Authors: Mildred Colvin
Robbie grinned as he shrugged. “Sure, Mom, that’ll be all right. When we get back, can I take the test for my permit?”
His words were like cold water in her face. Why couldn’t they just forget he was old enough to get his driving permit? In one short year, he would have his driver’s license and the freedom that came with that privilege. She wasn’t ready for him to break away from the security of his youth.
“Earth to Mom.” Robbie’s voice broke through her thoughts until she focused on him. “So can I?”
She felt the tension in her neck and reached up to rub her shoulder. “You could wait another six months and still get your license at sixteen.”
“Yeah, or I could have already started.” Robbie’s voice rose.
“With the training, but you only need the permit for six months, and you can’t get a license before you’re sixteen, anyway.” Without waiting for him to respond, she stood and started gathering bowls and spoons to wash. “Robbie, let’s not worry about things like that now. You’ll have time enough to learn to drive without ruining our vacation talking about it.”
“Guess that means I can’t.” Robbie folded his arms across his chest, a dark frown marring his attractive face. “I don’t see why not. All my friends get to drive as soon as they’re fifteen. How come you don’t trust me? I won’t wreck the car.”
Tessa smiled at her eldest. “I didn’t say you would. I also didn’t say you couldn’t get your permit. I just asked you to wait until after vacation to worry about it. Okay? We’ve got plenty of time. Let’s not push it.”
He shrugged, pacified for the moment. She thanked God that he hadn’t inherited his father’s violent temper.
“While I straighten up in here, why don’t you boys take one last look through the house and see if there’s anything you’ve forgotten.”
Tessa washed the dishes and wiped the table then put the cereal away. She walked through the house, checking each window and door to make sure everything was secure. Satisfied the house was locked up and everything was turned off, she and the boys climbed into the car.
“We’ll go by Grandma’s for a quick visit and then we’re off.”
“Yeah!” A chorus of approval greeted her pronouncement.
The drive to her mother’s took less than ten minutes. Tessa had moved from her mother’s house across town after she graduated from college and took a job in the county offices. Not long after that, with Tessa’s witness of both her life and her words, her mother had come to Christ. Tessa valued the newfound friendship she had with her mother and loved how she doted on the boys.
Their visit was short. Although Tessa sensed her mother would have kept them longer, the boys were restless to go. As soon as Tessa said it was time to get on the road, they took turns giving their grandmother a hug and kiss then ran for the car.
Tessa hugged her mother. “I’m sorry we can’t stay longer, Mom, but this is our first away-from-home vacation and the boys want to make the most of it. Are you sure you won’t come with us?”
“No, I can’t miss work. Besides, once I left Illinois, I vowed to never look back.” Her mother returned the hug and planted a kiss on Tessa’s cheek. “I’m proud of you, honey. Just look at you. A good job, a nice house, and now two weeks’ vacation with your boys. All you need is a Christian husband to make everything right.”
Tessa smiled, ignoring her mother’s reference to her unmarried state. “Yes, God is good. Pray for us, Mom, while we’re gone. We’ll stop by again after we get back home.”
“Oh I assure you, I’ll be praying.” Her mother placed her hand over her heart. “I don’t know why, but I have this feeling you’ll come home from this trip changed in some way.”
“I hope for the better.” Tessa had too much respect for her mother to discount the unusual feelings she sometimes got.
Her mother smiled. “That’s why I’ll be praying.”
With a wave, Tessa ran down the sidewalk to her car just after Robbie, sitting in the front passenger seat, tapped the horn.
Several hours later, Tessa pulled into a parking space near the lobby doors of a large hotel in Oklahoma City. She turned to face the boys. “Why don’t you wait in the car until I confirm our reservation and find out what room we have? Then we’ll carry in just what we need for our stay here. Okay?”
“Okay.”
With their agreement ringing in her ears, Tessa went through the double doors and crossed the wide lobby to a long counter that ran along one wall. She smiled at the girl behind the counter. “Hi, I have a reservation for tonight.”
The girl found the information on the monitor in front of her and, with a welcoming smile, handed Tessa an entry card. “Room 204. Please sign here. Checkout is anytime before eleven tomorrow morning.”
Tessa parked the car near the door they would be using and led the way to the elevator and then down the hall to their room. Her heart pounded as she opened the door. This vacation was a new experience for her boys and for her as well. She stepped into the room, staying out of the way as the boys ran inside, dropping their bags to the floor before they inspected the luxurious room.
“Wow.” Robbie stood beside her, while the two younger boys tested the beds by bouncing on the edge. “Two king-size beds. Think we’ll have enough room?”
Tessa grinned at him. “Well, you boys might be a little crowded, but I think I can manage quite well, as long as I don’t get lost.”
An answering grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. “Doesn’t seem fair, does it? Just ’cause you’re Mom, you get a big bed like that to yourself. Sure you don’t want to trade with me?”
She shook her head and laughed. “Not a chance. Good try though.”
“Hey Mom, can we go swimming now?” Derek tugged on her hand. “I saw a pool outside.”
“Aren’t you hungry?” Tessa glanced at her watch. “We haven’t had lunch yet. Let’s find something to eat first.”
Seth stopped bouncing on the bed and joined them. “Where are we going?”
“I don’t know. What would you like?” Tessa moved to a table between the beds and opened the drawer. Inside, just as she suspected, she found a large phone directory. She opened it to the yellow pages and looked under the restaurant listings.
“Pizza.” That was Derek’s choice.
Tessa glanced up and saw the other two boys nod. “Okay, pizza it is. Let’s see what they have here.”
She ran her finger down the list, finding the usual chain restaurants and reading them aloud. “Oh, hold on.” She stopped with her finger on a listing that had caught her eye. “Here’s one called Pizza Playground.”
“Pizza Playground?” All three boys pushed against her, trying to see the page. Robbie read some of the attractions. “Bumper cars and video games.”
A chill crept down Tessa’s neck, ending between her shoulder blades, and she shivered. What was it about this restaurant that rang a bell in her mind? Something from long ago, yet she couldn’t put her finger on the source.
“Yeah, can we go there, Mom?” Seth’s blue eyes shone behind his glasses.
Her middle son seldom voiced an opinion, letting the other two make decisions for all three, so when he did speak up, Tessa listened. She shook off the premonition that Pizza Playground held significance to her and looked at Robbie and Derek.
“How about it, guys? Does Pizza Playground appeal to you, too? It isn’t far from the water park. We can eat first, and after a round or so on the bumper cars you should be ready for the water. This says everything is included in one price, so it sounds like a good deal.”
“I want to,” Robbie said.
“Yeah, me, too.” Derek leaned against Tessa, and she slipped her arm around his shoulders for a quick hug. She was glad he hadn’t outgrown an occasional hug the way his older brothers had.
“Then we’re off to Pizza Playground.” She turned to slip the directory back into the drawer.
Tessa found the restaurant with no trouble. The boys saw the large sign at the side of the street proclaiming Pizza Playground as the place to be, before they saw the building. Tessa pulled into the parking lot in front that could easily hold fifty cars, and while several spaces were empty, well over half held vehicles. Tessa assumed the restaurant was, indeed, the place to be. Drivers in bumper cars were painted on the outside walls as if they were circling the building. Lettering above them spelled out the words Pizza Playground with a delicious-looking pizza painted below that. A window ran across half the front side giving them a view of the busy dining room.
When they stepped into the restaurant, a young woman wearing a white polo shirt and black slacks approached. Embroidered in small letters across the left front of her shirt were the words Pizza P
LAYGROUND
with H
OSTESS
below that.
“Hi, welcome to Pizza Playground. Have you been here before?”
“No.” Tessa was amazed at the activity in the restaurant. The building must have covered half a city block, yet most of the tables in the front dining room were full. A large indoor track in the back, separated from the dining area yet partially visible to the diners, roared with the younger crowd on bumper cars. Video games beeped and pinged, their metallic voices sounding from a smaller room to the side. The aroma of spices, blending with all the wonderful ingredients of cooking pizza, hung in the air, enticing Tessa’s appetite.
Tessa looked at her boys and saw eager anticipation in their eyes. This was one place they could stay all day and not be bored. She paid the cover price, which she thought was quite reasonable considering food and games were included for them all.
They walked around the perimeter of the room to the back corner. The hostess stopped at an empty booth. She placed menus on the table then stepped aside and smiled at them. “Your waitress will take your order in a few minutes.”
“Thank you.” Tessa let Derek in and sat beside him. The older boys sat across from them. They each grabbed a menu, and Tessa looked through the one in front of her. “Do you see anything you like?”
Seth handed his menu to her. “I know what I want.”
The rest quickly made their decisions, and in much less time than Tessa had expected, considering how busy the place was, their order had been taken. While they waited, she glanced around the room. A dark-haired man in a white polo shirt and black slacks moved past the tables, briefly speaking to his patrons. Something familiar about the way he moved caught Tessa’s attention, bringing a flood of memories to her mind. Suddenly she knew why she had felt something familiar about the name Pizza Playground and the entire concept of a restaurant with pizza and games. They were sitting in the realization of Blake Donovan’s dream from so long ago. Now she understood her mother’s comment just before they left Amarillo. Yes, she might be changed if this truly was Blake’s place and he saw her. But would it be for the better as she’d hoped?
Their pizza arrived then, distracting her and giving her time to remind herself that the chances of running into Blake after so many years were little to none. Eleven years and no telling how many miles separated them. Why should she be thinking of him now, anyway? After the waitress left, Tessa bowed her head and prayed briefly over their meal.
The boys dug into the pizza with gusto. Tessa nibbled on her first piece, paying little attention to their chatter. She watched the man move slowly around the room until he turned from several tables away and looked directly at her.
A smile touched his face, but as far as she could tell, no recognition dawned in his eyes. Not that she needed confirmation. Her heart told her all she needed to know.
With blood pounding in her ears, Tessa turned away to speak to Derek so Blake couldn’t see her face. In all her wildest imaginings, she never would have expected to run into Blake Donovan. The man who once held her love in the palm of his hand moved a step closer to her with every beat of her heart.
“Hey guys.” His smooth, deep voice hadn’t changed. “Ma’am. Is everything all right?”
Tessa turned. Blake stood beside the table with a smile as impersonal as he’d given everyone else in the restaurant. He didn’t know her. Her breath rushed out. But with the only man she’d ever loved standing not two feet away, not only from her, but also from Derek, the son he never knew he had, how could she honestly say everything was fine?
After a hesitation much too long, she managed to answer, “Oh yes, the pizza is very good, thank you.”
“Is this your first visit to Pizza Playground?”
She nodded and held her breath as Blake stared at her. His eyes narrowed. Her gaze locked with his. Her heart pounded.
“Do I know you from somewhere?”
Blake’s question came as no surprise, yet a fist seemed to close around her heart and she couldn’t speak. The wedge of pizza slipped from her unfeeling fingers and landed with a plop on her plate.
H
er face must have shown her fear, because he took a step back, holding both hands up, palms out. “Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. Don’t get me wrong. I make a point of not coming on to my customers, even if I do find them very attractive.”
Did that mean he found her attractive? Even after eleven years? Thankfully, the boys were too busy eating to pay attention to this conversation. At least she hoped their sudden interest in chewing meant they had tuned Blake out. She still couldn’t say a word to dissuade his suspicions and wouldn’t know what to say if she could find her voice.
He shook his head, his gaze never leaving her face. “You look familiar to me. I know we’ve met before.”
“I’m sure I would have remembered.” She congratulated herself on regaining her voice and coming up with a plausible response that wasn’t a lie. After all, they had met, and she remembered him very well. Much too well.
A resigned look crossed Blake’s face. “Well, I’m Blake Donovan, owner of the Pizza Playground. I apologize for disturbing your meal. Thank you for choosing our restaurant. Enjoy your pizza.”
“I’m sure we will.” Good, he was leaving.
“Don’t forget to try out the bumper cars or the arcade or both. When you leave, please tell the hostess that Blake said you’ve earned a discount coupon for the next time you come in.”