Chapter 43
FORTY-THREE
AUGUST
I can't believe Dad changed his mind. He was so set on not having that surgery, and he changed his mind, just like that. I know the one person who may have done that.
When I get to James and Beau's parents' house, I knock on the dark wooden door. The stained window that runs down the middle of it shows a shadow walking in front of it.
The door opens, and I see Beau standing in front of me... with a mustache. How long has it been since I’ve seen him? Then again, the guy is a bit hairy.
"How the hell did you grow a mustache that fast?" I ask in shock and awe.
He leans his arm up against the doorframe and gives me a cocky grin. "Looks good, doesn't it?" Not a question, but a statement.
"I just saw you last week, and all you had was stubble. Now you have stubble and a stash." My mouth dips down. "Not bad."
Beau scratches across his chest, his dark shirt tugging at the movement. "Yup, James and I have a bet on who can grow a mustache faster."
"I did see him the other day. It was coming in nicely, but I think you're going to be the winner." I clap a couple of times, celebrating his victory.
"The ladies are obsessed with it. Who knew?"
I drag a hand through my hair, the warm wind blowing it. "Well, as much as I'd love to keep talking to you about your mustache, I was wondering if your dad is home?"
"Yeah, we were just about to have lunch.” He opens the door to let me in. “You can join us if you want."
"Shit, well, if I knew you were having lunch together, I wouldn't have come."
"Get in here," Beau says, pulling at my shoulder and launching me into the house.
He stands a couple of inches taller than me and can throw me like a football if he wanted to.
He closes the door and walks toward the kitchen with me following behind.
"Dad, August's here. He needs to talk to you. " Beau shouts through the halls.
We get to the kitchen, and the patio door is open. Their beagle, Molly, shakes her entire butt when she sees me through the screen. She gives me a deep howl of excitement.
"Hey, Molly," I coo.
Beau opens the screen door, and Molly barrels past his legs, straight to me. I drop to my knees and catch her in my arms when she throws herself at me. I've never been good at controlling her excitement and usually give in, letting her do whatever she wants.
I make sure to scratch her between her ears, rub her belly, and scratch her wiggling butt before I stand back up and go outside, where Beau and Mr. Miller are.
"August," Mr. Miller says.
I blink twice when I see that he also has a mustache.
"Want a burger? We just put the patties on the grill."
"Uh, yeah." I point to him. "Hey, has anyone ever told you that you kind of look like—"
"Tom Selleck?" Beau finishes my sentence. "Ever since he grew a mustache after seeing James and me, that's all I hear from women. It's weird." He bends at the waist and opens the cooler next to him, pulling out three beers for us.
"Thanks." I grab it from him and twist the cap off.
He holds his beer bottle up and looks straight into my eyes like he did when we went to the resort for Rowan's birthday. I laugh but look him in the eyes.
"Cheers, buddy." I clink my bottle to his.
"I think I just fell in love with you more," Beau says.
"Appreciate it." I clasp his shoulder with my hand before sitting down.
"So, what brings you here?" Mr. Miller says and flips a burger.
I place my beer down on the glass table and watch the condensation roll down. Beau sits next to me, letting out a relaxing sigh. The deck sits high in the backyard, connecting to the house. They still have the playground set that we used to go on when we were kids.
The grass is green and bright. The tall bushes give them extra privacy. String lights hang around the deck; troughs of edible plants sit atop the wooden rail.
"I don't know if you've heard," I start, "but my dad decided to get the surgery."
"Oh shit, really?" Beau says, patting me on the back. "That's great, man."
"Yeah." I rub my neck. "My mom and dad told Ellie and me that it's going to happen soon. They said the recovery process is going to be long and they're going to need all the help they can get."
Mr. Miller smiles as he stacks the patties onto a glass plate. "Well, that's great, August. I'm glad to hear it."
"Yeah." I look down and nod.
He sets the plate on the table, all the condiments and buns already spread out like a feast. Beau starts to build his double cheeseburger, and his dad sits down next to me.
"Look," I say to Mr. Miller, turning to him. "I want to thank you."
He's putting together his own burger. "For what?"
"To convince my dad to get the surgery."
Mr. Miller stops what he's doing and looks at me with pinched brows. "You think I convinced him to get it?"
"I remember you telling me about your mom and what you went through. You said you would talk to him, see where his head is at. I saw you two talking at the bakery's opening."
"This burger slaps," Beau says through a mouthful, getting mustard in his mustache.
Mr. Miller clears his throat. "I did talk to your dad, but I'm not the reason he changed his mind. Sure, I told him about my mom and that I understood what you and your sister were going through, but it wasn't because of me."
I'm confused by what he's telling me. Mr. Miller talked to Dad, but he wasn't the reason Dad changed his mind. So, then, what did?
"Did he tell you why he changed his mind at all?" I ask.
Beau reaches across the table, working on his second burger.
He shrugs one shoulder and says, "He changed his mind for his kids."
I look at him, stunned, and I sit up straighter. "He told you that? Because of Ellie and me? He didn't mention that when we talked to him. Why wouldn't he say anything?"
"August, one day, when you have your own kids, you'll know why we do the things we do.
Even when we are at our worst, we'll do what makes them happy.
It's exactly what my mom did for my sisters and I.
" His face turns solemn. "She wanted to spend as much time as she could with us, see any milestone she could, even when she felt terrible.
At first, I felt guilty because I watched her in pain every day for so long. At one point, I thought it would be better if she just passed away. But she pushed through, and even though I was the youngest in the bunch, I did everything I could to make her comfortable until her very last breath."
We both turn toward Beau when we hear a sniffle come from his direction. Beau wipes away a tear with his arm and then takes another bite of his burger. "That was beautiful, Dad."
I don't know what to think, but I do know that all I want right now is to hug my dad and tell him I love him.
Everyone is at Honey Cakes planning the fundraiser for Dad. Hailey and Riley oversee the design for the booth and logo, Addie and James manage marketing, Rowan and Beau will be extra hands, Ellie and Emily will bake the goods for sale, and I come up with items from the store for people to bid on.
Ellie selling desserts will be a piece of cake, no pun intended. She lives for this kind of thing. I, on the other hand, haven't done anything like this before. But Riley helped me brainstorm ideas and I'm proud of what we've come up with.
Dad knows some of the best surfers out there.
Growing up, he was part of surfing competitions where he met and became friends with surfers who ended up going pro.
When I reached out to some of them and told them about Dad and what we're doing, they didn't hesitate to give up one of their boards and sign it.
All four were happy to donate to the cause on top of it.
Another bid is to take surfing lessons with me. Three days of lessons, and they get to pick their own surfboard to take home.
Rowan joined in, offering two people a chance to come to the brewery and learn how their own beer is made. Those winners will also have their beers sold at The Salty Dog for a limited time only.
Hopefully they're good.
After hearing about Rowan joining in, Beau thought it would be even better to add a bid for someone to get a hair makeover at his barber shop. Riley told Hailey she should offer a free tattoo to the highest bidder.
"This is awesome, you guys," Mom says to all of us.
Dad is resting at one of the tables, listening to everything we're planning to do. He nods when he agrees with something, while preserving his energy. He's wearing the green baseball cap, his old college sweatshirt, and sweatpants.
"Anything for you guys, Mrs. T," Beau says, slinging an arm around Mom’s shoulder.
Mom pats his hand, thanking him, and she goes to sit next to Dad. She rests her head on Dad's shoulder, her hand on his leg. He rests his head on top of hers, wrapping his arm around her as best he can.
I look at my parents and see how in love they are. Even cancer can't tear them apart.
"How are you doing?" Riley rubs my back, soothing me.
I wrap my arm around her shoulders and give her a kiss on her forehead. After I told Ellie about us, I let Riley know. Then she decided to tell her sister, and well, it got around town quickly.
Nothing can be kept private around here.
"Better now that you're here." I pull her in close. My nose presses into her beautiful, soft hair, which smells like summertime, fresh air, and sea salt. "Have you heard anything from your mom?"
She shakes her head and pulls away from me. "I haven't."
It's been weeks since Riley's confrontation with her mom.
She and Hailey have been spending time with their dad, and their relationship has been blooming.
There are days Riley feels like she's on top of the world.
Then there are days when it hits her that her mom won't try to change her ways. Even for her daughters.
Riley has taken steps to find a therapist after the conversation with her mom.
It shook her up. She wants to grow and learn from it, instead of running away like before.
I'm so proud of her. I'm proud of the strength and courage it took for her to realize that sometimes you need to cut someone out of your life, even if it's your own parent.
I turn to look at her, my hands roam down to her waist, and I hold on to her. The biker shorts she's wearing underneath a large T-shirt make me want to take her back to my place and throw her on the bed. Her curves under my hands pull this feral side out of me.
Then I remember we're in public and I slow myself down.
"I'm proud of you, Ry. You've come a long way from the girl I met that one summer."
Riley wraps her arms around my waist, tilting her head up. The way she looks at me pulls on my heartstrings, and I’m so lucky to have her back.
"Thank you, baby." She gives me one of her soft, loving kisses.
I don't pull away until I hear, "Ugh, get a room," from Ellie.