Moms Night Out by Tricia Goyer Read Free Book Online Page A

called to him.
    “Hey.” He walked over, a large smile filling his face. “Check this out.” He had a hop in his step, and it was good to see. He handed her the document tube he’d been carrying, and then turned back to Bailey. As he leaned close Allyson got a whiff on his cologne, and her heart did a little leap. Yes, everything was so much righter when Sean was home.
    Sean’s eyes widened at the sight of the wall and the frames she’d added. “Whoa . . .”
    Allyson waved her hand toward the wall. “Yeah, she said she wanted to be an artist when she grew up, so . . .” Her chest warmed with joy to see Bailey’s pride. Bailey’s cheeks plumped up as she smiled, and she swished from side to side basking in her father’s approval.
    “Whoa. That is awesome!” Sean hunkered down to get a closer look at Bailey’s masterpieces. He kneeled before the pictures on one knee and then placed Bailey on the other knee, wrapping his arms around her.
    “You know what?” Sean exclaimed. “You have a lot of talent. This wall may be worth something some day!”
    “Okay, here you go.” He turned around so she could climb on his back. “Alright.” And then with a large smile on both of their faces he “flew” Bailey over to the couch, flopping her down.
    Allyson took the lid off the document tube and pulled out the blueprint. She spread it on the ottoman before her, scanning the draft. It was a nice house, a large house that a real family would live in some day. Since they first started dating in college, this had been Sean’s dream. Now he was living it. He made her proud, and it made it easier—okay, a little bit easier—to deal with his work trips when she knew Sean was doing something he loved.
    “You know what I wanted to be when I was a little boy?” Sean asked. Bailey tipped her head in curiosity.
    His expression grew serious. “A basketball player.”
    A giggle escaped Allyson’s lips.
    He feigned shock. “Don’t laugh. There is a fine tradition of white, short basketball players.” Allyson folded a small pair of jeans and set them to the side. Sean was the fun one, the silly one. He brought so much joy to their home, and she was blessed to be married to such a man . . . but in a way his joy made her feel deeper what she was missing inside.
    Allyson laughed again, but deep down there was still that nagging feeling that something wasn’t right. The house was cleaner today, yes, but nothing was fixed. It would just get dirty again tomorrow. The kids would get out of control again tomorrow. Life tomorrow would be the same as life today. More work. More noise. More stress. Is this what life had come to?
    And Sean’s talk of dreams hadn’t helped much. No . . . not at all. An ache that had been just below the surface began to grow, and it refused to be pushed down. Even the smiles and laughter from a moment before couldn’t keep it at bay.
    Bailey turned her attention to Sean’s architectural sketches spread before Allyson. She pointed. “What’s this?”
    Allyson leaned forward, peering down with her. “This is a house that daddy’s making. Isn’t it wonderful?”
    Bailey pointed to a boxed-out space. “Is this a window?”
    “Yeah, it is.” Sean nodded, obviously pleased she’d been able to read the draft.
    Bailey tilted her head and studied it. “If you move it over here then they can see the pool.” She pointed to an opposite wall.
    “Huh?” Sean scratched his head and then looked closer. Then his face brightened, and Allyson knew he liked that idea . . . and he most likely wondered why he hadn’t thought of it.
    “I have to go play, see ya.” Then Bailey skipped off.
    “Interesting,” he said, and she could see he was making a mental note.
    Allyson picked up one of Brandon’s shirts that read, Homework Kills Trees, So Stop the Madness, and then turned to Sean, daring to open her heart. “You know what I wanted to be when I was a kid?”
    He looked up from his plans.