. I think."

"Really?" Jake said again, a huge smile on his face.

Lauren's heart was racing again, and before she could say anything else, Jake leaned all the way across the console and kissed her. Just as quickly he pulled away and started apologizing.

"Oh, my God. Lauren. I'm sorry. I was just so happy you said 'yes', and I just..."

"What was...why did you...do that?" Lauren said, interrupting him.

"I...I don't know. No, that's not true. I do know. I really like you, Lauren. I like you a lot. A whole lot. In fact, I like you..."

"Jake? Stop talking, okay?" she said as she smiled at him.

He did then said, "Sorry. Is this better?"

"Uh-huh," she told him as she, against her better judgment, leaned over and kissed him.

"Oh, wow," Jake said when she moved away and smiled at him.

"'Oh wow' is right," Lauren said. "As in—I think I've lost my mind 'oh wow'."

She tried not to laugh but couldn't help it.

Jake laughed too, then said, "I can't wait to take you to the ball."

"I guess I'll have to go buy a dress now," Lauren replied.

"I could go with you," Jake told her.

"Um...maybe we should try something like...an actual dinner first?" Lauren said, the happy smile still on her face.

"Yeah. Sure. That'd be...great."

"I think I should probably go inside now," Lauren told him as her mind swirled around at a million miles an hour.

"Right. Yes. Let me get your door."

Jake ran around unaware his partner had been watching the entire time. Makayla was upstairs in her room and had no idea, but Ross saw everything, and he just smiled as he watched his young partner either making a fool out of himself or possibly falling in love.

"So I'll call you," Jake said as he walked her to the front door.

"I'd like that," Lauren told him as they stood face to face.

"Okay, so...goodbye, Lauren," Jake said nervously.

Neither of them moved for a second, but Jake finally leaned over and kissed her one more time very quickly.

"Goodbye, Jake. And...thank you for asking me."

Her smile bolstered his confidence as he said, "Thank you for saying 'yes'."

She tilted her head slightly then asked, "Are you really 23?"

"Would you like to see my license and registration, Officer?" Jake teased.

"No. Definitely not. I'm afraid I might change my mind if I did," Lauren told him with a smile.

"You know, you really are hot, Lauren," Jake told her with a sheepish grin.

"Well, you're kind of hot yourself, Officer Anthony," she replied with a happy smile before opening the door and going inside.

When she closed the door and turned around, Ross was standing just two feet away and smiling.

Lauren was so startled she yelped.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

It was then she realized he'd been watching.

"You...saw...everything, didn't you?" she asked as she pointed to the porch.

"I kinda did," he told her sheepishly. "And for what it's worth, I'm really glad it happened. Whatever 'it' may be."

"I agreed to go to the ball with him."

"Yeah? I think that's great! All kidding aside, Lauren, I think that's wonderful."

"I don't know, Ross. I'm already wondering if I've lost my mind," she told him.

The big police officer put his big hands on her shoulders and said, "It's just one date. And Jake really likes you. A lot."

"You don't think I'm crazy?"

"No. I think you're amazing. And who knows? You two might hit it off. Stranger things have happened, right?"

Lauren was tempted to say, "Name one," but she only smiled and said, "I suppose so."

"Can I tell Deb?" he asked.

Lauren laughed then said, "Sure. Tell away. We don't do a very good of keeping secrets anyway, right?"

Ross laughed and told her he agreed before giving her a friendly hug and promising to stay in touch.

Once he was gone, Lauren went upstairs and knocked on her daughter's bedroom door.

"Hey, Mom! Come in," Makayla said, almost sounding chipper.

"You look happy," her mom told her.

"I was just FaceTiming with Noah," she replied before saying, "Is that okay?" with a worried look.

"Yes. It's fine, honey. He seems like a very nice boy."

"And he's super cute, too," her daughter reminded her mom in case she'd forgotten.

Her mom smiled then said, "So I have something to tell you."

"What? What's wrong?" Makayla asked, turning around with a worried look on her face.

"No. Nothing's wrong. Well, maybe with me. Mentally."

Makayla still didn't understand, so her mom explained what had just happened before her daughter began imagining something truly awful.

"That's amazing!" Makayla said as she hugged her.

"You really don't mind?" a very surprised mom replied.

"Mind? Why would I mind? Jake is really nice. And..."

"Hot?" her mom said before they both laughed and hugged one more time.

Lauren got up and turned to leave then stopped.

"Honey? Is this really okay with you?"

Her daughter stood up, walked over to her mom, and said, "Yes. Unlike you, I don't care about things like how much older one person is than the other in a relationship."

It took her mom a few seconds to realize her daughter was kidding, and when it hit her, she tried as hard as she could not to laugh.

"That's not funny," her mom said as she fought off the urge.

"Um, it's a little bit funny, Mom."

Lauren held a straight face for a few more seconds then lost it. It felt SO good to laugh again, and doing it with Makayla was wonderful.

"And Mom? I understand the difference between 14 and 13 and 36 and..."

Makayla got a puzzled look on her face then asked, "So exactly how old is Officer Hottie?"

Panicked, but trying not to let it show, her mom turned around then said as sternly as she could, "Don't ask," then left the room.

"I'm gonna find out. You know that, right?" Makayla called down the hall.

"Good luck with that!" her mom called back as she laughed nervously.

"What am I getting myself into?" she quietly asked herself as she tried to get 'Officer Hottie' off her mind to no avail.

Two days later, she was having dinner with him at the El Camino restaurant on Cole Street, one of two main 'drags' in the metropolis of Enumclaw, Washington.

Whatever reservations she may have had about being seen publicly in a small town where everyone knows everyone else with someone so young were destroyed after nearly everyone who came in to eat said hello to both of them. Several even told them they made a very cute couple without bothering to ask if this was a date or just two friends getting together.

As they drove home, a very relieved Lauren said, "That was really nice."

"I'm glad you liked it," Jake told her.

"I did, but I mostly meant being with you."

He reached over for her hand, and Lauren gladly let him take it.

"Yeah?"

"Yes. I have to admit I had some...concerns...about the age difference, but I don't think it really matters all that much."

"It doesn't to me," Jake told her as he looked her way.

His words were sincere, and Lauren realized she liked him. A lot. Her heart was beating fast when she said, "If there's a next time, I wouldn't mind you introducing me as more than just a friend."

"Oh?" Jake replied with a smile.

"If you feel the same way."

"I do, Lauren. I really do like you. A lot," he told her again.

"Well, the feeling is mutual, Jake," she said as he squeezed her hand.

"So, if we're going to, you know, get involved, is Makayla all right with this? With...us?"

Lauren sighed then said, "She is so hard to figure out sometimes. She ditches me at the fair to meet an older boy then tells me she doesn't care how old a guy I like is."

Jake raised an eyebrow and said, "Does that mean you told her you like me?"

"Yes," she said very sweetly. "And she likes you, too."

"Yeah? Well, I like her, and I think she's a good kid. Who's just a teenager."

He looked over at her again, then very respectfully added, "And growing up without a father."

"Jake?" Lauren asked.

"Uh-huh?"

"Is that someone you'd be okay with?"

She could tell he wasn't quite sure what she meant so she explained.

"I know this is only our first date, and we really don't even know each other all that well, but does my having a teenage daughter...scare you?"

"It's a little intimidating," he told her with a smile. "But I honestly think Makayla is a sweet girl. And should you and I...get serious...I can promise you I'll do my best to be a role model and set a good example for her."

"I...I think I just started liking you even more," a very-relieved Lauren told him.

"That makes me very happy," Jake told her, "because, in case you forgot, I like you a whole lot, Lauren Holly."

Lauren asked him if he'd like to come in, but he told her he didn't want to push things too fast. Before she could say anything else he put his arms around her and kissed her for several seconds then asked if that was okay.

"The kiss was amazing," she told him.

Jake laughed then said, "No. I meant me not coming in."

"Oh. Duh! Yes. Of course."

"Next time, if you ask me, I'll definitely say 'yes'," he told her quietly as her brushed her hair back.

"Okay," Lauren whispered.

"You are so beautiful," Jake told her just as quietly.

"Not beautiful...for my age?" she asked.

"Nope. Just...beautiful. Period."

"K," Lauren whispered before kissing him. "Night, Jake. And thank you for dinner."

"Goodnight, Lauren. And it was my pleasure."

"See you soon?" she asked with a happy smile.

"Definitely. And maybe even often?"

"I'd like that very much."

He kissed her one more time, said goodnight again, and promised to call.

This time, Lauren nearly had a heart attack when Makayla was standing right where Ross had been.

"Wow. You and Officer...Hottie...must really like each other," her daughter teased.

"You were spying on me?" her mom asked, trying to be upset.

"Uh-huh. A little," Makayla told her with a happy smile.

"And is what you saw okay?" her mother asked almost tentatively.

"Mom? I like Jake. And I want you to be happy, remember?"

"I...I am, happy, honey. For the first time since Daddy died, I'm really happy."

"Then I am, too," her daughter said before giving her mom another hug.

"Mom?" Makayla asked when they parted.

"Yes?"

"Is it okay if Noah comes over for dinner sometime?"

"You know I don't want you to have a boyfriend yet, right?"

"I know. We'd just, you know, hang out. And not in my room, of course."

"Well, you turn 14 in a couple of months, so I suppose having dinner with him would be okay, IF his parents agree."

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

"Ahh! I love you, too, KK!" her mother tried as tears of joy welled up in her eyes.

And as they hugged again, life seemed to almost feel normal again. If this was their new normal, it felt very good, and the prospect of possibly having someone she really liked in her life made it all that much sweeter.

"You want to go shopping for school clothes tomorrow after I get home, or are you too old to be seen with your mother?"

"Well, you are pretty old," Makayla began as she tried not to smile. "But I suppose it wouldn't totally destroy my reputation if we went to a few stores together."

Lauren was about to hug her again when her daughter said, "In Seattle!"

"Oh! You are SO in trouble!" her mom said as she chased her fleeing daughter.

Makayla shrieked with laughter, and Lauren laughed, too, and gave up at the bottom of the stairs.

"You and me! Tomorrow! Shopping!" her mom called up.

"I'll think about it!" Makayla hollered back.

Lauren was laughing and also on the verge of tearing up again as she stood there and realized just how happy she was. Things with Makayla were better than ever, and she was...dating...a gorgeous guy who just happened to be a 'little' younger than her.

"Life is so good!" she said out loud before getting ready for bed, her heart full for the first time in several years.

The shopping trip didn't end up in Seattle, but it didn't happen in little Enumclaw, either. Southcenter Mall was Makayla's favorite place on earth, and after convincing her mom she could find a dress there for the policeman's ball, Lauren was more than happy to drive the 20 miles or so to the city of Renton to get there.

By the time they left, the soon-to-be 8th grader had more than enough new clothes to get her started while her mom had a long, beautiful gown that was midnight blue with a long slit up the the ride side and cut just low enough to still be modest but show off all that God had given her.

That Friday, Lauren invited Jake to have dinner with her and Noah, subject to his parents' approval. He was off duty and happy to join them, and Noah's parents were relieved to know their neighbor really wasn't upset with their son and gave their blessing.

To break the ice, Jake insisted the guys make dinner, and after a weak protest from Lauren about him having cooked once already, she happily let him. This time she and her daughter sat at the counter and watched the guys do all the work.

Noah had no idea what he was doing, but he followed directions well, and the most important thing that happened was that he and Jake bonded while being with Makayla without actually 'being' with her. In fact, all four of them bonded in a way no one could have imagined the day they first met at the fair under very different circumstances.

It was a little after eight when Noah said he had to go home, and Makayla politely asked if she could walk him there and come straight back. She'd been doing so good lately that her mom told her that would be okay.

"Makayla was great tonight," Jake said once the kids were outside.

"Yes. She was...different."

"In a good way, right?"

"Uh-huh. You have a way with kids, Jake."

"Naw. I just had fun hanging out with them," he said with genuine modesty.

"They like you, and they look up to you," Lauren told him sincerely.

Jake put his arm around her on the sofa and told Lauren, "That's great, but what matters most to me is what you think."

"About you?" she asked, as though it might be something else.

"Yes. About me."

Lauren rested her head on his shoulder then answered him.

"This all just feels so right," she said quietly.

"This?"

"Uh-huh. You, me, Makayla. Being here together."

"That's what I was hoping you'd say," Jake told her as she looked up at him. "Because I feel the same way."

"Makayla will be back soon, so if you're going to kiss me, you should probably..."

Jake stopped her before she could finish when he pressed his lips against hers. Lauren moaned softly then, for the first time, offered him the tip of her tongue. Jake did the same, but that was all that happened as their first really long kiss was interrupted by the front door opening.

"I can't leave you two alone for two minutes, can I?" Mikayla told them as she tried not to laugh.

She saw the last of the kiss and watched them pull apart like they were two magnets with the same polarity.

"I was just telling Jake what a nice time I had tonight," her mother said.

Makayla plopped down by her and said, "Uh-huh. Sure, Mom."

She looked around her mom and smiled at Jake. "Noah really likes you."

"I uh, I think he likes you, too," the police officer told her.

"Yeah, but I can wait," the teenager said. "Noah's worth waiting for."

"Wow. Listen to you," her mom said. "You sound very grown up."

"I'm just really happy," her daughter said. "It's almost like we're a family, you know?"

Lauren reached out and brushed her daughter's hair back and said, "I do, honey. I really do."

By the night of the policeman's ball, Jake had spent nearly every free evening at Lauren's or had her and Makayla over to his apartment.

School had started and Makayla should have wanted to hang out with her friends. Occasionally, she did that, but for the most part she preferred spending time with her mom and the young police officer who'd changed their lives. And the fact that Jake loved having her with them was perhaps the best part for the one-time daddy's girl who'd found someone else who cared about her almost as much as her father had.

The night of the ball, Makayla was asked to spend the evening at Noah's house where they played board games and ate popcorn. Her mother told her that was fine, and it was that same night when she came to the realization that she was in love with the handsome, younger man named Jake Anthony, who also happened to be a very good dancer.

During the last dance of the night, a slow one to a song they both knew, Jake held her close and said, "I'm not sure I should say this just yet, but I feel like I have to."

"Say what?" Lauren asked as all kinds of fears crept into her mind.

Jake looked into her eyes and said, "I need to tell you...that I love you, Lauren Holly."

Tears filled her eyes as she kissed him then said, "I love you, too, Officer Anthony."

From that moment on, it was only a matter of time until Jake asked her to marry him. He waited a respectable five more months, but no one was surprised the night he proposed after asking Makayla if could have her blessing.

"Yes," the now-14 year old girl said, as she teared up at the respect Jake showed her.

"I love your mom, and I love you, too, KK," he told her with a smile.

Makayla didn't get upset at all. She only told him she loved him back.

"Let's go talk to your mom, shall we?" Jake suggested as he offered her his arm.

"What's going on, you two?" Lauren asked when they walked into the living room arm in arm.

"We want to ask you something," Makayla said, a huge, happy smile on her face. "Well, actually Jake does."

Before he could propose, Lauren smiled at him and said, "You better have a ring on you, or I'm going to ask you to marry me tonight."

He and Makayla laughed as he magically made one appear and got down on one knee.

Lauren wasn't surprised, but she was still moved to tears as Jake told her what she meant to him, and how much he loved her—and her daughter.

Lauren looked at her daughter then asked of Makayla, "Our...daughter?"

Makayla nodded, moved closer and hugged her mom as Jake slid the ring on her finger and joined in.

"So this is what the new normal feels like," Lauren said, causing both Jake and Makayla to say, "Huh?"

Lauren laughed a happy laugh and promised to explain. Later.

"Just not right now, okay?" she said as she pulled both of them back in close and held them, savoring the sweetness of the moment as long as she could.

****

One year after their summer marriage, Lauren gave birth to a beautiful baby boy they named Jacob Carl Anthony, and for the next four years, she stayed home to care for their new baby while Makayla finished high school.

Jake's presence in her life provided the kind of stability she'd so desperately needed, and although she never called him 'dad', the three of them became the closest of friends. Makayla's boy craziness was also tempered and that, coupled with a sense of family, allowed her to graduate with a very respectable 3.4 GPA with no other incidents like the one that had brought them all together.