Page 46 of Ebbing Tides
CHAPTER NINE
A fire crackled and spit from within the fireplace, and Lido had made himself at home in the heat and dancing glow from the flickering flames. He snored peacefully, his paws twitching—something CJ found more and more hilarious by the second.
I sat on the couch beside the little boy, his weight leaning against my arm as he threw his head back and laughed, harder and harder every time Lido barked in his sleep.
“What is hedoing?” he shouted, voice full of delight and glee.
“He's dreaming,” I told him.
“What's he dreaming about?”
I cocked my head, staring at the big dog. “Oh, I dunno. Probably the squirrels and birds in our trees. He likes to chase them in the summer.”
I left out the part that, one year, Lido had found a dead squirrel somewhere off the back deck and, with all the pride in the world, left its carcass in the middle of my living room rug. He had been thrilled, of course, but me … not so much.
I glanced over my shoulder to watch Melanie hurrying in and out of the kitchen, carrying platters and serving bowls full of food. I had asked repeatedly if I could help, but after the fifth or sixth time, she'd given me a look that scared me from asking again. Now I just watched as she laid the food out on Charlie's small dining room table, encircled by four wooden chairs and three metal ones, dragged in from Charlie's enclosed patio, while her kids, Charlie, Stormy, and I sat back and waited for her to call us to eat.
It was nearly sunset, and somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew I had to get to work. But I couldn't bring myself to care about that. Not when I was about to share a meal with these people—this lovely family who had, at the last minute, received notice that I'd be joining them and not only welcomed me, but were happy about it. I couldn't remember the last time I'd felt this good, this happy, and although I'd told Melanie we should let things happen as if she wasn't leaving, I couldn't help but remind myself now that she was, in fact, leaving. This would come to an end, and I would go back to being a lonely widower, living life on a predictable cycle with his dying father and his big black dog.
But until then, I was determined to enjoy this as a momentary reprieve from that life.
The life I hadn’t wanted, but was forced to live.
“I feel like we've known you forever, but we hardly know you,” Stormy said.
She sat in one of the black wingback chairs, and Charlie sat in the other, both of them looking like a gothic king and queen on their respective thrones.
“It feels like that,” I agreed, pulling my attention from Melanie.
“Do you have any family?” she asked. “I think I had meant to ask you once, but I don’t remember if I did.”
I cleared my throat and nodded. “I have two younger sisters, Grace and Lucy.”
“Are they married?”
“They are,” I replied as CJ crawled onto my lap to watch TV, as if that was a better seat than the one beside me. “They married my best friends.”
Stormy lifted a brow, a glint of mischief and delight in her green eyes. “Oh, I bet you loved that.”
I chuckled and shrugged. “Grace and Sid … I didn't mind as much. It was weird at first, but it was okay. Lucy and Ricky …”
“Not so much,” Charlie guessed, and I wagged a finger at him.
“Not so much,” I confirmed. “We're all good now, but there was some, uh … let's just say, tension between us when I first found out. But they had been seeing each other behind my back, whereas Sid asked for my blessing, but …” I waved a dismissive hand to shoo the topic away, embarrassed that I'd divulged as much as I had.
“Do they have any kids?” Stormy asked, clearly not done with the interrogation.
“A few each,” I replied with a nod.
“And you never had kids?”
I sucked in a breath, then released my anxiety with my exhale. “My, uh … my wife, she passed away ten years ago. She had two girls. But they're with their father now.”
Stormy's face fell with immediate sorrow and regret. “Oh … I'm so sorry.”
I shook my head, lifting a hand. “No, it's okay. I don't mind. We, um … we never had any other kids, so since she died, it's just been Lido and me,” I explained.
Danny looked up from the other side of me. “How did your wife die?”
