Rick shot her a concerned glance and she quickly lowered herself into the nearest chair.
That seemed to silence the unruly crowd.
“Now you all know I’m not up to running things,” she said softly. “So I hired an emcee.” She crooked a finger at Rick and he leaned closer. “I tried to get your brothers for the job but they refused.”
“I owe them,” he muttered.
“Well, let’s get started,” Raina suggested.
“Then we can eat!” said someone from the back of the crowd.
Rick narrowed his gaze at the sound of the distinctive voice and looked around for the loner. “Samson, is that you?”
Rick didn’t see the older man right away but he was a master at blending into the crowd. The duck man, as the children called Samson Humphrey, spent his days hanging out in the park by Norman’s, ignored most people, and looked homeless but wasn’t. He also was the panty thief culprit though no one except Rick, Charlotte, and Roman knew that. Turning out in a large crowd wasn’t the old man’s style. Unless . . .
“Of course it’s him. He wouldn’t miss a free Norman’s chicken sandwich,” Norman said.
“Damn right,” Samson called out, confirming Rick’s suspicion. “But if you used that honey mustard, froufrou stuff, I’m not eating.”
Norman growled from low in his throat. “Why you ungrateful . . .”
Before Rick could step in, Raina clapped her hands, probably to stop the mayhem before it started. Then without warning, an entourage walked down the stairs.
“This is your life, Rick Chandler,” Big Al, the retired high school baseball coach, said through his booming cordless microphone, seeming not to care that they were inside the house.
Rick watched in disbelief as his past seemed to parade before him. An eclectic mix of his old teachers, coaches, and friends formed a circle in his mother’s living room.
His stomach cramped. “This can’t be happening.”
“Of course it can.” His mother’s glee matched his sense of impending doom.
With Kendall by his side and Hannah giggling from the sidelines he found himself pushed through the throng of people. Finally he was given a front row seat, surrounded by his mother, his brothers, Charlotte, Kendall, and Hannah. The rest of the guests crowded in around them.
“Let the fun begin.”
Rick winced at the booming sound. Big Al obviously thought he was back at the football field.
“Mrs. Pearson, recently retired from Yorkshire Falls Middle School, had Rick in her kindergarten class. Take it away, Mrs. Pearson.” Al handed his microphone to the petite, gray-haired woman to his right.
“Testing. Testing.” She held the thing close to her lips and emitted a high-pitched squeak that had the room cringing and groaning loud. “Sorry. It’s been ages since I’ve used one of these suckers. I mean things. Once I retired I let my language run free.” She laughed. “Anyway, let’s continue.”
“Please don’t,” Rick called out.
“Don’t be a sissy, little brother. You can handle it.” Chase folded his arms across his chest and grinned.
Damned if Rick wouldn’t get him back on his birthday.
“Rick was an imaginative boy.” Mrs. Pearson spoke in her best teacher tone. “And from the beginning he knew how to draw a crowd. Quite the little entrepreneur too. Why I remember one playground hour when I noticed all the kids—mostly girls—lined up behind him.”
“Rick always was a charmer,” Raina said.
Rick shook his head, feeling a flush rise to his cheeks. Wasn’t he too old for his mother to make him blush? Obviously not. Shit.
“Now, now, no interruptions,” Mrs. Pearson said, but she had a smile on her face, enjoying her return to the spotlight, no matter how brief. “So it turns out that young Rick had gone to the doctor for a checkup earlier in the week. Doc Little, you all remember him from before he passed on?”
There was a murmur of assent and “God rest his soul” from around the room.
“Well, it seems Doc Little told Rick his ears were so clean he could see all the way to China. Rick, being a smart boy, lined up the kids and was collecting pennies—from anyone who wanted to see what China looked like firsthand.”
The guests cheered for Mrs. Pearson as she passed the microphone to Ms. Nichol, another elementary school teacher, who resembled Lucille Ball.
“I hope they’re not going to go grade by grade,” Rick said.
“Oh, no. Just the highlights,” Raina reassured him with a pat on the hand.
“Swell.”
Kendall laughed and the This Is Your Life show continued. Rick endured a not-so terrible story from the still redheaded Ms. Nichol, a reminder of his middle school hijinks from another teacher, and embarrassing high school tales about how Coach had caught him making out with girls behind the bleachers.
He had to hand it to his mother. She’d managed to lighten the night and even make him forget what this date stood for, at least for a little while. Catching her knowing smile, he knew she’d planned this on purpose. Before he could decide whether that was a good thing, Kendall grabbed his hand. Warm and soft, her skin slid against his, reminding him of how much he’d missed being with her.
Leaning over, she whispered in his ear, “I’m getting more information out of this show than I have out of you.”
“I’ve never excluded you.” When it came to Kendall, he’d felt more, given more of himself than ever before. And on the heels of the anniversary of his biggest disaster, it scared him.
Kendall scared him. Not an easy thing to admit. So no, Rick thought, except for that one memory that touched a nerve because Kendall, like Jillian, would leave, he hadn’t excluded Kendall at all. If anything she’d gotten too close.
Before Kendall could reply, his mother spoke into the microphone. “As you all know, I have the best boys. Even if they haven’t given me a grandchild yet.” Behind her, Eric cleared his throat, obviously not pleased she was using a public forum to air this particular grievance.
Neither was Rick. Difference was, he’d grown used to her complaint. His mother met his gaze and patted his cheek. “But seriously I have wonderful sons. They take care of me in my time of need.” Her hand came to rest on her chest.
And her gaze darted to a point far away—like a suspect with something to hide. But that thought didn’t make one bit of sense.
“So,” Raina continued, jarring his thoughts, “it’s a pleasure for me to pass on my favorite story about my middle son.”
“Can I leave now?” Rick asked wryly.
“Only if you want to be hauled back and shackled with your own cuffs,” someone yelled out.
Kendall smothered a laugh but a loud hiccup came out instead.
“Okay, okay. Get on with it,” Rick said.
He put an arm around his mother’s shoulder, grateful she cared enough to make his birthday something special and grateful she was still around to celebrate with him. Still around. The thought chilled him. So did the one request Raina had in life that went unfulfilled.
Grandchildren. Something he’d almost given her back when he’d married Jillian. Raina, bless her generous heart, had welcomed and planned for Jillian’s baby as if it were Chandler flesh and blood. Unlike Jillian’s parents who’d disowned her, Raina took Jillian into her heart. And just like Rick, Raina had had her heart broken. But she’d never once looked back, not even when discussing her desire for grandchildren. Never blamed him, or forced the issue when he didn’t want to talk about it. Because she was his mother and she loved him unconditionally. Yet here they were many, many years later and Raina still didn’t have the grandchild she desired. Not even from Roman, who’d married a few months ago.