“I don’t know,” he said. “It’s one of those suits-and-desks jobs. Not really my style.”
“Does it come with a paycheck?” his son asked suspiciously.
Kurt looked over at Jeremy and gave him a bright smile and said, “A big one.”
“Okay then, in that case, maybe it’s okay.” Then he stopped and said, “But don’t you have a record?”
“I had some interactions with the police in my youth, yes. But no convictions, no arrests, or I could have possibly been ineligible for the military,” he said. “That’s what your mother means when she says I’d be perfect for this position. I know both sides of the law, when it comes to how the law treats people,” he said. “I also spent a fair bit of time doing this kind of investigative work in the navy. Not to mention doing missions for and against governments all over the world.”
“Maybe you would be good at it,” Jeremy said in surprise, looking at his father with newfound respect. “The fact is, you saved the dog, and you saved my mom, and that’s good enough for me.” And, with that, Jeremy held out his hand once more and said, in a very adult voice, “Welcome to the family.”
Kurt looked at the proffered hand in shock, surprise, and admiration. Instantly his hand went out, and he shook his son’s hand. “Just so you know, I never stopped loving her.”
“Good,” he said. “And I hope you suffered for it, just like she did.”
Laurie Ann immediately admonished him. “That’s enough of that,” she said. “We both knew what had to happen. I’m just grateful that we’ve come back together again.”
“I am too, if he makes you happy.” His son slanted Kurt a hard gaze. “And if you ever make her unhappy, you know you’ll answer to me.”
It was all Kurt could do to withhold a smile. He admired his son more in that moment than he ever thought possible. “Got it,” he said, “and likewise.”
“I’m not the one who’ll break her heart.”
“There are a lot of ways to break a mother’s heart,” he said gently, “including bad behavior, … pregnant girlfriends, getting caught by the law for doing something you weren’t supposed to, and that’s a short list.” He shrugged. “I was a pro with all that.”
“Well, that’s your life. I’ve chosen a different path,” he said. “I’ll be an engineer.”
“That’s right,” Laurie Ann said with a bright smile. “I hadn’t told Kurt that. It’s been your dream since forever.”
“It’s more than a dream, Mom. Frank and I will both apply to the same universities.”
“And, if you want to get in, you will,” she said. “You’re no slouch in the brains department.”
He reached out, gently hugging her. “I got that from you, my mom, the doctor.” He looked over at his father, making Kurt smile. “And she did it while raising me.”
“I get it,” he said. “She’s done a phenomenal job.”
Frank had been a silent onlooker during all this familial exchange. Frank turned toward Kurt and asked, “But do you have an education?”
Kurt was so impressed with these two teenagers who already had their focus on college. So much suspicion was in Frank’s gaze and his tone of voice that Kurt stifled a laugh. “I do, indeed,” he said in all seriousness. “I have my master’s in political science and law enforcement and negotiation tactics. It’s all about the law, from both sides.” He watched Laurie Ann’s jaw drop. “That’s another reason why the watchdog job’s being offered to me.”
“That’s wonderful,” she said. “I know you always wanted to get a college education.”
“I just never could handle all that blood, guts, and gore that you seemed to thrive on in the medical world.”
“No,” she said with a dry tone. “You just like inflicting it.”
At that, he burst out laughing. “Well, you’ve got a point, when it comes to the gang in town,” he said. “However, it was their bad decision to come after you.” He added, “I told you, if they tried to hurt you, they would have to go through me.”
At that, the teens just grinned. Kurt looked at the two young men and said, “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m hungry.”
“Yeah, let’s go check the burgers on the barbecue,” Jeremy said, “I never could figure out how to make this thing work properly.”
Kurt laughed and said, “Let me tell you the intricacies of barbecuing,” he said. “That’s one of my specialties—and the smoker.”
“Cool,” his son said. “I’d love to have a smoker here.”
Chapter 14
Laurie Ann watched as Kurt and the two young teens, who so badly needed a strong male role model, walked out on the deck and studied the barbecue, as if it held the answers to the universe. And maybe it did. Her world had flipped completely in the last few days. And she couldn’t be happier. When the phone rang, and she saw it was her sister, she answered the call.
Sally said, “Hey, sis. Are you okay?”
“Never better,” Laurie Ann said. “There’s been a ton of changes and a ton of some really unpleasant stuff,” she said, “but I do want to tell you that Jeremy and I are fine, that we’re okay, and that it’s all due to Kurt and to Sabine that we’re alive and well right now.” She added, “They’re here for a barbecue, and everything’s going really well.”
“And I’m sorry for what I said earlier,” her sister said in a small voice. “I’m trying to be open-minded. I guess I’m just scared. I’m scared to lose you.”
“You’re scared for yourself, and you’re scared for me and Jeremy, and I get that. We’re not trying to replace you in the family. We would just like to expand the family and bring Jeremy’s dad back home again.”
“I got it,” her sister said, her voice warming up.
“Well, if you got that much,” she said, “we have extra burgers on the barbecue. Why don’t you come and join us?”
There was a moment’s hesitation, then her sister said, “Are you sure?”
And Laurie Ann realized deep down that she’d never been more sure of anything. “Come and meet him,” she said. “I promise you’ll like him.”
“If you’re sure?”
“Absolutely,” she said, “that’s what family is all about.”
When she hung up, she walked to the fridge, popped a beer for herself and one for Kurt, and stepped outside to hear the guys talking about the best kinds of smokers. “Make sure we have room for an extra burger on there,” she said. “Your aunt’s coming over too.”
“Oh, perfect. She can meet Dad too.”
She looked up at Kurt and caught the big smile on his face at being called Dad. “I think that’s a very good idea.” She handed him a beer.
He looked at it, then her, still smiling hugely. “Thanks, sweetie.”