Chapter 49 #2
She grimaces and quickly turns the conversation. “You know my sewing machine is in the attic at the farm, if you ever want it.”
“I would love to have it, but I think I’ll always prefer hand stitching. It calms my mind.”
This makes her smile wide. “I heard you and Raffe took the bike out the other day.”
I look away from my task to tell her all about it. “Oh, Mama, it was so wonderful. Just like old times but better.”
“You always loved to ride with him,” she says sadly, looking away.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
She nods. “I’m fine, but I have a little secret.” She reaches into her bra and pulls out a key on a silver ring. After a few seconds, she places it in my hand.
“What is this?”
“It’s for a storage locker. Not here but back home.”
I run my thumb over it. “What’s inside?”
Her head falls. “After you and Raffe disappeared, his parents put a for sale sign on his bike. Your father drove by it every day on his way to and from work. It broke my heart because I still hoped you both would return. But his parents handled their grief in their own way, and it was hard for them to look at Raffe’s things.
Daddy and I were the opposite. We kept your room exactly the way you left it … until we moved.”
I try to swallow the lump in my throat, but it’s firmly lodged right where it is.
“One evening your daddy came home and set that key on the table in front of me. He didn’t say anything, just left it there and walked away.
” She shifts on the seat so she can look down at the dock.
“Curious, I went to the storage facility the very next day. When I opened the door, the only thing inside was Raffe’s dirt bike. ”
The lump dislodges, and I gasp. “Daddy bought Raffe’s bike?!”
She nods slowly, chuckling under her breath. “There were many times in my life that man surprised me. He felt a lot more than he ever showed.”
Tears are streaming down my face, and I quickly move the dress aside so I don’t dirty it. “Why haven’t you given it to him?”
“When Raffe came back into our lives, he was destroyed he didn’t bring you with him. He went through some tumultuous times. I didn’t want to see him kill himself on that thing, and then life just got busy.”
“Mama, this is amazing.”
“When it’s the right time, you’ll give it to him.”
I nod, holding the key to my chest. “I love you and Daddy so much.”
“I know, baby. I know,” she says quietly, hugging me. “I’m going to go down and make lunch while you finish up here.”
The rest of the day is busy. Kelsie stopped by for a quick fitting to make sure we have her dress just right, and Raffe helped me call Elizabeth about the ribbon. She came right over, excited to incorporate it into the wedding flowers.
Now everyone is here, laughing and eating. Jesse and I buzz around the kitchen, making sure everyone gets full.
She rubs my back as we’re cleaning up. “It’s such a relief knowing you’ll be here to keep an eye on things while Dirk and I are travelling. I think some of these people would starve if I didn’t feed them.”
We laugh, and it feels nice.
“But I do love it.”
“Me too,” I agree.
As I’m taking off my apron for the day, so I can join everyone outside, I find the spool of thread I put in my pocket this morning.
I sigh, letting go of the feeling that I’m replacing Rachel.
My mama was right. I’m being me and so is everyone else.
We each have our place here. I set it in the windowsill.
“Already adding trinkets,” Raffe jokes, sneaking up behind me and sliding his arms around my waist.
“Only things that mean something to me.” I turn around in his arms.
He rubs his nose against mine. “Are you feeling better?”
“I am. Thank you for calling my mom.”
“I didn’t …”
I press my lips to his. “You did,” I mumble over them, “and I love you for it.”
He smiles against my mouth. “I missed you today.”
“I missed you too.”
Someone clears their throat beside us. “Um, first off, ew. Secondly, I was told you needed this thing,” our son says.
We both turn to see him holding his bug catcher. Raffe laughs. “Did you know Lily helped him make that when she first arrived?”
“Wow and it’s still holding up,” I say, pulling away from him to admire the little bug fingerprints covering it.
“That’s because my sister is a good carpenter, like me,” Jackson says proudly.
It warms my heart to hear him talk about Lily with such love. I take it from him. “Let’s go empower Charlotte, shall we?”
The two men follow me outside and she runs up to me, stopping several feet away when she sees what I have.
The club is quiet, interested in whether or not this will be successful. I know I can do this for her. My daddy helped me in the same way when I was just a little tot.
I wave Aspen over to join us, opening the door to the catcher. She instantly knows what to do and places her hand by the door, waiting to see if “Fred” will come out. Fred was the name of my childhood dog. A beagle. Mama said he lived a long time. He’s buried out at the farm.
“Come here puppy,” Aspen encourages.
When he jumps on her hand, Charlotte takes several more steps away.
My granddaughter sits on the ground beside me, and I wave for Charlotte. “Come sit on my lap, sweetheart.”
She does but hesitantly.
Aspen is happily letting Fred crawl all over her, not paying him much attention. She’s already distracted by the rock she just picked up.
Charlotte watches the spider. “He doesn’t bite her?”
“No. He could, but people don’t really taste very good to him. As long as you’re nice to him, he’ll be nice to you.”
“But what if he did bite?”
“It might smart for a second, but he’s not venomous,” I tell her honestly.
When the spider jumps over to my arm, she jerks, leaning away.
“It’s okay,” I tell her quietly. “I promise he won’t hurt you. Take a couple of deep breaths.” She does, and I slowly hold my arm out. “Can you look at him?”
She eventually turns her head. Charlotte is brave. Most adults wouldn’t get this far this fast.
“He’s looking at you because he’s curious. Jumping spiders are curious little creatures. He wants to check you out.”
He walks down my arm to the top of my hand, and then he starts waving at her with his front legs.
“What’s he doing now? Is he mad?” she asks, pushing herself back against me to keep some distance between the two of them.
I laugh. “No, he wants you to hold him. That’s his way of saying “up please.”
She giggles, and I know the bully at her school is about to be defeated.
“Would you like to try? All you have to do is hold still. If it’s too much, I’ll remove him immediately,” I tell her.
She closes her eyes. “Okay.”
Aspen sits up on her knees beside us. “It’s okay, Char. My puppy won’t bite.”
Charlotte opens one eye to look at her but then closes it again. “I’m ready.”
I transfer him to Charlotte’s hand, and she lets out a little whimper.
“He tickles, don’t he?” Aspen asks her.
Charlotte nods her head but keeps the rest of her body perfectly still.
“Open your eyes,” I whisper.
When she does, a big grin slowly pulls at her face. “I’m doing it! Daddy look, I’m doing it! I’m holding a spider!”
I can tell she’s still somewhat uncertain, but Aspen distracts her by showing her every little thing she finds on the ground while Fred chills, checking out his new friend’s bright pink shirt.
She laughs when he jumps from her hand to mine and back again. “Daddy, take a picture of me and him,” she says.
“Now that bully has nothing to hold against you,” I tell her when we transfer Fred back to his home.
Charlotte looks at me. “He’s not my bully no more.”
“He’s not?”
I look at Petey.
“After we talked to you, we realized there might be something going on at home with him. We found out his dad recently passed. He and his mom moved here to be closer to her family, but he’s been having a hard time making friends.”
“I invited him over to play, but he spent the whole day with my dad in his workshop,” Charlotte says.
Petey shrugs. “He followed me around everywhere. I think he’s just really missing his old man.”
“I’m glad you recognized he was a good kid, despite how awful he was to you,” I tell Charlotte.
“He still teases me about the spiders. I can’t wait to show him the picture when he comes over tomorrow.”
Ray places his hand on my shoulder. “Do you want to take a walk down by the lake?”
“Yeah, sure.” He helps me to my feet.
Charlotte wraps her arms around my legs. “Thank you, Jenny,” she says sweetly.
Aspen watches her, and when Charlotte walks away, she wraps her arms around my legs too. “My Nana,” she says possessively.
Willow and Jackson laugh. “You have to share her.”
Aspen’s little brows pull together, and she stomps her foot. “No. My Nana.”
I pick her up, trailing my finger over the dragonfly around her neck. “I love you.”
She hugs me, not wanting to let go.
“Do you want me to take her?” Jackson asks.
“We’re just going to sit down by the lake and visit. She can come with us,” Ray tells him.
We walk slowly, and Aspen lays her head on my shoulder. By the time we get to the dock, she’s almost asleep. I rest my cheek against her head after we sit down.
“Willow said she missed her afternoon nap today,” he says as he leans back, resting his arm behind me.
“That explains it. It has been busy around here with everyone getting ready for the wedding.”
“I wanted to talk to you about me and your mom,” he says, not beating around the bush.
“I’m fine with it, Ray. It’s pretty obvious you make her happy. That’s all I’ve ever wanted for her.”
“She is, but I want to make sure you’re comfortable with it.”
“I am.”
His gaze roams over the lake. “I’ve never had a daughter until Lily came along.
That girl is the goddamn light of my life.
She’s the angel that brought Dan back to my wife and me.
” He pauses when he sees the confusion on my face.
“She had dementia, and it was hard on him to see how much she was changing. He hadn’t been home for two years until he met Lily. ”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
He looks at me. “I hope you know your mom feels the same. She’s so happy you’re back in her life.”
I twirl a piece of Aspen’s soft hair around my finger, listening to him.
“I want you to know I can’t replace your father, but I’m here for you if you ever need anything.”
I finally look at him. “Are you sure? I might just take you up on that offer some day.”
He chuckles. “I’m counting on it.” His gaze goes back to the lake. “So, do I have your blessing to marry her?”
“Yes,” I answer quietly. “You know, you and your son are a lot alike. A couple of big teddy bears.”
This makes him laugh. “I guess I am, but don’t doubt my possessiveness.” He leans over and speaks quietly. “I didn’t want to live at that damn retirement home of your mother’s, but the men there have been flirting with her a little too much for my liking.”
I start to giggle. “I bet you’re anxious to get the house done at the farm.”
He runs his fingers through his beard. “If it doesn’t happen soon, I’m afraid I’ll have to knock one of those old motherfuckers out.”
I’m rolling now. Aspen wiggles in my arms, and I cover my mouth, trying to control myself. “Stop. I’m dying. But I understand. There are a few women who hang around here that I’d like to knock out too.”
He laughs. “Just a few?”
I roll my eyes. “Okay, more than a few.”
“We didn’t think you noticed.”
“Oh, I noticed. I just don’t like to give them any attention. Mama always used to tell me where your attention goes, energy flows. I’m not about to give them my energy. I’m saving that for my family.”
“Well said,” he agrees. We sit quietly for a few minutes before he turns to look at me. “We’re going to get along just fine you and me.”
“I think so too.”