Chapter 16 #3
There was a slight pause before Erin spoke again. “You sound good, Brogan. I’m happy for you. I know Connie would be so pleased.”
He still suffered a lot of guilt for cutting Connie out of his life, but Erin and Pixie reassured him often that Connie had understood.
He prayed that was true. His guilt over surviving when his brothers hadn’t …
That had been out of his control, and now that life was so perfect, he was glad to be here. “Thank you.”
“About the house?”
At one time, he’d considered living in it to keep Connie’s memory fresh for Shayna.
Then he’d found Brian and Ruth there, and later he’d met Pixie.
Bramble was her home; so as much as possible, he’d make it home for Shayna and himself, too.
“Feel free to do whatever needs to be done. I appreciate it.”
“Perfect. I have vacation time coming up. I’ll get the ball rolling here. Then I’ll let you know when to expect me.”
After a few more exchanges, they ended the call. Brogan turned back to his family—his family—almost choking on emotions too big to name.
Pixie had removed her sandals and sat in the lawn chair with her feet in the pool, dipping Shayna’s toes much as he had. The difference now was that Andy, with his mother supervising, did a lot less splashing and spent equal time kissing Shayna and Pixie.
Brogan’s heart was full as he approached them with a smile.
Pixie looked up at him. “Everything okay?”
He explained about the call, about Brian passing and Ruth disappearing. “It sounds like she took off right after her court stuff finished up.”
With Shayna held close, Pixie stood and leaned into him. “How do you feel about that?”
“I’m fine,” he promised, because he was.
She sighed, then tipped up her face. “Good, because I’d like to eat at the Dry Frog tonight.”
“Marlow working?” Pixie often liked to grab a burger there to chat with her friend. Cort usually showed up, too. It always amazed him how Marlow could wait tables, carry on conversations, and still control the entire room. Knowing her better now, he easily understood Pixie’s admiration.
“She’s off tonight, but she and Cort will meet us there.”
Nothing new in that, yet something about the way she fought a smile made Brogan suspicious. “So, what’s up?”
“Oh, just a little special occasion for the locals.” She passed Shayna back to him. “How’s that sound?”
Definitely, she was up to something. Didn’t matter. “Sure, sounds good.” If it made Pixie happy, it made him happy, too.
“Perfect. Watch the kids a few more minutes while I shower and change?”
After another kiss, he said, “Sure, but they’ll need to be changed, too.”
“We’ll do that together. Give me ten minutes.” She grabbed her purse and headed inside.
That’s how everything went, he realized. Teamwork. Always an easy plan.
An hour later, Brogan found himself in the middle of the entire town, or so it seemed.
The tavern was packed with every local he’d ever met, and many he hadn’t, though most of them looked familiar.
One person after another greeted him. The way they all watched him ramped up his suspicions even more.
Butler grinned widely at him. It was unnerving, especially when the robust man insisted that he and Pixie should sit up front at a table placed in the center of the room.
These were Pixie’s friends, people she cared about.
A town full of good, humble, and caring people. He wanted to make it his home, too, but he also had great respect for rules—at least, that is, rules that made sense.
When Butler went to the front of the room and “unveiled” an eight-by-ten framed photo of him in uniform, Brogan realized he was being honored. For what, he had no idea, but Pixie sure looked happy about it.
“Smile,” she said, nudging him with her shoulder.
“Where did you get the pic?”
“Cort found it.” Her beautiful face lit up with a smile while he suffered in the spotlight.
He twisted to see Cort at the table behind him. He and Marlow were together, watching Shayna and Andy in high chairs. Wade, Bobbi, and Gloria were with them.
Shayna hadn’t stopped smiling at Gloria from the moment the woman sat down and started a game of peekaboo from behind her hands. Andy had loudly claimed his little sister by saying, “My baby.”
The buzzing conversation in the room grew quiet when Butler started listing Brogan’s “good deeds and acts of heroism”—As if I’d done anything heroic—and proclaiming that the town would honor him by putting his photo next to Cort’s on the wall of the tavern.
Okay, Brogan was military, and Cort was military, so that wasn’t so bad, but still he felt his neck getting hot.
Chairs screeched on the floor as everyone stood and applauded. Cort lifted his glass of cola in a toast. Andy loved the fanfare.
Brogan, not so much.
Butler loudly cleared his throat. “Before we proceed—”
Proceed with what? Brogan wondered.
“—we have a few special guests.”
Leaning close to Pixie, Brogan whispered, “What now?”
“Shh,” she replied, still with that teasing smile.
Dee Pearson made her way to the front of the room, with Gunther Prader beside her.
Brogan barely bit back his groan. He scanned the crowded room and saw Gunther’s wife, Lily, and son, Toby. Toby waved at him; so, naturally, Brogan had to wave back.
Given how she could embellish a simple act, Dee should have been a storyteller instead of a music teacher.
The way she told it, Brogan had saved her from certain death during a horrendous storm.
She went on to tell everyone that he still visited her to help with her heavy groceries, like big bags of dog food, canned goods, and lawn supplies.
She shared every small gift he’d ever brought to her: flowers, treats for her dog, and a new cake pan she had mentioned wanting.
More applause exploded around the room.
Brogan seriously wanted to sink lower in his seat, but hey, a SEAL didn’t do that, so he sat tall and dipped his head in gratitude.
Gunther started in next, also claiming that without Brogan’s help, he would have died in a truck fire.
He shared how Brogan had rescued his dog from the truck, earning an “aww” from everyone.
Then he boasted—As if it was a big deal—that Brogan and Pixie had come to visit his family a few times now, always offering to lend a hand.
When the applause died down this time, Brogan hoped that was the end of it. He was starting to get hungry, damn it.
Instead, Ellen and Benny took the floor.
Ellen stood behind her son with her hands on his shoulders and let Benny do most of the talking.
Brogan had to admit, hearing the tale from the kid’s perspective, it really had been a miracle that he’d gotten to Benny in time.
Ellen shed some quiet tears while Benny showed off the scars on his forehead and forearm.
Ellen finished up by saying that thanks to Brogan’s quick reactions and ability, she still had her son. She said she’d never again let him on the dock without a life preserver.
Brogan gave a firm nod of satisfaction. In his opinion, every kid who was near the water should be wearing one. Accidents happened all the time, and that one really could have ended in disaster.
Of course, Robin, owner of the Docker restaurant, came up next and announced to everyone that he’d helped her to come up with a safety protocol, which she’d posted near the docks. And she even shared that he’d donated a dozen life preservers, which she’d customized with the restaurant’s logo.
Pixie hadn’t known about that one, so she turned to him in surprise. Covered by more clapping, Brogan whispered, “I did that while you were working. Didn’t think to tell you about it.”
“More like you were being modest, but that’s okay.” She gave him a quick kiss.
When the room quieted again, Cort walked up to the front.
This time, Brogan didn’t bother hiding his groan. “There might be one more thing I haven’t told you.”
“I know,” she said. “But Cort shared—and I love the idea.”
Cort faced everyone. “Last year, when Marlow moved here, I petitioned to change the rules.”
Everyone was back on their feet instantly, the cheers louder than ever.
Marlow joined Cort, all smiles, and announced, “Bramble is the best town ever!”
The noise became deafening. Concerned, Brogan checked on Shayna, but she was taking her cues from Andy, and Andy was loving it. Eyes wide, his little Sugar flailed her arms and squealed loudly.
Cort easily regained the room. “Pixie and Andy are officially part of the town; so, naturally, Brogan would like to be part of Bramble, too. However, he respects our rules and knows we’re not allowing new construction on houses, so he’s been looking in Lankton.”
Everyone fell quiet. Brogan wasn’t quite sure what that meant.
“He asked me about buying the lake house, which he’s renting right now, so that he, Pixie, and the kids could still visit Bramble often.”
More silence. Brogan felt uneasy now, but Pixie was still smiling.
“Marlow and I discussed it, and since Brogan’s offer was fair, we’d like to accept—but with a little condition.”
Wow. Okay. Brogan felt better now. As long as no one in the town complained about adding a few more visitors, he could go forward with his plans.
Pixie leaned close. “It’s a wonderful idea. Thank you.”
“I know how you love being close to Marlow.”
Butler cleared his throat. “Cort discussed his plans with the board, and we agreed it’s a fine idea. We put it to the town, and the town has also agreed.” He unrolled a large sheet of paper and came over to place it on the table where Brogan and Pixie sat.
It was a floor plan. Brogan didn’t understand.
“This is the lake house,” Cort explained, pointing to an outline in red. “This will be an addition.”