Page 16 of The Promise Of Rain

Now, I wondered if it was more.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and closed eyes that were bleary from another rough, fucking night.The nightmare I’d finally conquered years before had returned with a vengeance since Jenny told me the truth of what happened.

Opening my eyes, I took in my mother.

She moved fluidly, her long, slender limbs carrying her effortlessly around the kitchen, a stark contrast to my father whose condition had flared up more than usual.

He sat across from me, his eyes full of sorrow as he watched her flit around the room, a sorrow he masked every time she turned her attention to him.

Their love had always shone like a beacon; a safe haven to grow up in and a guide to light my way forward.

When my father was younger, he was a bull, the hardest worker I’d ever seen.It couldn’t be easy watching the woman you loved and looked after all your life take on more and more while you did less and less.

“Can I help you, Mom?”

With a wide smile, she denied my offer and carried the serving dishes to the table.“I’m so happy you’re home, son.”

“It’s good to be here,” I attested, though that remained to be seen.At best, I had a fierce fight ahead of me.

Lifting the serving platter, I ignored my mother’s protests and filled her plate before doing the same for my father.

I barely spoke as I ate.

It wasn’t like I’d been living on freeze-dried beef jerky, but there was nothing like a home-cooked meal.

Especially one made by Mom that conjured up the sweetness of childhood.

I placed my cutlery across my plate and pushed my chair back from the table.“Delicious as always, Mom.Thank you.”

“I don’t know why you can’t just stay here until you find something permanent,” she fussed lightly.“It’s not like we don’t have the room.”

I forced a smile but shook my head.“Move into my childhood bedroom so you can come say prayers with me every night before tucking me in?”

She huffed out a soft laugh and admitted, “Something like that.”

I shook my head, offering her a real smile, and she rewarded me with another rusty laugh.

Months ago, after talking to Jenny, and before I returned to serve my final three months, I secured a rental.

The tiny A-frame had been on the market for well over a year, and it suited me perfectly.The owners wanted to sell, and I wanted to buy, but only if things worked out with Jenny.I had hope, but I wasn’t banking on anything.Not yet.With no other buyer on the horizon, the owners agreed to a six-month lease.

So long as I agreed to vacate if the right buyer came along.

“I worry about you, Deacon.You rarely smile, and I can’t remember the last time I heard you laugh.”

I worded to quell my impatience.“There hasn’t been a whole lot to laugh about over the past ten years.I promise I’m fine, Mom.”

This was nothing.Thank God, they’d never seen me in a bad mood.

“Why do you need your own place anyway?”my father challenged.

I tilted my head and took him in, wondering at the irritation in his tone.

Crippled with arthritis, he was barely half the man I remembered.Still, for me, he was larger than life.

Always would be.

I forced a stiff smile.My mother was right about one thing; it had been far too long since I’d laughed.“Maybe because I’m a grown man?”