Patty starts crying in earnest, pulling her cocktail napkin out from under her wine to dab at her eyes. Charles blinks his eyes furiously, giving a hard cough.
I have more to say, though, and I need to get it out before I lose my fortitude. “I got really lost for a long time. Didn’t want to go on, but I didn’t know how to end things either. So I just withdrew and became an ass to most people. I made so many bad choices, and I felt like shit all the time. MJ would have been so disappointed in me. The daughter you raised would have smacked me and told me to get my head out of my ass. You raised such an amazing woman, and I did her memory a disservice with the way I acted. If she—”
“Stop,” Charles commands, his eyebrows drawing inward. He raises a hand, pointing a shaky finger across the table. “Just stop, Tacker. None of what you’re saying is necessary.”
“But it is,” I say quietly. “Because I need you to know how much the two of you mean to me. My actions have said the opposite, so it’s important you know.”
“We know,” Patty says, reaching across the table to grab my hand. I latch onto hers, and we don’t let go. She smiles tremulously. “MJ picked the best man to be her partner. We couldn’t be more proud of you or love you any more than we do. You’ll always be a son to us, no matter what.”
Fuck… that gets me, and I have to blink back the tears.
Charles coughs again before taking a long pull on his beer. “Now that the touchy-feely crap is out of the way, how are you feeling about the playoffs?”
Patty gives her husband a sharp jab in the ribs with her elbow. He grunts with pain, shooting her an apologetic look.
Returning her attention to me, Patty says, “How are you doing? Really?”
It’s a relief that I can tell her something positive. “Good now. Truly.”
Patty beams. “That’s so good to hear, Tacker. We just want you to be happy.”
“I think I’m on my way,” I offer, glancing from one to the other. “It took me a long time to let go of the guilt.”
“You know we never—” Charles starts to say, but I cut him off by raising my hand.
“You never.” I aim my gaze directly at him. Never once had he made me feel guilty for taking his little girl onto that plane with me. Not one time had he ever held me responsible for not being able to land it safely. “And I can’t thank you enough for your trust and love.”
“Tell me how you did it?” Patty says, in a quiet demand to hear all about my journey. “What made you finally see reason… that none of it was your fault?”
I give a snort, followed by a smirk. “Well… I sort of got drunk, ran my truck into a concrete barrier at the arena right before a game, and got suspended.”
“Yeah… we read about that in the papers,” Charles says, his tone censuring.
“I was so messed up, but for some reason, the team wouldn’t give up on me. I mean… I had to do some work. They required I go to therapy and when I did, well… let’s just say it was what I needed. Some professional help to make me start seeing things from a different perspective. Wish I would have done it a long time ago, honestly.”
Patty squeezes my hand. “The point is you’ve done it now. I’m just so happy to hear that, Tacker. You deserve to be happy.”
I drop my eyes to the table, wanting—no needing—to be fully transparent with them. To tell them the hardest part of what I need to say.
Lifting my head, I look them directly in the face—first Charles, then Patty—and tell them, “I’ve met someone. And well… I’m sort of moving forward with a relationship with her.”
I brace, holding my breath, not knowing how they will react. Hurt? Sadness? Anger?
Instead, I get smiles.
Serious fucking smiles from them both. Full of pure elation for me. My heart swells. I genuinely didn’t think it was possible to love these people more than I already did. It means they trust MJ’s memory will always burn bright with me, and that I loved her as fiercely as I could while she was on this earth.
It says they never had any expectations for me to be lonely or hold her up on a pedestal, never to be replaced in my affections.
I let out a sigh, along with a nervous laugh. “Got to tell you… I was nervous about telling you that.”
Patty leans forward, clearly excited. “You must tell us all about her. Don’t leave out a single detail about how you met and fell in love.”