After she disappears inside, JP plates the burgers and Donavan asks how he can help. I find myself silent and internally groaning about the height this awkwardness is reaching. I exhale, low and slow, writing off Donavan’s poor manners as nerves.
“More wine?” JP asks, sitting down at the patio table as Audrey returns with a tray of toppings for the burgers.
“Please,” I breathe, holding my glass up. Donavan curls his hand over my knee and I inwardly cringe. I’ll communicate my frustrations with him later but I’m finding it increasingly difficult to want him to be here. I clear my throat. “Audrey, this is really lovely. You didn’t have to do any of this.”
“I figure while I can, I should.” She shrugs, dishing a scoop of baked beans on her plate. Her hand shakes slightly, and her wrist goes limp, sending the majority of the spoonful to fall to the concrete with a splat. “Oops,” she says, clearly a little embarrassed as she scooches back to clean it.
“No, don’t do that—”
“Don’t worry—”
“I got it—”
The rest of us speak in unison. Audrey glares at us, almost playfully. “It’s just a little bit of beans to clean up, you guys. Relax. I’m not entirely broken.” She grabs a napkin and leans over to wipe up her mess. “The chemo hurts my joints so every once in a while, my wrists give out. It’s more annoying than anything, meaning I can clean up a few scraps of food on the floor.”
Donavan chuckles. “Yeah, where’s Kevin when you need him?”
JP smiles at this and lets out a laugh.
“Who’s Kevin?” Audrey asks.
“Her dog,” JP and my fiancé answer together.
Her jaw drops but she smiles wide. “How did I not know you had a dog named Kevin?” She lets out a laugh.
“It’s funny, huh?” Donavan agrees, adding extra mustard to his burger before slapping on the top of the bun. “She named him after the dog in the movieUp.”
“That’s hilarious!” she responds. “I thought the dog in the movie was named something else...”
“I thought he was named after Kevin Costner,” JP interjects.
I add a slice of tomato to my burger, unable to mask my confused expression. “He was. Why do you think he was named after the dog inUp?”
“You said that,” Donavan says, taking a bite of his burger.
“I did not say that,” I argue, though not unkindly.
He shrugs. “Up.Kevin Costner. Same.”
My face twists and my chin snaps back. JP’s expression mirrors mine. “It is not the same.”
Audrey laughs. It’s not a real laugh, though it’s not disingenuous either. I can tell she is more or less just trying tocut the tension. “Well, regardless of how he got his name, I love that you have a dog named Kevin.Field of Dreams?”
“Dances With Wolves.”
“Oh my gosh! I loved that movie!” Audrey exclaims, then pushes some food around her plate.
“I’ve never seen it,” Donavan says.
“You’re missing out, my man,” JP throws in, then takes a sip of his beer, looking at me with eyes that screamis he serious?
I ignore the expression and shrug. Not everyone likes the movie.
“So, tell me how the two of you met,” Audrey prompts.
“Oh, it’s actually funny—”
“It’s funny now, but at the time, I thought she was going to kill me,” Donavan interrupts.
