Page 41 of Broken Dreams
“I think so, but I may take your hand a few times. Asher is very observant when he wants to be and with the way they were grilling me this week, I think they’ll be watching.”
I grab the salad I made and nod. “Okay. I’m ready.”
At first I really thought this was unnecessary, but he made a point that if his family doesn’t believe we’re together, then we can never convince anyone else. Besides, I like a good barbeque and it has the bonus of getting Elodie and Jett together.
We walk around to the backyard where Asher is standing by the grill with Rowan, they’re both pointing at whatever is cooking and arguing. Off to the left is Brynlee and Phoebe, who are watching them with wide grins.
Brynn looks over first. “Addison! Elodie!” She rushes toward us. “I’m so glad you came.”
“Thank you for having us. I made this,” I say, lifting the bowl.
“You didn’t have to, but I’m sure it’s amazing. Grady can take it and put it inside.” The way she says it almost makes me laugh, it’s more of an order than suggestion. Then she looks to Elodie. “Are you looking for Jett?”
Elodie sways back and forth, nodding.
“Would you like to go see him?”
“Animals?” Grady asks.
Brynlee glances up. “Of course, Olivia is watching him.”
She is the sweetest thing and just turned ten. Grady was telling me how in just a few months of being here, he has learned a lot of ASL to communicate better with her and even Jett is picking it up.
“I love pigs,” Elodie informs us.
“Me too, and donkeys and goats and ducks and chickens. Would you like to come with me, and we can find Jett and see the animals?” Brynn asks.
Elodie looks up at me, apprehension in her blue eyes. “Go ahead. Miss Brynlee even has a goat.”
“I do! Her name is Baaabs and she’s very sweet.”
That does it, she takes her hand and they walk off. “You are doing great,” Grady says against my ear.
“You, not so much.”
“My game is a little rusty.”
I grin. “Thank goodness your sister has no issues telling you how to fix that.”
“I need to put this inside before Brynn scolds me. Do you want to see the house?”
“Sure.”
In all my time living here, I’ve never been to Brynn’s home. I had this idea in my head of white painted furniture with bits of grays and pinks and seeing that it fit the vision perfectly, I smile.
Grady puts the salad in the fridge, and I walk over to a small sofa table where there are family photos. I see the one of the four siblings and smile. Brynn is laughing with her head thrown back as her three brothers lift her in the air. There is one of Phoebe and Asher and he’s down on one knee. Olivia’s school picture, and then one of Grady and a very beautiful woman holding a baby.
“That’s Lisa,” he says at my back as I hold the frame.
“She was beautiful.”
“She was.” I feel that familiar pang in my chest when I remember why our home has photos too. “We have a lot of photos around the house. We also work hard to honor her memory.”
I place the frame back down. “How so?”
Grady looks at the photo and then me. “Every night, I read Lisa’s favorite story with Jett. It was all she talked about. How when he was born, each night she’d readGoodnight Moonto him, until he could recite it without the story. It’s important that I carry that on in her memory.”
I nod. “Does he know the words?”
