Her heart leapt into her throat and her stomach fell a few feet. There was no doubt in her mind who was on the other end of the phone.

She found she was shaking as she reached Colton to take the phone. "Thank you," she said to her son. Then into the phone, "Hold on a moment please." She drew the phone away from her ear before she could hear the reply. Hearing his voice was going to make the whole thing real and she hadn't prepared herself for that.

Mandy looked at Colton, who was looking at her with expectations. Who was on the phone for her? "Colton, go get your pajamas on please. Then get yourself a snack. We'll finish your homework when I'm done."

Colton trotted off to do her bidding. Mandy pushed her hair back in a nervous gesture. Her heart was thundering blood through her veins and her entire body seemed to be shaking. She took a deep breath. "Sorry about that. Hi." She sounded breathless.

She could hear his smile through the phone. "Hi. Is this a good time?"

"Yeah, no. I mean, it's fine. Just caught me a little off guard."

"I'm sorry. I should have messaged you first. Asked when a good time to call was. Let you call me." He stopped and paused and Mandy couldn't think of anything to say to that. All she could do was revel in the warmth of his voice. His voice was deeper, she thought perhaps. At least from what she remembered. She tried to think about his voice on television, but she'd been so focused on his image she hadn't heart his words.