Chapter 26
Twenty-Six
“Love is a better teacher than duty.”
—Albert Einstein
On the morning of New Year’s Eve, Molly called Lucas’s house.
“Morning,” Lucas said when he took the call.
The sound of screaming kids in the background brought a smile to his mother’s face. She’d spent most of her adult life surrounded by screaming kids and wouldn’t have had it any other way. “Morning. How’s it going over there?”
“Business as usual, as I’m sure you can hear.”
“Could I have a word with Mr. Caden, please?”
“Yep. Hey, Cade, phone for you.”
“Is it my dad?”
“Nope. It’s Grammy.”
“I wanna talk to Grammy,” Sierra said.
“After Caden,” Lucas said. “Here you go, Mom.”
“Hi, Grammy,” Caden said. “What’s up?”
“I was wondering if you might like to have a lunch date with your old Grammy. I’m missing you since you’ve been on vacation.”
“You’ve seen me almost every day,” he said with amusement.
“I know, but it’s not the same when there’s millions of other people around. Besides, it’s raining, so you won’t be skiing.”
“Can we go to the diner?”
“Wherever you want.”
“You’re not old, Grammy, but you sure are silly.”
“I’ll pick you up at noon, you charmer. And let’s keep this our little secret, okay?”
“Okay. Here’s Sierra.”
She chatted with Sierra, Sawyer and Savannah before she got Lucas back and told him she would pick up Caden at noon.
“Got it. See you then, Mom.”
Molly went out of her way to spend one-on-one time with all her grandchildren, but she had a special place in her heart for Caden. He’d made her a grandmother and then lived with them for the first four years of his life. She didn’t play favorites, ever, but he was her special pal—and he knew it.
The thing she loved best about Caden, though, was that he knew he was special to her, Linc and Elmer, but he never acted that way in front of the other kids. He was always kind and generous toward them, and she was counting on his kindness for the mission she had planned for today.
A little before noon, she packed her oversized purse with colored paper, crayons, pencils and other art supplies and headed to Lucas’s to pick up Caden. She didn’t go in so the other kids wouldn’t get upset when she left with Caden. Instead, she waited outside for Luc to walk Caden out.
Caden carried his duffel bag while Luc brought his skis and another big bag of toys Caden had brought with him.
“You don’t travel light, kid,” Molly said.
“Haha, Uncle Lucas said the same thing.”
“What do you say to Uncle Lucas for having you this week?”
Caden threw himself at his uncle, wrapping his arms around him. “Thank you so much for such a fun time. I love staying here.”
“We love having you. Any time, buddy.”
“And thanks for getting me off that bunny slope,” Caden said in a loud whisper.
Lucas gave him a playful bop on the head. “Shh, that’s our secret.”
“Not anymore,” Molly said.
“Have a nice time with Grammy,” Lucas said as he held the back door for Caden.
“Tell your kiddos I’ll see them at dinner tomorrow.”
“Will do.”
Molly backed her SUV out of the driveway and headed toward town. “What’s going on in the back seat?” she asked Caden, as she did every day when she picked him up at school.
“Nothing much. When will Dad be home?”
“Later today.”
“I can’t wait.”
“I bet he can’t wait either. He misses you when he’s away from you.”
“I miss him, too. Why does it take so long to drive from Houston?”
“It’s almost two thousand miles.”
“Is that a lot?”
“Sure is. Here, let’s count off a mile, starting now. I’ll let you know when we’ve gone a mile.” She drove the car along the winding mountain road that led to town. “Right… now. That was a mile, and your dad and Lexi had to drive two thousand of them. You see why it’s taking so long?”
“I guess so.”
Molly glanced at him in the mirror and saw that he was looking out the window, a contemplative expression on his cute little face.
He reminded her so much of his father at the same age, and since Max had been her last baby, he, too, held a special place in her heart.
She so admired the way he’d stepped up as a full-time father.
He’d done such a beautiful job raising his son, and she was thrilled to see him getting some much-deserved personal happiness with Lexi.
They parked behind the store and crossed Elm Street holding hands on the way to the diner.
Molly knew the days were numbered in which Caden would want to hold hands with his grandmother in public, so she was enjoying every minute while she could.
Megan greeted them with a smile and a wave from the other end of the restaurant as they slid into a booth.
“What do you feel like?” Molly asked.
“My usual.”
“A boy cannot live on chicken nuggets alone.”
Caden flashed a grin that was all Max. “He can sure try.”
“Haha,” Molly said.
Megan came over to take their order. “Nice to see you guys.”
“You, too,” Molly said. “Are you still floating over finishing your book?”
“I can’t believe it’s done. It took years.”
“We’re all so proud of you.”
“Thanks, Molly. What can I get you guys?”
Molly ordered a grilled cheese, while Caden asked for his usual.
“Coming right up,” she said.
While they waited for the food, Molly withdrew the art supplies and paper she’d tucked into her purse and put them on the table. She pushed the paper toward Caden. “I was thinking you should make a welcome-home card for your dad and Lexi.”
“Does it have to include her? Couldn’t it just be for Dad?”
Molly had suspected he might say that, thus the reason she’d invited him to lunch. “Your dad really cares about her a lot. He has since he was just a little bit older than you are now. If she hadn’t gotten sick, they probably would’ve gotten married, and you wouldn’t be here.”
“How come?” he asked, his blond brows furrowing in confusion.
“Your dad never would’ve dated your mom if he was with Lexi.”
“Oh.”
“I want you to do something for me.”
“What?”
“I want you to think about what your dad has done for you since you were a baby. Other than the time he’s at work, he’s been with you.
He hasn’t had much time for a life of his own that doesn’t include you, which was fine with him because he loves you so much.
But now, he has a chance to have you and Lexi, which will make him even happier than he already is. Don’t you want that for him?”
“I do, but…”
“But what, honey?”
“I don’t want everything to change,” he said, his chin quivering.
“Sweetheart, the things that matter most will never change. Your dad will love you as much as he always has. That could never change. Do you see how happy Uncle Will and Aunt Cameron are together, or Uncle Lucas and Aunt Dani?”
He nodded.
“Don’t you want that for your dad, too?”
“I guess.”
“You’re the most generous boy I’ve ever met. Do you know that?”
“Really?”
“Uh-huh. You take such good care of your baby cousins. You don’t care if they break your toys or pinch your toes or pull your hair.”
“I love them.”
“I know you do, and you love your dad. That’s why I want you to be just as generous to him as you are to your cousins. Can you do that for me?”
He nodded, even though he didn’t seem completely sold.
She nudged the paper and crayons closer to Caden. “In eleven short years, you’ll leave for college, and your dad will be all by himself. We don’t want him to be lonely, and you know he would be if he was all alone after you move out.”
Caden took the paper and opened the box of crayons.
Megan brought an ice water with lemon for Molly and a chocolate milk for Caden.
“Thank you,” they said.
“Another thing I want you to think about,” Molly said after Megan had moved on, “is how cool your dad has been about your mom coming back into your life.”
Caden looked up at her. “What do you mean?”
“It isn’t easy for him to share you with her, but he did it because it’s what you wanted. If you share your dad with Lexi, you’d be doing what’s best for him. You see how that works?”
“I think so.”
“Sometimes doing what’s best for the people we love isn’t always the easiest thing, but it’s the generous thing.
It would make your dad very sad if you weren’t nice to Lexi simply because you don’t want things to change.
One thing about life is that things are always changing, but change doesn’t have to be scary.
Sometimes it can be awesome, like when you have more people in your life who love you. ”
Caden worked on the card while thinking about what Molly had said. “What if Lexi doesn’t like me?”
“She already likes you.”
“How do you know?”
“Because you, Caden Abbott, are a great kid, and anyone would be lucky to have you in their lives.”
He rolled his eyes. “You’re my grammy. Of course you think I’m a great kid. You have to think that.”
“No, I don’t, and I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true. I have a lot of experience with kids.”
Caden snorted with laughter.
“A lot. I know good kids, and you, my friend, are the best of the best. Lexi will love you as much as the rest of us do. I have no doubt. She’s a really nice person, and I think, if you give her a chance, you might love her, too.”
While they talked, he’d drawn a rainbow. Under it was a boy, a yellow dog and a picture of their house. He wrote, Welcome Home Dad and… “How do you spell Lexi?”
“L-E-X-I.”
He wrote it down. Inside, he signed the card: Love, Caden and Daisy.
“You did a great job. That will mean a lot to them.”
“I want my dad to be happy. He’s a great dad.”
“Yes, he certainly is. He’s one of the best dads I’ve ever known.”
“And you’ve known a lot of dads.”
“That’s right.”
Megan brought their food to the table and set it down while Molly collected crayons and stashed the card to the side to keep it safe. Megan placed the ketchup next to Caden. “Can I get you guys anything else?”
“I think we’re set. Thanks, Megan.”
“Thank you,” Caden added.
“You’re welcome. Enjoy.”
As they were finishing their lunches, a truck drove down Elm Street, beeping the horn.