Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
After a splash of water to her face, Andie managed a normal-looking smile in the mirror and did her best to shove her emotions down. Regardless of anything, her future plans didn’t affect enjoying Chanukah with the Dentz family.
She hadn’t stepped two feet into the living room before Gayle patted the cushion next to her. “Oh, Andie, come here.”
She obliged and sat next to Gayle, noticing the woman had an oversized book with family pictures on the pages open on her lap.
“What’s this?” Andie asked, knowing she barely had to ask.
Gayle smiled wide. “Oh, just a few pictures of my children.”
A few seemed to be more than an understatement judging by the thickness of the book, and pile of five more on the coffee table.
“This one is all Leo. He was an adorable baby.” Gayle passed the book to her, and it landed in Andie’s lap with a weighted thud. The not-too-subtle hint loud and clear— look at how adorable your children will be . Children that would never exist if Andie moved. What she wouldn’t give to not be dealing with this internal crisis during Chanukah.
Still, she did her duty, flipping through the pages, aw-ing over the pictures. Leo really did take good baby pictures, even the one with him in the kiddie pool, crying, while a slightly older kid that Andie assumed was Jodie splashed nearby.
The photos were filled with family and love. Even a few with Glen tossing a smiling baby Leo in the air. Before conflict tore a hole in this family.
“Mom? What are you … No. Put those back.” Leo came right over to the couch, hands out, ready to snatch the book from Andie’s lap.
Considering she’d landed on the naked bath photos; she couldn’t blame him.
Gayle snatched the book before her son could make contact. “It’s my right as your mother to share these of my middle child.”
Leo grasped the bridge of his nose. “You mean it’s your right to embarrass your son. At least skip over the bath pictures!”
Gayle sent Leo a shrewd look. “I doubt I’m showing her anything she hasn’t seen.”
Andie’s cheeks burned. If it hadn’t been for the power outage … No, probably not, though tight timing nonetheless. She expected him to stomp off, leave, or try and barter with his mother. Instead, he sat down next to her.
Surprise had her staring at him, even as the book landed back in her lap.
Color shined on his cheeks, but warmth blossomed in his eyes. “I might as well know what you’ve seen rather than guess.”
She couldn’t help it, she leaned into him, nudging his shoulder with hers.
Leo reached out, flipping through some pages, before opening it up to one that held a few year’s worth of Halloween pictures.
“Oh, trick or treat.” Gayle sighed. “I miss those days. I’ve got Millie now, and it’s wonderful but different.”
Andie stopped focusing on the conversation. Leo hadn’t let go of the page and she realized he pointed, right to a photo of a younger Leo wearing a white shirt under an open jacket, a beige belt, tan pants, and holding a lightsaber.
Andie laughed. “Not much of a Star Wars fan, are you?” She jabbed his side.
He tapped the photo. “Focus again.”
Andie retrained her attention and noted the shorter boy next to Leo in black pants, white shirt, black vest under a black jacket holding a gun, and a girl dressed in white with the signature Leia hair.
“Dean is the Star Wars fan. He convinced us all to dress up with him.”
“So you’re saying don’t suggest a movie night with Dean?”
“Might be in your best interest.”
Andie chuckled and realized she’d inserted herself into a future photo album somehow. That potential movie nights with Dean and Leo were an option. That she’d get to see Millie dressed up next year. That the rightness of this family meant more than the bonds they shared with each other.
She turned the page, made sure she reacted to the photos for the mother and son bookending her on the couch. Even as her heart wanted to claim this spot as her own, the benefits package lingered in the back of her mind. This spot on the couch wouldn’t guarantee her continued employment and education. Many families had albums like this, but she knew it simply wouldn’t be the same.
For now, she really did think Leo had been a cute kid.
Something had changed. Leo knew it down to his core, though what could have changed between having Andie in his arms and panting against the door and now, he couldn’t fathom. None of his family members were upstairs to say anything to her, and he doubted a bathroom trip could create this sudden crater-wide distance he felt in her. On the surface, she smiled and laughed and engaged. But he knew her better now, caught that the smile lost some of its fullness, the shine in her eyes somewhat dimmed. Subtle, so subtle he tried to convince himself he overthought things as usual and needed to breathe.
His gut insisted it wasn’t an illusion.
So when his mother finally ended his torture session and left them alone he wasted no time in leaning into Andie’s ear. “What’s wrong?”
The shock in her eyes proved he read her right. “What do you mean?”
“Something’s off. Did my family do something?”
“Oh no, it’s not that.” She worried her bottom lip in her mouth. “I just got an email from the Ohio job following up and got distracted.”
He studied her and the curls falling down the side of her face. Her chin held high, almost begging him to question her. But she spoke the truth. Not all the truth, he knew that. And he had no right to push. “Anything I can help with?”
One side of her mouth curved. “What do you know about preschools and job offers?”
“The job involves teaching young kids.”
Andie chuckled.
“That’s it, I’m afraid. But I mean it. If I can help, I’d like to.”
She reached out and covered his hand with hers. “Thank you.” He laced their fingers together, desperate for her to trust him with whatever help she needed.
The photo album of his youth laid open between the two of them with images from the middle school years. He really should have put that book in a locked cabinet.
“Hey, I’ve never seen you working on your projects.”
He found the picture in question, him in the shop, sanding an oversized armoire with his grandfather. His bony arms poked out of his t-shirt as he used both hands to scrub.
“Yeah. I loved working with Grandpa. He taught me most of what I know.”
“I can tell. Not many teenagers are that happy to do manual labor with family.”
He caught her eye, not realizing she’d stopped looking at the photo. “I think I was eleven.”
“And you’re going to tell me an eleven-year-old doesn’t aspire to teen instead of tween status?”
She smiled at him, wide and full. His dating life might have been sparse, but no one had looked at his love for antiques as anything other than a burden.
“I was roped into work.”
Andie failed at swallowing a laugh. “I know kids, and the younger you in that picture was in his element. I bet you still look good when you work.”
His mind scrambled more than cooked eggs. She saw his passion and seemed charmed by it. And somehow looked at his scrawny awkward preteen self and saw the hints of the man he became.
“Oh, woodworking, too?”
Andie flipped through the pages, the older he got, the more he worked with wood, old and new. It fulfilled him in ways nothing else had.
“Yeah.”
“You are full of talent then, aren’t you?”
As fulfilling as antiques and wood were, they didn’t come close to this feeling right here, staring at Andie, having her see him, the real him, underneath all the layers. Like it was obvious. Like she’d support it and never tire of his sometimes obsession.
This woman right here got him, as simple and alarming as that. And she’d be moving soon. He’d finally found his perfect match only to lose her. A miracle for Chanukah that would only last for Chanukah.
From the kitchen, Gayle’s voice called out, “David, are we making coffee or cocoa?”
“Cocoa, Daddy, cocoa!” Millie’s voice joined her grandmother’s.
Gayle stuck her head in the living room. “I need a vote, who wants what?”
“After having David’s hot chocolate the other night, I have to go with that.” Andie glanced at Leo. “And Leo’s sweet tooth either means you have some fancy coffee maker or sweetener, or he’ll be going for the same. I’m also guessing David often has to be persuaded to make his delicious treat.”
“Of course Leo will have the hot chocolate. That man won’t even touch my coffee,” Gayle teased. She moved on to find the rest of his family.
“Has your doctor had a talk with you about your sweets intake yet?” A glimmer shined in Andie’s eyes, a seductive underscore to a normal-sounding conversation.
He leaned in. “I’m young.”
“For now.”
“You know what I find the most sweet out of all the sweets?”
“David’s hot chocolate?”
He shook his head. They were close enough his nose brushed hers. “You. You, Andie Williams, are the sweetest thing I’ve ever known. Or tasted.”
Her cheeks flushed and he kissed her, keeping it short and sweet, trying not to lose track of his family being here. Her lips against his felt right, like she belonged here as much as the rest of them did. Now he needed to somehow show her the same and hope it would be enough to convince her to stay.
The kitchen bustled with everyone standing around. David manned the stove, Gayle at the coffee maker, though Andie noted only David and Dean had opted for the coffee. An array of mugs in different colors and sizes lined the island, each one with its own personality.
Voices crisscrossed over each other. The moment screamed family, loving family, with all the goodness Andie had seen in movies and shows. This family certainly wasn’t perfect, but they loved and loved strongly and she started to believe their love conquered all.
Foolish thoughts. Each family had its strengths and weaknesses. Hers had a lot of weaknesses, but her father was the strength. Just because this family had what she wanted didn’t mean it belonged to her.
“Hot chocolate’s ready,” David said. He filled a mug, added whipped cream and handed it to Millie. “One princess caticorn mug for my princess.” The pink mug with a cat/unicorn drawing on it transferred hands and Millie beamed up at her father.
“Thank you, Daddy.” Her feet took one careful step after the other, since her mug threatened to drip down the sides, before arriving at the kitchen table and settling in.
David prepped the next mug, holding it up to read the writing on it, though Andie suspected he knew it already. “Is there a … Jill of all Trades here?”
Jodie playfully slapped David’s shoulder.
“Oh, that’s you?” He grinned and gave his wife a kiss before handing over her cocoa.
“Jill of all trades?” Andie asked.
Jodie sat next to Millie. “I’m a stay-at-home mom who helps my father and brothers in business, my husband in business, am on way too many committees, and have an entire room with unfinished projects, varying from crafts to a set of drawers that need painting.”
“I’ve told you, I can do that,” Leo said.
“And I’ve told you, you are not the only talented member of this family. I just need to find the time.”
“The mug I’m told would result in my death if I break it.” David held a very old-looking mug with flowers on it.
Gayle collected it from him. “Right you are. This mug is older than you, and me.”
Andie leaned into Leo. “Gift from your dad?”
“Yeah, back when he was sentimental.”
This is absolutely charming . “I’m sensing a theme here. You all have mugs?”
“Mom has mugs for us all. She wanted to keep certain things special and give us kids a reason for coming home. I have to admit, now that I’m an adult out of the house, it is nice.”
Dean stirred his mug of coffee. Andie squinted at the blue mug with white writing and made out, “I’m not spoiled, I’m the youngest.”
“I think breaking mom’s mug would be worse than the clock and plates.”
Leo groaned. “I’m trying not to think about it.”
Dean shrugged and sipped his drink.
“Here, you need sugar,” David said, handing out a medieval-looking wooden mug to Leo. It had decorative grooves in the side, gold accents and, Andie had to admit, fit the man.
Leo collected it and placed it on the island near Andie.
“Medieval, of course you’d have a medieval mug.”
Leo shrugged. “Anything old.”
Gayle placed a mug with computer coding near David. “One coffee, no sugar. How are you in this family?”
David laughed, pouring cocoa into another mug. “I get my fill of sweetness with my wife and daughter.”
A chorus of “aws” filled the room.
“More like buttering us up,” Jodie said.
“Still sweet.” David sent his wife an air kiss and placed a mug in front of Andie. Andie assumed she got a random one, but with the way Gayle studied her, she decided to investigate.
The white mug had childlike drawings on it. She read the text out loud, “I teach, what’s your superpower?”
“I braved the mall, and it was worth it,” Gayle said as though it was no big deal.
An avalanche of emotions hit her. Her heart swelled, and she had to blink back the sudden moisture in her eyes. Here, she’d been enamored with the love and care this simple routine held, and they’d opened their arms, and included her. She’d felt like an outsider when visiting her relatives, and yet here she had a spot made just for her. The others chuckled and she forced a smile, because as shocked as she felt, she truly appreciated this. “Thank you.”
Gayle patted her shoulder. “As I said, worth it. It’s clear to me this mug fits its owner.”
She moved over to the table and Andie let the underlying meaning slam into her. This mug wouldn’t go home with her, it wasn’t a parting gift. This mug welcomed her into the family, despite just meeting her, it said she belonged and would always have a place here. She’d never known a family to be like this.
Andie leaned into Leo and whispered, “Do they do this to all the random dates being brought home?”
Leo tapped his ear and leaned in closer. She repeated.
Leo rubbed his neck. “Not for Dean, he doesn’t get serious. Jodie met David at a young age, so that was a given.”
“And me?”
“I don’t usually bring dates home, so it makes this, and you, special.” He swallowed. “You are special, in case that wasn’t clear.”
“But what—”
Leo shook his head. “Don’t even begin to worry about that. Mom has a lot of mugs, and even for one day, we will all enjoy.”
Andie took a sip of her cocoa. Leo’s family fit her dreams more than she thought could be possible. She finally found what she’d been looking for and she’d be moving far away.
The people around her chatted and smiled. A happy family. A family that supported each other. Did she really need to pass on this for a chance at extended education? With this type of support, she could do anything. Climb mountains, teach children, or simply gain a family.
While she didn’t know who she’d meet in Ohio, she knew how rare a family like this could be. And as Leo laughed over something Millie said, she knew how rare a man like him would be to find.
Maybe staying would be worth the risk, since she now had a safe place to land. And a new mug that claimed those in this room believed in her.