Page 72 of Ashes of Us

“So, you're going from having no dogs to two?” Alex raised his eyebrow as he finished roasting a wiener, and Danica passed him the buns and mustard to make himself a hot dog.

“I was all for getting the dog to help Gracie after I saw her interact with Watson and Indie,” Xavier explained.

“But Em pointed out that it really wasn't fair to get her a dog that was specifically for her, despite it being important for her and her disability, because they weren't going to understand that it’s a working dog, not just a pet and they would see it as something else that Gracie gets that they don't. Which, I agree, isn't fair, especially since Gracie already gets so much more of our time and energy no matter how much we try to spread things out over all three of them.”

“Aren't you worried that they'll still see it that way?” Alex asked, and Danica could tell he was thinking along the same lines as she was, because she had thought the same thing. “Gracie gets something that she gets all to herself, and Benny and Delilah have to share.”

“Yeah, we had that discussion too,” Xavier admitted, glancing at Emilia.

“But the truth is, it's not feasible for us to get three dogs; two is already pushing it, and the only reason I agreed to the second one is because it will already be trained.

Emilia has enough on her plate every day with three kids, school, their activities and appointments, and just managing the home while I'm working, I didn't want to put training a puppy or puppies on her too.”

“So, we're going to explain that because Gracie needs her dog to help her, we got a family dog too, and right now, because they're young, they have to share with each other and mommy and daddy.” Emilia picked up the explanation.

“And if they can prove they're mature enough to look the dog consistently, by feeding, grooming and cleaning up after it with our help, we would consider them getting their own pets.”

“Not dogs or anything like that.” Xavier held up his hand when both Danica and Alex looked up in surprise. “Small pets. Delilah has asked for a hamster a few times, and I think Benny wants a snake or a lizard or something along those lines.”

“At which point I will stop going to your house.” Danica shuddered and pulled her feet up into the camp chair she was sitting on immediately at the thought of being within the vicinity of a snake, making Xavier and Alex laugh at her.

“It'll just be something small like a corn snake or a gecko,” Emilia reassured her, chuckling.

“And it will be kept in his room, in its enclosure when we have company.

But this is all in the future. Delilah and Benny are only six and eight.

I fully expect them to be very interested in helping and looking after the dog for all of two weeks, and then it will wear off, and they will whine whenever they're asked to feed them or let them out.”

It wasn't too long after that that the conversation petered out, and they all silently agreed to start packing things up for the night.

Danica went into the tent first and changed into her pyjamas and then stepped out so Alex could change.

Then they all went as a group to the bathrooms, something Danica really didn't enjoy, and she came out feeling like she needed a shower, something Alex told her was in her head when she mentioned it.

Back in the tent, she climbed into her sleeping bag and adjusted her pillow before untying the door to her room and zipping it closed, as Alex did the same across from her, and they said good night.

After tossing and turning for a bit, unable to sleep as she thought back over what Emilia told her, she decided she couldn't keep it to herself anymore.

She didn't hear a sound from Xavier and Emilia's tent, but there was a lot of background noise from the forest around them, other campers, and their music that she wasn't sure she would hear them if they were talking.

“Alex?” She whispered, rolling over and pulling the curtain back a little. “Are you still awake?”

“Since your air mattress is extremely loud, yes.” He sounded like he was both annoyed and a little amused, but she heard him pull back the curtain in the dark. “What's wrong?”

“Has Xavier...” Danica paused, not wanting to push for a recounting of their private conversations, but needing to know what, if anything, Xavier might have said about his marriage or Emilia and if he was aware of just how bad things were between them.

“Has he mentioned anything about problems with Emilia or anything like that?”

“Noooo,” Alex answered slowly, sounding like he was genuinely thinking about his response.

“He's always very positive when he talks about Emilia.

He thinks she's an incredible mom and wife, he always sounds appreciative about what she does, and part of the reason he wants to start his own safety consulting business is so he can be a bit more flexible with his hours and be around more to take some of the home stuff off her plate.”

Danica nodded in the dark. That was the Xavier she knew, too, and she wondered where the disconnect Emilia described was coming from. “So he wasn't, like, mad or upset she invited herself along camping with you guys?”

“No, not at all.” His response was immediate, and she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

“He was apologetic when he told me she wanted to come, said he would understand if I wanted to back out, but then just as quickly suggested that we ask you to come so we could still do most of what we planned, and I wouldn't be the third wheel. Why?”

Danica sighed and chewed her lip as she wondered how much she should tell him and decided to stick with the original issue Emilia had mentioned.

“Emilia feels like they've become more like roommates than husband and wife since Gracie was born, and she says when she talks to him about it, he brushes her off and says that's normal after three kids and ten years together.”

“Ahh.” Danica could almost see him nodding as he understood why she was asking questions and what the problem was.

“So, she's not happy with their relationship as it is, and he thinks everything is great and they're just going through the natural progression of marriage.” There was a pause, and then she heard him roll over quickly. “Wait. Like, how unhappy is she?”

“Uh, let's just say he needs to really listen to her and stop telling her this is normal immediately,” Danica admitted. “I think this weekend might make or break them.”

“Well. fuck.” Alex sighed, and she heard what sounded like his hand running over his face. “What do you want to do? Stay out of it, or warn Xavier?”

“Honestly?” Danica admitted after a moment of internal debate. “I think he needs to really hear her and change his attitude about it, so warn him, I guess? I don't know, but I was really hating being stuck in the middle with all this by myself, so thanks for joining me in my personal hell.”

“Listen, if it stops you from shifting every two minutes and making noise, I'm happy to be here.”