“I had a newborn with me.”
Chapter Thirty
Present
“What!” I exclaim dramatically, once again causing the closest diners to question their choice in bistros.
Ding.Ugh.
I apologize, lowering my voice to fine-dining volume. “Sorry. I have to look at this; it might be my mom’s memory-care facility. She lives here in Sacramento with me now.”
“I remember your mom fondly. I’m glad to hear Helen is still around.”
“Trust me, the feeling is mutual,” I respond. The conversations with my mom where she mixes up Thomas with Porter now seem more like foreshadowing than a confused past reminiscence.
“I would love to visit her with you sometime,” Porter proposes, and all I can muster in response is a confused stare. Is this Porter’s way of suggesting that this dinner is not a one-and-done reunion situation? That it’s not going to be another thirty years before we see each other again? Pointing at my purse, Porter urges, “You going to check that?”Right. Reality.
8:22 p.m. (Cathy Culpepper)
Callie, this is Cathy Culpepper of Central Valley Real Estate. Sorry to text so late, but I have some great news! Give me a call tomorrow.
Why did Cathy feel the need to say her full name as well as the full name of the real estate agency every time she contacted me? By now, our numbers have been in each other’s phones for forever.
8:23 p.m. (Cathy Culpepper)
Oh, I just can’t sit on it overnight. Remember that young newly pregnant couple who I showed the house to a few months ago? They said the house was too big for just the two of them and a baby. Good news! Turns out that baby is twins, and they want to see the house again! Is it okay if I show it to them over the holidays? You’re leaving shortly, right?
8:24 p.m. (Callie )
Yes, it’s fine, they can come whenever. I go to New York on the red-eye tomorrow night.
“Everything alright?” Porter asks when I lay my phone on the table.
“All good,” I respond, not ready to give Porter even the tiniest glimpse into my current life. “Back to that baby at the church.”
“That baby just walked out of this restaurant with a big chunk of meat and looking forward to a couple hours of gaming back at the house.”
“Chap?”
“Yes, Chap. His name is Charles Olden Beaumont. He was born in Manning the day Charles died. He has Charles’s charisma and then some, but definitely not his throwing arm.”
“He got your speed.”
“So it seems.”
“You’ve had Chap since he was born?”
“Yeah. Rose did turn out to be the smartest Beaumont of all. My mom was diagnosed with MS when Rose was in middle school, though, so my folks wanted her to stick close by for college. Stay in-state so she could help out at home whenever my parents needed her. I knew if shedidn’t get out of Manning right after high school, she never would, so we worked on her college applications together. We hit up all the Ivies. Rose would still be no farther than a couple hours’ flight away. Then she went and got pregnant spring of her senior year. She was scared to disappoint me and our parents, so she didn’t tell anyone until it was too late for her to do anything to change it. Turned out Rose got into every Ivy but Yale.”
“Screw Yale,” fell out of my mouth like old habit.
“Yeah, screw Yale.” Porter chuckled.
“What’d she end up doing?”
“What I told her she should do.” Porter’s face warmed with pride. “Rose chose Princeton. She had Chap, and the school allowed her to start in January due to family circumstances. But my parents were too old and my mom too sick at that point to raise another child, even if I hired them help. I decided Baby Charles would come back with me to Sacramento. By that time, I had fallen in love with California and settled here the year before to coach football and teach English at Regis. We took a quick detour to New York to pay our respects to Charles on our way home.”
“Where’s Rose now?” I had to know. I couldn’t imagine having to give up your baby boy, even if he was staying within the family.
