Page 86 of Penalty Shots

"Alone?" I whisper back without looking at him.

"Mmhmm. I hear there's a beach close by."

"What about everyone else?"

He smiles, "They'll be passed out within the hour."

He's right. We settle down for a movie, and those who aren't taking a nap in the rooms are eyes-shut on the couch as The Grinch plays.

Mom is the only one still up, now cleaning plates at the sink.

"I got that, Elena," Keelan says, popping up to help her.

"You're a guest, no. You sit, relax."

He shakes his head and gently takes the sponge away from her. "Elena, my mother would be insulted if I sat on the couch while a woman who's hardly rested all day cleans. Please, let me."

I watch the interaction from my place on the couch, where Libby is currently sleeping against me, her hand on her growing tummy.

My mom steps away from the sink, patting him on the shoulder as she walks away, saying, "You have good parents."

Had. He had good parents.

I have good parents. And I realize just how lucky I am to still have them.

I try wriggle out from under Libby's fiery red hair without pulling it and waking her. I replace my shoulder with an actual pillow and she doesn't protest.

"The only thing I ask, is that you give me every single one of those recipes we had tonight. I can't live without them," Keelan tells Mom.

She chuckles, "Ay Keelan, those are family recipes. They only stay in the family."

Mom announces she's going to take a quick nap and then be right back. "Take your time," Keelan says.

Dad snores on the couch and draws our attention to the living room, but he stays asleep.

"And then there were two," Keelan says to me, scabbing one of the plates.

"You wash, I dry?"

"Sure." He passes it to me and we make quick work of putting everything away before grabbing a couple of towels and setting out for the beach just as the sun is disappearing over the water.

"This is why I love coming here." I point to the horizon. An array of oranges and pinks and purples dance across the waves and shoot through the clouds in the sky.

"It's almost the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," he says, nudging me from his place on the beach towel.

I slip my toes in the sand, feeling the cool sand beneath the surface.

"I'm glad you guys are here," I admit.

He leans back and slips his toes into the sand, too. "You need us. We come," he says matter of factly.

"I'm especially glad you came."

His toes stop moving in the sand. "Really?"

I nod my head softly.

"Why?"

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