“Hey man, don’t ruin my progress. We’ve got time before I have to poke her. Anyway. Beers, outside, now. Let’s go. You need to help me convince Beckett to join our rec soccer team. I’d ask you, but the practices are all at night which doesn’t work with the peanut.”
I grab four beers from the fridge and follow him outside, handing one to him as I go. “Soccer was never my sport anyway. Wrong kind of ball.”
“That’s right, you were all about baseball, weren’t you?”
“You know it.” Max clinks his bottle with mine and we take a drink as Uncle Dennis and Beckett wander over.
“Hey Leo, how was work today?
I hand Uncle Dennis a beer before I answer. “Well, it’s no hotbed of crime, but Dogwood Cove is an interesting place to work, that’s for certain.”
“Oh yeah? Did you help some old ladies cross the street?” Beckett teases.
“No,” I chuckle. “But I did have a riveting meeting with the mayor about security for the fall fair.” I consciously avoid sharing the part where Ethan basically asked me for my intentions with Serena. No need to involve my nosy family inthatjust yet.
“Ethan’s a cool guy,” Max comments. “I’ve joined him and his friends for their weekly trail run a time or two.”
“He mentioned that. I might try to go if I can squeeze an extra hour or two out of Aunt Claire for babysitting.”
“What are you trying to get out of Aunt Claire?” The woman in question comes outside with Violet on her hip and Kat following behind.
“Daddy. Fowler, Rena?” Violet squirms in my aunt’s arms, and as soon as she sets her down, Violet beelines for a dandelion growing in the grass and plucks it.
“You want to give that one to Serena, too? I don’t know if we’ll see her tonight, baby girl.”
“Fowler, Rena.” Vi’s lower lip starts to jut out.
“Here honey, why don’t we put your beautiful flower in some water, and you and I can take it to Miss Serena tomorrow,” Aunt Claire swiftly interjects, taking Violet by the hand and leading her inside, looking over her shoulder to wink at me as she goes. Something tells me my amazing aunt will be picking a fresh dandelion tomorrow.
Aunt Claire and Violet come back outside, and Vi makes a beeline for me. “Up, Daddy. Pwease.”
I lift her up and her arms wrap around my neck as she snuggles in. This right here makes all the stress, all the sleepless nights, all the constant worry worth it. The love I get from my daughter is the purest, most amazing feeling in the world.
If I had someone to share that love with me? That would be… I don’t even know how to describe it.
Over dinner, conversation flows amongst us easily. I missed this all these years. The ease of family, the conversation, teasing at times, heartfelt at others. It makes me wonder why I never bothered to come and visit them before now.
If I had, maybe I would have discovered Serena living here, on the same side of the country, a short ferry ride away from me all along.
But then, as Serena said, if we’d found each other before now, there’s a chance Violet wouldn’t have been created. And that’s something I don’t want to think about. I may not often feel like I’m doing everything right or being the parent that she needs, but I’m the only one she’s got.
I’m in the middle of wiping ice cream off Violet’s face when Kat says something that makes me shoot daggers at her.
“So, how did lunch go with Serena?”
“Lunch? When did this happen?” Aunt Claire perks up. Great. And here I figured I had some more time before her matchmaking kicked in.
Beckett’s laughing under his breath at me, so I turn my glare on him. Bastard, he should be grateful I’m taking the heat off him and his brothers.
“It’s not a big deal. I took her a sandwich from Camille’s and we ate together. That’s all.”
“Did you reminisce about the good ole days?”
That’s it. Kat is officially dead to me.
“Good ole days? What is she talking about, Leo. Do you know Serena?”
Taking a deep breath to steel myself against the inevitable, I face my aunt. “We dated in high school.”