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CHAPTER THIRTEEN

JADE

I’m out on the deck, studying, when Frank calls.

“Hi, Dad.” I call him that sometimes. I call him Frank, too, but he likes it better when I call him dad.

“Hi, honey.” He’s smiling. I can hear it in his voice. “How are classes going?”

“Good. How’s your house going?”

“It’s almost done. Did you get the photos I sent?”

“Yeah, the house looks great. You did a really good job picking stuff out. I didn’t know you had all those design skills.”

“It wasn’t just me. I had some help.”

“From who? Ryan? Because I can’t picture him picking out that tile and those paint colors.”

“No, um, I had some help from a friend of mine. Karen.”

Karen is his girlfriend that he’s never told me about. Ryan tells me about her, but I’m supposed to pretend I don’t know about her.

“Who’s Karen?”

Frank clears his throat. “She’s a woman I’ve been seeing.” He hesitates, then says, “Romantically.”

I almost laugh when he says ‘romantically’ but instead I try to act surprised and serious.

“I didn’t know you were seeing someone.”

“Jade, I know Ryan told you about her.”

“He hasn’t told me much. Just that she’s a nurse and a widow and that you met her at the hospital.”

“I met her last summer, but we didn’t start dating until a couple months ago.”

Hearing Frank say he’s dating is just weird. It shouldn’t be, but it is.

“And it’s going well?”

“Very well. In fact, I’ve invited her for Thanksgiving. I hope that’s okay.”

“Of course it’s okay. Why wouldn’t it be?”

“You’ve never met her. It might make you uncomfortable to have her there.”

“I think it’s good you invited her. I’d like to meet her. And I like the idea of a big Thanksgiving with lots of people. I’ve always wanted that. And now with Chloe, Garret, and Karen, we’ll have six people. That’s a crowd compared to our usual Thanksgiving.”

“Yes, our family’s grown a lot the past year.”

Family? Is he considering Karen to be family? Are they that serious? Maybe he just meant Chloe and Garret.

“Where does Karen work in the hospital? Or does she work in the clinic you go to?”

“She works at the hospital in obstetrics. She loves working with all the new moms and taking care of the infants. She never had children but she enjoys working with them. Karen’s a very nice lady. I think you’ll like her.”

“I think I will, too.”

“Oh, she wanted me to ask you if you’d like to take part in a Thanksgiving Day run. It’s at a park in West Des Moines. She’s running the 5K and asked if you’d like to run with her. I told her how you like to run. But Jade, don’t feel like you have to.”

“I’d love to. Tell her I’ll do it.”

“Thank you for agreeing to it. She’ll be thrilled. She didn’t want to do it alone.”

“Do you have any other plans for while I’m there? Because I told my algebra teacher I’d speak at that event he invited me to. It’s Saturday afternoon.”

“Good. I’m glad you’re doing that. And no, I didn’t have any other plans. I thought we’d all just stay at home, play cards, watch movies, eat turkey.”

What he’s describing is exactly what I want. To be back with family and just be together at home.

“That sounds perfect. I’m really looking forward to Thanksgiving.”

“I am too, honey. We missed having you last year.”

We talk a little more, then we hang up and I go inside. Garret’s watching a sports show on TV.

I snuggle up beside him on the couch. “I can’t wait for Thanksgiving.”

“You craving turkey?”

“No, it’s not about the food, although I am looking forward to that. Ryan says Chloe’s a really good cook. But besides the food, I’m going to run in this race with Frank’s girlfriend and then we’re going to spend the weekend hanging out at the new house, watching movies and playing cards and stuff.”

Garret’s laughing at me because I was talking really fast. “Slow down a minute. Now what was that about Frank’s girlfriend?”

“Frank just called. He finally told me about his girlfriend. You should’ve heard him. I think he might be in love. He invited her over for Thanksgiving, so I’m thinking that’s pretty serious. And she’s running in a Thanksgiving Day race and I’m going to run with her. Do you want to run, too?”

“No, but I’ll stand on the sidelines and cheer you on.”

“This Thanksgiving is going to be so great.”

He gives me a kiss. “You’re finally getting into the holidays. I must be wearing off on you.”

I spot his phone on the couch. “Were you just on the phone?”

“Yeah. Sean called.”

I set his phone on the table and sit so I’m facing him. “What did he say?”

“Promise you won’t tell Harper?”

“He’s proposing, isn’t he?”

“Yeah.”

“When is he doing it?”

“Christmas.”

I sigh. “And she’s going to say no. Did he already buy a ring?”

“Yes, and he’ll be paying it off for years, with 18 percent interest.”

“This is so bad. See? I knew we should’ve said something to him. First he loses that job opportunity and now he’ll lose Harper. He’ll have nothing left.”

“Maybe she’ll say yes.”

“She won’t. She’s already upset that her parents are giving her the silent treatment. Marrying Sean will make her relationship with her parents even worse. She won’t let that happen. She’ll want to fix it before she’ll even consider marrying Sean.”

“If we’re right about Kiefer joining the organization, there’s nothing Harper can do or say that will change her parents’ minds. They’ll still say they don’t want her being with Sean.”

“Maybe we’re wrong about Kiefer. If he was invited to be a member last summer, then why is he taking so long to break up Harper and Sean? I mean, he just recently told her to break up with him but it’s not like he gave her an ultimatum or anything.”

“I know. I was thinking the same thing, which makes me wonder if this has nothing to do with the organization. Maybe her parents just decided they don’t want her with someone like Sean. Maybe it’s like she said and they want her with someone who’s rich and has a college degree.”

I wish that were true, because if it was, Harper and Sean could be together. Eventually her parents would come to accept him. But if Garret is right and Kiefer joins the organization, that’s never going to happen.

* * *

On Thursday afternoon, I go back to see Jennifer. I only had that one session but I think I like her. She seems smart and I like that she’s not one of those women who wears a ton of makeup and reeks of perfume. The counselor I saw after my mom died was one of those women. Her perfume was so strong it gave me a headache and she always wore purple eyeshadow and way too much blush. Jennifer has more of a natural, outdoorsy look and she seems athletic.

Garret came with me again, but next time I think I’ll tell him to stay home. Now that I’m more relaxed, he doesn’t need to sit in on all these sessions.

Today Jennifer asks about Frank and Ryan and I talk about them for the entire hour. It’s good she’s not forcing me to talk about my mom right away. If she did, I wouldn’t come back.

Before we leave, I make an appointment for the same time next week. Afterward, Garret takes me out for dinner, just like he did the other day. He thinks he has to reward me for going to counseling, but really, I should be thanking him for making me go. I couldn’t do it on my own.

* * *

Friday night we go to the park for the outdoor movie. Garret brought a sleeping bag to put on the ground and I packed a cooler with drinks.

Sara and Alex are already there when we arrive. They’re sitting on a blanket with Caleb between them. They’re talking and smiling, so that’s a good sign.

“Let’s set everything up over here,” I tell Garret. We’re standing off to the side, far away from Sara and Alex.

“Don’t you want to say hi first?”

“We can’t. If we do, we risk Alex telling us to sit by them and that will ruin the whole plan.”

Garret’s shaking his head. “You mean your matchmaking plan?”

“Yes.” I toss the sleeping bag at him. “So get with the program.”

“You haven’t even met this guy. He could be a total jerk.” Garret spreads the sleeping bag out and puts the cooler on top of it.

“That’s why I need you to ask him some questions. We need to get to know him, figure out if he’s good enough for Sara.”

“Jade, I’m not getting involved in your little scheme.”

“Come on. You’re a guy. Take him aside and talk to him man to man.”

“I’m just supposed to tell him to come talk to me? A guy he just met?”

“Make up an excuse. Go wait in line at the bathroom together.” I point at the park shelter where the bathrooms are located. There’s a line of guys standing on one side and girls on the other.

“Seriously, Jade? Guys do not go to the bathroom together.”

“Then I’ll take Sara aside and you can stay behind with Alex.”

“And what exactly am I supposed to ask him?”

“Ask him what he thinks of Sara. If he thinks she’s cute. Stuff like that.”

“I’m not a 12-year-old girl, Jade. There’s no way in hell I’m asking him that.”

I smile and give him a kiss. “I love you, but you’re not being very helpful. Let’s go say hi before the movie starts.”

Sara stands up as we walk toward her. “Hey, you made it.”

“Yeah, we just got here.” I turn to Alex, who’s standing next to Sara. “Hi, I’m Jade. And this is Garret.”

“Hi, I’m Alex.” He shakes our hands.

He looks like she described; average height, dark hair, stubble on his face. He’s thin and not very muscular. He’s not my type, but from the way Sara’s staring at him, I can tell she’s attracted to him. She said he wears glasses, but he doesn’t have them on tonight. He’s wearing shorts and one of those vintage wash t-shirts in a light blue color.

Sara’s wearing a red tank top and jeans. She’s so short and small I bet she has to shop in the girls’ department to find clothes that fit.

Caleb is sitting on a blanket, lost in his own little world, playing with his teething ring. He has more hair now than he did a few weeks ago but Sara can’t make it stick down to his head. It’s so thin it attracts static and sticks up all over the place. She’s got him dressed in a white t-shirt and navy sweatpants. She has almost no money so she buys all his clothes at thrift stores or gets them for free at church giveaways.

The four of us talk for a few minutes and then Alex says, “You guys should grab the spot next to us before someone takes it.”

“That’s okay,” I tell him. “We already set our stuff up over there.”

Sara picks up her water bottle. “I’m going to go fill this.”

“I’ll go with you.” I follow her, turning back to Garret and mouthing ‘ask him’ as we walk away. He gives me an eye roll and I laugh.

“How’s it going so far?” I ask Sara.

“Great. We got here early and had a picnic. Alex played with Caleb a little so at least I know he’s not totally freaked out by babies. He said he has tons of nephews and nieces so he’s used to being around kids.” She fills her water bottle at the drinking fountain.

“Do you want me to take Caleb so you guys can talk a little before the movie starts?”

“You don’t have to. Caleb hasn’t been fussy so Alex and I have been able to talk.”

“Can I just borrow him for a few minutes? I need more baby experience.”

She laughs. “You can borrow him whenever you want as long as you give him back.”

When we meet up with Garret and Alex again, they’re talking about sports. They seem to be getting along.

I pick Caleb up. “Sara’s letting us borrow Caleb for a few minutes,” I say to Garret.

“Practicing for when you have your own?” Alex jokes.

I smile. “Yeah, something like that.”

“Take this in case you need anything.” Sara hands Garret the diaper bag.

Garret and I go back to our spot. “That was so obvious, Jade. You need to work on your matchmaking skills.”

“It wasn’t obvious. I want to play with Caleb.” I set him down on the sleeping bag.

“Alex knew you were trying to give them alone time. Guys aren’t that stupid.”

“He didn’t seem to mind.” I glance over at them. “And look how close they’re sitting now. That was all my doing.”

When I look back at Garret, he’s holding Caleb on his lap. “You see that girl over there?” He points to me. “Never take her dating advice. You want advice on the ladies, you come to me.”

“Hey!” I pick up Caleb’s tiny hand. “Don’t listen to him. I have good advice. If you ask Garret, he’ll tell you to spray girls with air freshener, which you should never do by the way.”

Caleb yawns really wide.

“I think we’re boring him, Garret.”

“He’s just tired. You want to hold him?”

“No, you hold him.”

Garret bounces Caleb and he starts that giggling and drooling thing he did when he was at our house. He’s so adorable. And Garret is such a natural at this baby thing.

The movie starts playing on a giant inflatable screen. I look around and notice white lights are strung around some of the trees. The park is more crowded now with a mix of couples and families.

Garret turns to face the screen and I move next to him and lean my head on his shoulder. Caleb is still on Garret’s lap, gnawing on his teething ring. For a moment, I imagine Caleb is our baby and I get this overwhelming feeling that I want that. I’ve had this feeling before but I always fight it, telling myself I can’t have what I really want. But tonight I’m not fighting it. I’m letting myself feel it. And it feels really good.

Ten minutes into the movie, Sara comes over. “I can take him now so you two can watch the movie.”

“I’m not done with him yet,” I tell her. “Can we borrow him a little longer?”

“Sure. Come get me if you need me.” She goes back over to Alex.

Garret sets Caleb in my lap. “I’m getting a soda. You want anything?”

“I’ll take a water.” Caleb’s squirming as I try to hold on to him.

Garret sets the bottle of water next to me, then cracks open his can of Coke. The fizzing sound diverts Caleb’s attention back to Garret and he reaches for him.

“Garret, I think he wants to sit with you. Can you take him back?”

“Nope.” He sips his soda. “It’s your turn. And you need the practice.”

“I do? For what?” I give Caleb one of his toys, distracting him from Garret.

“For when we have kids. I can’t hold them all the time, Jade. I have things to do and it’s tiring on the arms.”

“So now we’re having kids?”

“You never know when the stork might drop one on your door. You gotta be prepared.”

“The stork?” I laugh. “Garret, do we need to have the talk about where babies come from?”

He takes a drink of his soda. “I told Lilly about the stork and she believed me. Every time she saw one of those big white cranes, she thought it had just dropped off a baby at someone’s house.”

“Now that she’s in school, some kid probably told her the truth.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“So how many kids do you think the stork’s going to bring us?”

“I ordered three of them. Shipping and handling costs a fortune so get prepared to write a big check.”

“I hope he doesn’t bring them all at once.”

“Yeah, that would suck. Although it would save on the shipping and handling costs since he’d only have to make one trip.”

“I didn’t know he took orders. I thought he just dropped them off.”

“Sometimes he does, like when he surprised Sara with Caleb. But he also takes orders.”

Caleb starts to fuss and cry a little. “You better take him.” I hand him to Garret. “I think he’s had enough of me.”

“He’s just tired or needs a diaper change.”

I look over at Sara and Alex who are talking and laughing. “Should I take him over there? I hate to interrupt them.”

Garret’s searching through the diaper bag. “He needs to be changed.”

“How do you know?”

“Because his pants are wet. His diaper’s leaking.”

“I’ll go get Sara.”

“Just change him yourself. You need to practice.”

“Why? It’s not like the stork’s coming tomorrow.”

“He might. His delivery schedule is very unpredictable.” Garret hands me a diaper. He has a changing mat laid out on the sleeping bag and some baby wipes off to the side.

I lay Caleb down on the mat. He fusses some more as I take off his pants and wet diaper. “Now what do I do?”

Garret hands me a new diaper and takes the wet one from me. “Let me throw this out.” When he comes back, he says, “Jade, you gotta hold the diaper over him or you’ll get wet.”

“How do you know? You’ve never changed a baby boy.”

“No, but I’ve got the same parts as him and I know what they’re capable of.” Garret takes the diaper from me and grabs a baby wipe. “I’ll finish up and you watch.” Within seconds he’s got Caleb in a fresh diaper.

I find another pair of pants in the diaper bag and put them on Caleb just as Sara stops by again.

Garret hands him to her. “He’s all yours. Freshly changed.”

“You didn’t have to do that. You should’ve come and got me.”

Garret gets up. “I’m going to go wash my hands.”

Sara kisses Caleb, who’s yawning. “I need to get him to bed. Alex and I are going to head out. But thanks for watching Caleb for me.”

“Sure. He’s a really good baby.”

“Are you going to stay and watch the movie?”

“Probably, although we haven’t really been watching it. We’ve been too busy playing with Caleb.”

She smiles. “You guys will make great parents someday.”

I shrug. “I don’t know about that.”

“You will. You guys really love each other and you’re not afraid to show it. Kids pick up on that. It makes them feel safe and secure. I read that in a book, but it makes sense, right?”

“You ready to go?” Alex walks up and puts his arm around Sara’s shoulder. Interesting. It could be a friend move. Or it could be more than that.

“Yeah, I just need to get his stuff.”

“I’ll get it.” Alex picks up the diaper bag. “See you, Jade. Tell Garret if he wants to watch a game to give me a call.”

“Okay. See you guys later.”

As they walk away, I notice Caleb’s already asleep on Sara’s shoulder. He’s even cuter when he sleeps.

“Did they leave?” Garret’s back from the bathroom.

“Yeah. Alex said something about a game?”

“I asked if he wanted to meet at a sports bar sometime and watch a game.”

“You never told me what you talked about with him.”

“Let’s see. . . we talked about how he thought Sara was cute, and how much we loved her outfit, and I asked him where she got those earrings. And then we discussed trends in nail polish colors.”

I punch his arm. “Yeah, you’re funny. What did you really talk about?”

“What do you think? Sports. That’s what guys talk about.”

“But you liked him?”

“I guess. I only talked to him a few minutes.” Garret sits behind me, wrapping his arms around me and kissing the side of my face. “How long do we have to stay here?”

“I don’t know. Why? You don’t like the movie?”

“The movie’s boring. You want to go back to my place?”

“Is there anything to do there? Because if I’m going to be bored, I might as well stay here.”

“I guarantee you won’t be bored.”

“What do you have planned?”

He gives me a detailed description, whispering it in my ear.

I turn my head back and kiss him. “Your place sounds good. Let’s go.”