“So what brings you two here? I know you didn’t just come by to visit.”
“Norman,” Mom chastised. “Leave them alone.”
“Actually, no.” I put my napkin on the table and took a deep breath. “Max and I have been working together and we found something I thought Mom might find interesting.”
Mom’s eyebrows rose. “What’s that?”
“Mom, how come you never really talked about your grandpa? You always told us stories about your grandma, but you barely mentioned him.”
She was quiet for a long moment. “He wasn’t around much. He was sort of the black sheep of the family, if you know what I mean.”
I shook my head. “Not exactly.”
“Well, he was… different. I got the feeling he and Grandma didn’t really get along well. They had my mom and then… well, they lived together, but they weren’t ever really a happy couple.”
“His name was Freddie, right? Frederick?”
Her slow nod and furrowed brow made her confusion clear. “Jake, what are you getting at?”
Max cut in. “We found a box of letters in the house we’re working on. They were all addressed from Nathan to a man named Freddie.”
“Love letters, Mom. They were love letters.”
She laughed uncomfortably and shook her head. “No, that could have been anyone named Freddie. That was a very common name back then.”
“We tracked the deeds to the home, Mom. And the census records. We… we did a lot of digging. I’m sure this Freddie is your grandpa. Do you know who Nathan was?”
Her voice was very soft when she spoke again. “His best friend was named Nathan, I believe. Grandpa Freddie spent a lot of time going up into the mountains to work on his uncle’s farm, even after he married Grandma.”
Certainty washed over me and I swallowed hard, nodding. “That’s got to be them. Mom, they were in love. Really, really in love.”
Mom closed her eyes briefly and when she looked back at me, they were filled with tears. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that he wasn’t able to live truthfully with the man he loved. Everyone deserves to be in a happy relationship, if they want to be.”
A lump in my throat, I swallowed again. “It’s true. They really do.” I took Max’s hand under the table and squeezed it.
Max turned to me briefly before looking at my mom. “Do you think… Joan, do you think Nathan’s family still lives out there?”
She shrugged. “I haven’t the slightest idea. Why? What are you thinking?”
His face was alight with possibility. “What if we go up there? Find Nathan’s family? Maybe we could get permission to display the letters somewhere. Donate them to the historical society or to the museum.”
“That’s a lovely idea, but I don’t know that they’d approve.”
“Well, now, you never know. Times are different these days,” Dad said. “Let them give it a try.”
“If Nathan’s family approves, would you give permission for the letters to be donated and displayed?”
This time, she didn’t hesitate. “Of course. I’d love for their love to be shared for the world to see. This world needs more love in it, don’t you think?”
I was warmed by their openness, relieved that they’d accepted Max so quickly and that they weren’t afraid to embrace change. Now we just had to find Nathan’s family and see if we could convince them to do the same.
Chapter Eighteen
Max
The next morning was Sunday and I found myself in Jake’s truck as we headed out to the mountains to find Nathan’s family. We had an approximate address and their last name and pretty much nothing else to go on. Between us on the truck’s seat was the file with copies of the letters and our research, along with some photos that Joan had managed to unearth of her grandfather both as a young man and when he was older. None of them had Nathan in them, as far as we could tell. I hoped it would be enough.
Once we arrived at the town, Jake slowed down and parked the truck on Main Street, just outside of a diner.
