Page 69 of Promise of a New Beginning
“I forgot about that. He stayed up on the phone with me almost all night for several nights in a row.” The memories were filtering back, like pieces of a puzzle falling into place. He’d known his father was exhausted. He’d heard it in his voice, and yet he remained steadfast in his support of Jack, telling him how proud he was of him and how well he’d done for his country.
“Do you remember when he gave you his old truck? He didn’t want to. Did you know that?” she asked.
“I thought it was to haul things, as he said.” Jack took a drink of his iced tea.
“He knew you needed something to haul things with all that acreage, but more important, he knew how much it meant to you. You used to ride in it just to be close to him. He wanted you to have those memories. He’s a good man, Jack, just like you.”
She sat back, and Jack felt her watching him as he mulled over what she’d just said.
“How is Jack supposed to navigate this, Mom? It sounds like it’s Dad’s issue, not Jack’s.”
“Correct. It’s your father’s issue. Jack just needs to be patient and try to remember who your father really is at his heart, so when he’s ready to forgive and apologize, Jack is receptive to it.”
Jack wondered why he’d buried the more positive memories of his father, and he wondered if he’d repressed them before or after Linda’s accident. He wished he knew.
“Do you remember the rabbit we had when I was about eight?” he asked.
“Of course. Wubbles.” She smiled.
“Right.”
“Wubbles? I don’t remember a Wubbles,” Siena said.
“You weren’t born yet,” their mother said. “Jack had a rabbit that he adored. Heaven knows why he had to have that rabbit, but he did, and he loved the darn thing so much. One day when he went out to feed him, he found that Wubbles had gone to the great rabbit hutch in the sky.”
“Aw. That must have been so sad,” Siena said.
“It tore him up, and your father wasn’t very patient with him.” She pointed her index finger at Jack. “But you were a little pill. You refused to eat or sleep for days, and while I don’t agree with how your father pushed you to get you back into life, I do think you needed to be pushed.”
Jack rubbed his hand over his face.Savannah was right.“I guess perspective is everything. I have a kid’s-eye-view with that one. I just remember him telling me to basically get over it. I don’t remember anything that I did around that time. You know, Mom, I wonder if I should just talk to him again, now that I know about Esther. Maybe if he knows I understand what he went through…”
“Don’t you dare. You promised me you’d keep it a secret, and I trust that you will, Jack.”
She said it so forcefully that Jack put his hands up in surrender. “I will. I’m sorry.”
“It could be a year before he comes around, or he could come around tomorrow. I don’t have any idea, and I can’t talk with him about it. This is too close to his heart. All I can tell you, Jack, is that he’s your father and he loves you. When he’s finally ready, I hope you’ll treat him with the same unconditional love that your sister and brothers have treated you.”
“I want nothing more than to be a family again, Mom. I promise you that I’m done with the anger. I’m feeling a lot like my old self again, and it feels too good to ever go back.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
SAVANNAH WAS ON the phone with Josh when her apartment door opened and Jack walked in. He held up the key and mouthed,It worked.He set a number of packages on the floor and joined Savannah on the couch. She held up one finger and blew him a kiss while listening to Josh.
“Okay, so we’ll see you and Riley tomorrow night. Yeah. I can’t wait. Love you, too.” She ended the call and was surprised to see how many shopping bags Jack had. “Wow, you guys really did go shopping. How fun.”
“Fun? You’ve never shopped with Siena and my mother. Siena wants to dress me like I’m a twentysomething skater, and my mother has strong opinions of her own. I did enjoy spending the day with them, though.” He leaned over and kissed her. “Sorry I’m so late. I spent a little time getting reacquainted with the city.”
“You did? With all those eyes on you?” she teased.
He kissed her again, and Savannah deepened the kiss. She’d been thinking about him all afternoon, and just the thought that he now had a key to her apartment kicked up her excitement. She’d never left a man alone in her apartment before, much less given one a key, and with Jack she didn’t have one second of unease about either.
“I’m so glad you were able to spend time with them.” The way he looked at her, the way he moved, even the way he spoke was more at ease. Savannah had a feeling that she was finally seeing the real Jack Remington—and she loved him even more than she did the day before.
“Actually, I got you a few things, too.” He retrieved the packages and brought them to the couch.
“You didn’t need to get me anything.” Savannah loved gifts as much as any woman, and her stomach jumped with anticipation to see what he’d picked out for her.
“I noticed that you had on cowgirl boots when we were in the mountains, and while they were extremely sexy, I thought you might want something a little more sturdy. That is, assuming you’ll want to spend any time at all at my cabin.” He handed her a beautiful pair of leather hiking boots.
