“Come on, let's grab some lunch at the food court, and then spend some of your man’s money.”
“I’m not with him for his money.” It’s important to me that she knows that and that Holden knows it as well. He could be working at one of these stores here at the mall, and I’ll still feel the same way about him. I’d still be falling for him.
“I know that. You’re Easton Monroe’s daughter. Hell, you don’t even have to work if you didn’t want to.” She gives my shoulders a tight squeeze. “Now, come on and let me feed you.”
“Okay, so we have a comforter set, sheets, towels, dishes, and cookware. You think that’s enough to get him started?” I ask Autumn as we take our second load to my car.
“He said he needed everything.”
“Yeah, but surely he wants to pick some of that out himself.”
“He’s a man.”
“Men choose things for their homes.”
“Not if they don’t have to.” She laughs. “I say we head to Walmart to get groceries, and we can pick up things like mixing bowls, cookie sheets, pizza pans, and pizza cutters. He’s a man living alone. We have to keep it simple.”
“Maybe we should pick up some paper plates.” I laugh. “I don’t know this side of him,” I confess.
“That’s why you’re dating. You’re going to get to know all sides of him.”
“Yeah, but shouldn’t we have done that before we added an actual title to this?”
“No. You do you, Parker. Who cares if you don’t know if he likes to use paper plates? He’s used them at our place without a problem.”
“This is weird, right? Me buying stuff for his home?”
“Sounds like he let you do the same thing last night.”
“He did, but he was with me.”
“Maybe he saw that you have good taste, and he knows you’re not going to do him wrong. I mean, unless we go back and get the dishes with the sunflowers. That’s very manly.” She laughs.
“No. I can’t do that to him.” I shake my head, fighting my own laughter.
“Okay, let’s go to Walmart and get the groceries. My poor car is packed as it is. We don’t have much room for more anyway.”
“Let’s do it.” We climb in my car and drive the short distance to Walmart. “One cart should be enough, right?” I ask Autumn.
“I say we get two. One for food and one for everything else.”
“Probably a good idea. It’s hard to tell what you’ll talk me into getting.”
“I’ve got your back.” She smiles and winks dramatically.
“Come on, goofball.”
Once inside, we both grab a cart and head to the home goods side of the store to start. I keep running through my head of things he’s going to need to be comfortable until all his belongings are delivered. I’m not going to go crazy. I just want to get what he needs to get him by.
“What about a rug for the shower?” Autumn asks.
“Yes. He’s going to need that. Let’s see if we can find a dark gray one.” She holds one up, and I nod. “Toss it in the cart.”
“He’s a man. He’s going to need one of these,” she says, holding up a plunger.
I toss my head back in laughter. “Every house needs a plunger. Add it to the cart,” I tell her.
“Oh, what about rugs for the front door?”
“Yeah, he’s going to need those too.” We turn back two aisles over and grab a couple of doormats. One for the mudroom, the front door, and the sliding door in the kitchen. That’s enough for now. He can get more as he needs them.
“What else are we forgetting?” she asks.
“Silverware.”
“He can eat with his fingers,” she teases.
“Which of these looks like Holden to you?” I ask her, stopping in front of the shelf that holds silverware.
“These.” She points at the same set I was thinking of.
“Agreed.” I toss in two packs and move on down the aisle. “Grab some mixing bowls, and I’ll get a cookie sheet and pizza pan.”
“If you plan on doing any cooking, you might want to grab a casserole dish too.”
“He probably has them at his old place.”
“He was a bachelor who was never home.”
“But he knows how to cook. He made us breakfast, remember?”
“Just because he knows how doesn’t mean he did it. Besides, from what you tell me, it’s a big-ass kitchen. He has the storage space.”
She’s right. After I add the pans, I grab a glass casserole dish as well. I toss in some kitchen towels, a couple of serving utensils and decide that’s enough. “I think we’re ready for food,” I tell her. “I still feel like he’s going to have double of all of this stuff. It’s a waste of money.”
“This is what he asked you to do. He said it was all hand-me-downs, so maybe he wants all new for his new house, new start, new girlfriend.” She shrugs. “He’s on a new kick right now.”
“Stop.” I laugh. “Come on. Groceries, and let's get out of here,” I say as my phone rings. Fishing it out of my purse, I see Holden’s calling.
“Hey,” I greet.
“Hi. How’s it going?”
“Well, I have a trunk full of stuff for your house, and we’re at Walmart now getting some groceries and a few other small things.”
“I need it all, so I’m sure whatever you have will be great.”
“You might end up with a lot of duplicates when you move your stuff here.”
“It was mostly all secondhand anyway. I’ve been thinking about just donating it.”
“Okay. Well, is there anything specific you need or want to eat?” The question sounds very domestic, and it’s something I’ve heard my mom ask my dad and vice versa many times in my life.
“Yeah, can you grab some towels and body wash? Whatever you think smells good is fine with me, and some shampoo?”
“I already bought towels, but I’ll grab the other stuff. Food?”
“Water, milk, eggs, wheat bread, some fruit, really. Just grab what we’ll need for tonight and the next few days. We can go out and fill up the fridge and pantry after that.”
“Okay, well, I’ll figure out a couple of quick meals and some snacks.”
“Perfect. What time will you be here?” he asks.
“Well, we just started on the food, so probably an hour and a half to two hours. I still have to drop Autumn off at our place too.”
“That’s perfect. Thanks for helping me, Parker.”
“Anytime. I’ll see you soon.”
“Drive safe, babe,” he says before hanging up.
“What did he add?”
“Just some body wash and towels, but we’re already all over that. He said just to grab for the next few days, and he can worry about getting stocked up later.”
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m not sure. He said to grab whatever he thinks we might need.”
“We, huh?”
“That’s what he said.”