I climb to my feet and face her headstone. “I’ll meet you here the same time next week, baby. I love you. Forevermore.” Kissing the tips of my fingers, I lean over and press them to the top of the granite.
As it always does, my heart feels heavy as I walk away. Before Molly died, I never walked away and left her alone. Now I do it every week.
Each time I do, I leave a piece of my heart behind.
Back at the house, I close the front door behind me. Jenna, who stopped by while I was gone, gets up from the couch.
“How were the kids?” I ask, tossing my keys in the bowl on the bar.
“Angels, like usual. Gemma and Violet are in Gemma’s room practicing doing each other’s hair. Andrea came by, so she and Gray are in his room.” I raise my brow. “With the door open, of course.”
I nod and go grab a bottle of water from the fridge. I hold one up to see if Jenna wants one. She declines.
“I might have to start limiting their time together. They’re getting to that age…,” I trail off, not needing to elaborate.
“You really think that’s going to go over well? What would you have done if your parents tried to limit your time with Molly when you were their age?”
I grunt around the rim of the bottle. Wiping my mouth with the back of my hand, I say, “Make my parents’ lives miserable. Snuck out, more than I already did, to crawl in her window. Throw a fit anytime I was in their presence. There’s no limit to what I would have done.”
She laughs as she grabs her purse from the end table. “Exactly. You’ll have a shitshow on your hands if you tell Gray he can’t spend as much time with that girl.” She walks toward me, laying a hand on my arm. “Besides, Gray’s a good kid. You and Molly did a good job raising him. He won’t do anything stupid.”
A stab of pain pinches the muscle in my chest. Molly won’t ever get to see the results of how well we raised our kids when they become adults.
Even so, I know she was proud of the small chunk of life she did witness and help with. “We did do good, didn’t we?”
“You did.” She leans up and kisses my cheek. “I’m going to grab Violet and head out. I’m anxious to see how much Bryant regrets offering to watch Elaine by himself.”
I chuckle. “You don’t give him enough credit. Us men are stronger than we look.”
She gives me a deadpan look. “She’s teething.”
“Ahh…. Gotcha. Yeah, you better hit the road before he pulls out all of his hair. Gray was a monster while he teethed.”
“Do you need help with anything next week?” she asks.
“No, I’m taking the kids for the next visit.”
She smiles. “They always love visiting Molly.”
A few minutes later, I close the door behind Jenna and Violet then head back to the kitchen to check on the chicken I have in the slow cooker. Deeming it almost ready, I set it on low before going to check on the kids.
I peek in Gemma’s room first. She’s standing in front of a tall mirror, admiring her new hairdo.
“Hey, beauty, dinner will be ready soon.”
Her eyes meet mine in the mirror. “Okay, Daddy.”
I go to Gray’s room next. The door is most of the way open. I’m pushing it the rest of the way when I call out. “Hey, bud, dinner will—”
I abruptly stop when I see the guilty look on his face and the redness covering Andrea’s cheeks. They’re both sitting on the floor with their backs against the end of his bed, drawing pads in their laps. I look from one to the other, taking stock of the condition of their clothes. Luckily, nothing appears out of the ordinary, except their deer-caught-in-the-headlights expressions.
I can’t fault them for kissing. Molly and I were their age when we first kissed. Just so long as nothing more happens.
I’ve already had the birds and the bees talk with Gray, but it looks like I’ll be having it again.
I clear my throat. “Dinner will be done soon,” I inform Gray. “Will you be eating with us, Andrea?”
Her eyes drop from mine, and she chews on her bottom lip. “I have to call my mom and ask,” she answers shyly.
In other words, yes. Andrea’s parents always let her stay for dinner when she asks.
“I’ll put out a plate for you.”
“Thank you, sir.”
I push the door open until it hits the wall and give Gray a pointed look. “Keep this open all the way.”
“Sorry,” he mutters.
My lips tip up as I walk back down the hallway toward the kitchen.
I can imagine Molly’s reaction had she stepped into what I just did. It was innocent enough, but it also meant Gray is growing up, becoming a young man. She would have pulled me to the side and secretly flipped, and I would have had to calm her down, reminding her that kissing at their age is a natural occurrence. Despite knowing it, she hated realizing our babies were growing up. If it were up to her, they would have stayed babies forever.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
LINCOLN
Five Years Later
I set a piece of chicken on my paper plate and pass the bucket to Gemma. After she grabs her own piece, she hands the bucket to Gray. The three of us are sitting on a blanket spread out on the grass, Molly’s headstone beside us. It’s a beautiful day out with not a cloud in sight, and the temperature is perfect for a picnic.
“How is it working out at Owen’s gallery?” I ask Gray.
He picks off a chunk of chicken and stuffs it into his mouth. “Good. I like it. I’m hoping he’ll give me a few more hours a week soon.”
“Work hard and stay dependable, and I’m sure he will.”
Gray’s studying for an art degree at Pratt Institute. After helping me with my pieces the last few years, he decided to go for an art degree. He lives in the college dorms in the city, but he comes home often since it’s not too much of a drive. He was accepted at several other prestigious colleges, but he preferred to stay closer to home. Andrea and he have been dating the last few years, so I think it has more to do with her than him not wanting to go so far out. She’s attending Columbia University in the city, so they get to see each other more than they would if he had gone somewhere else. I don’t care the reason why, I’m just glad he didn’t move across the continent.
I take a bite of my chicken leg and wash it down with water.
“I heard you were seeing Cooper,” Gray says, quirking a brow at Gemma.
“Yeah, so?”
His eyes move to me before looking back at his sister. “I went to school with his older brother. Micah and I are still pretty tight. I told him to keep an eye out for you.” Gemma huffs. “And to tell Cooper to keep his hands to himself or I might break them.”
“Really, Gray?” She rolls her eyes as she wipes her mouth with a napkin. “Can you not threaten my boyfriend?”
“I didn’t threaten him,” he grins, “Micah did it for me.”
I listen but stay out of the conversation. Gemma turned fifteen a couple of months ago, and as much as I hate knowing she’s dating a boy, I can’t stop her. Not unless I want an overdramatic teenage girl on my hands. For the time being, I’m monitoring them closely. Thankfully, Cooper seems like a good kid. But the second he missteps, hurts her, or I get even an inkling of them going too far, I’ll step in. Besides, I don’t need to come across as the bad guy yet. Not when she has an overprotective brother doing it for me.