As Cavin softly joined in on the memorable words, he couldn’t help but wonder if, after this morning, he would ever again have the opportunity to hear Noel play the piano and sing.After the service ended, he tried to sneak out the door quietly but got trapped by the pastor and all the questions the new person gets.Ordinarily he wouldn’t have minded, and the guy’s calm and sincere demeanor made it hard to be annoyed by the conversation.Then the chiropractor and his family stopped to chat with him for a few minutes followed by the doctor who also played golf with them.The two men started bragging to others about Cavin’s golf skills, and then Georgia once again surprised him in front of everyone.
“Lose my number,” she politely whispered into his ear, and then with a grin followed by a snicker, she kissed him on the cheek.
Cavin’s face turned a shade of red nobody had seen since summer sunburns went out of style.Not only did everyone witness what occurred, and Cavin didn’t know how anyone would interpret the whispered words and the kiss, but then two seconds later, Mrs.Madelyn and Mr.Jack appeared with Levi and Laney in tow.
“Hello, Cavin,” Mrs.Madelyn greeted while pretending nothing happened.“I want you to meet my husband, Jack,” she added, gesturing to the man in the wheelchair she pushed.
Before Cavin could reach out to shake the gentleman’s hand, Levi and Laney latched themselves to his legs like ankle weights.“Nice to meet you, Jack.I am Cavin Dawson,” Cavin announced as he bent down to hug the kids.On one knee he found himself at eye level with the children and Jack whose wrinkly skin reminded him of his grandfather’s.
“Hey, Kevin Dawson,” Levi spouted, “I didn’t know you had a last name.”
“Everyone has a last name,” Laney clarified, shaking her head profusely.
Jack and Mrs.Madelyn laughed.
“My last name is Brown,” Jack inserted, chuckling.“Jack Brown.”
“We are going to walk the streets looking for the lost dog,” Laney shared.“Want to come with us?”
“We could use your help,” Levi pleaded.
Cavin didn’t have plans although he initially anticipated spending more time with Noel and the kids.At least the kids wanted to be around him.Regardless he thought about declining the invitation and preoccupying himself instead with work.That’s what he usually did, and after all the time spent with Noel, Levi, and Laney this week, he probably had some catching up to do.
“Is your mom coming?”Cavin asked while he wondered if Mrs.Madelyn knew what happened earlier.He never saw her or Jack in church although he could have missed them.He figured maybe they helped in the children’s area.
“She’s sick,” Levi declared.
Mrs.Madelyn explained further.“Noel messaged me not long after service started and said she wasn’t feeling well.She asked if Jack and I would bring the kids home after church.”
Cavin found himself wondering if Mrs.Madelyn knew the real reason Noel left church; however, Cavin knew she would find out sooner rather than later.
“These kids talked about finding that missing dog all night last night,” Jack mentioned, “so we are extending our sleepover event and going on a hunt for him.”
“If you don’t have anything else going on, I could use your help pushing this old man,” Mrs.Madelyn claimed with a laugh.
“Who are you calling old?”Jack contested with a grin.“I’m younger than you even though you are better looking.”
“Older by a month,” she acknowledged, whacking him on the shoulder with her rolled-up bulletin.
The gesture reminded Cavin of when Noel playfully punched him, and he wondered if Mrs.Madelyn having a bulletin meant she was in the service.
“But I act a lot younger; don’t I, Levi and Laney?”Jack checked.
“You act like a kid,” Laney claimed.
“And you’re silly like a kid,” Levi declared then giggled.
“The jury has decided,” Jack teased.
Cavin laughed although he felt uneasy about the whole situation knowing that Noel wasn’t happy with him right now.“Sure, I would love to come along,” Cavin agreed anyway.What did he have to lose?This was all a simple misunderstanding anyway.
The five of them spent the next hour walking the downtown streets of Beaufort, North Carolina.The kids once again called out, “Here, Scout, here, boy,” over and over while all of them looked in every nook and cranny possible.They radioed in to Rainey and some of the other officers giving them their coordinates and requesting assistance.
Cavin particularly appreciated the historical tour that Jack and Mrs.Madelyn provided.They shared a story about nearly every house or business they passed, and Jack explained that the white siding Cavin noticed earlier not only held historical significance but also was practical.
“Whitewashing with lime paint offered an inexpensive and protective option to coat houses and buildings in the South historically,” Jack shared.“The lime paint repelled insects, prevented mildew, and reflected the sun keeping the temperature indoors milder during the hot summers when the only way to cool a house was to open the windows.Homes then came fans in the windows, followed by air conditioning units, and eventually professionally installed central heat and air took over.Folks also used to spend a lot of time with neighbors on porches which also stayed cooler thanks to the white paint and the shelter on top.”
“Why is it still that way?”Cavin asked.
