Page 34 of Peak of Love
“Does she have a good reason to say no?”
“No,” Parker stated defensively.
Dane shrugged and took a drink.
“You’re right. I’ll tell Grace right now.” Parker sounded cautiously excited. After his text, the older man wiggled in his seat and cleared his throat.
“It’s been good to see you today, Dane. I love that the boys are close to you.”
“Me too. They’re the best.”
“I’m wondering if I can bother you about something. There are some things. It’s hard for us to, well, to go through. And Celina has enough to deal with. I know you’re busy, but maybe… ”
“Yes,” Dane answered without hesitation. “Whatever you need, Parker.”
“When we found those photo albums, we realized there’s at least a room full of things we should either donate or throw away. According to her therapist, part of Grace’s journey is to be more purposeful about what she keeps. So, maybe you could help us?”
Although his chest was bursting and throat was closing, Dane eked out, “Help you go through Asher’s things?”
“Just make sure there isn’t anything too valuable. Like something the boys might want to see one day? It’s mostly stuff from when he was in school.”
Nodding, Dane gently patted Parker’s shoulder. “I’m finishing up my project in Vancouver so I leave early in the morning. I have to stay for a week, ten days at most. How about right after that? Sunday, two weeks from now.”
“Thank you, Dane. That would be abig favor.”
“It’s nothing.” They paused and watched the boys go from laser tag to an arcade game.
“It feels like yesterday when I cheered for you and Asher on the field.”
“Grace usually had some interesting things to say to the referees. I remember that distinctly,” Dane offered with good humor.
And then, out of nowhere and with absolutely no basis except blind faith, he added, “Grace is going to be OK. The boys are amazing. Celina’s a supermom and you’re great grandparents. Everything will work out.”
Parker nodded just as the boys ran to the table, took a brain-freezing gulp of their soda, and insisted on a round of bowling.
“Tonight?” Celina asked while folding laundry.
“C’mon, Mom! We only came home to grab our things!” Jonas announced.
She looked at Parker without hiding her surprise. They rarely had the boys overnight, and never spontaneously.
“Are you sure Grace is good with the last-minute plans?”
Parker smiled and nodded. “Yeah, she’s getting a batch of cookies ready. And you know they’re always welcome.”
She could hear the boys upstairs, tearing up their room to gather clothes and video games. She put the last of the tablecloths away and piled towels to bring upstairs. “OK, yeah, they love spending time with you.”
This also meant she wouldn’t have to put dinner together after a long day of errands and chores. Cheese, pretzels, and Netflix sounded grand right then.
Parker cleared his throat before speaking in a hushed tone. “We should do this more often. Help you with the boys. I’m sorry we’ve been a bit—”
“You do a lot, Parker. I know you’re always there for us.”
“Of course, yes. Today Dane made me realize that we just assume you’ll call on us if needed. We haven’t had the presence of mind to plan or offer our help. That’s going to change.”
“Dane?”
“Yeah, at lunch. By the way, he wanted me to tell you he’s sorry he didn’t come around. He’s leaving early for Vancouver and had to pack what he needed from his place downtown.”
