“Okay, it’ll be up shortly.” Avery gives a wave and heads behind the counter to put our order in. It’s busy in here today, but the service is always fast, and the food is fresh.
“So, do you have any big plans today, Summer?” Zander inquires.
“No, not really.” I respond. Why is it so hard to interact today? I feel so out of place. It’s been relatively easy communicating with him, except for my room, so why am I so awkward today? Ugh! It’s frustrating.
He watches me for a minute, then turns to Sue. “How about you, Sue? Any hot dates lined up today?” He says with a big smile on his face.
Sue laughs. “No big dates, I’m afraid. Summer and I have been working on renovations on Sundays. Since it’s spring break, there’s no homework today.”
“Oh, what renovations are you doing? I didn’t notice any construction zones yesterday,” he says, looking between us.
Sue and Zander talk back and forth about the kitchen and the various renovations they’ve both done. He's been renovating his house on and off for the past 5 years since he moved in. Zander keeps trying to engage me in the conversation, but I don’t really have anything to contribute. Hopefully, he doesn’t think I’m too weird or rude. We dig into our food when it arrives as the conversation lulls so we can enjoy the meal.
“You were right about the burger, Summer. It’s fantastic,” Zander says.
I just nod back.Geez,Summer, you’re making this painful today. Get a grip.He’s trying so hard and being very gracious with my moody self.
He engages Sue with more questions about the kitchen reno while we eat. After we finish, Sue invites him over for brownies. He insists on paying for lunch for everyone, then follows us home in his SUV.
I grab the pan of brownies and start cutting them up after we get inside and Sue puts on a pot of tea. Once the water is boiling, we grab some mugs and plates and join Zander at the table.
“Sue, I think I would gain 20lbs if I lived around here with all your outstanding cooking,” he jokes. “Feel free to send me home with a pan of these.”
“That could be arranged,” she smiles. “I was planning on filling a tote bag with Summer’s favorite baked goods to take with her, anyway.”
I look up at her. “Really, Sue?”
“Yes, I was. I thought we could go shopping after you decide when you’re leaving, and we could spend the day before baking up a storm.”
“That would be great, Sue. Thanks.” I’d have a piece of Sue with me in my new home. That sounds really nice, actually.
Zander clears his throat. “Speaking of leaving Summer, have you given any thought to when you’d like to move?”
“Yeah, I have. I’d like to split my time between here and there. I don’t have a specific day, but I should explore Charleston before school.” Yay, a complete sentence came out of my mouth finally!
“That is a solid plan. If you don’t mind a suggestion?” He asks me.
“No.”
“I have this entire week booked off work, but I have some jobs I’d like to check in on the following week. Can we fly down there on Wednesday or Thursday? That would give me a few days to show you around before I had to checkin with work.”
I look over at Sue, who nods at me. “Okay, we can do that. Let me know which day you book so I can get ready.”
“Of course I will,” he smiles. “Now, how about I help you and Sue with that new window installation?”
We spend the rest of the afternoon in the kitchen, replacing the window. Zander even attempts to help make dinner with us. He’s got the basics down at least. Talking gets easier for me as the day progresses. I’m not quite comfortable with him, but he has a knack for putting me at ease. Maybe our being related affects my subconscious somehow. An intrinsic part of me recognizes him as family, so it’s not as hard as I expected it would be. He heads back to his hotel after dinner.
“Are you doing okay, sweetheart? You were pretty quiet today.” Sue squeezes my shoulder in comfort.
“Yeah, it’s getting easier being around him. I feel awkward and don’t know what to say most of the time,” I shrug.
“That will come in time. You hardly said a word when you first came to live with me, too. You’re not a chatterbox by any means,” she says as she gives me a side hug, “but you’re comfortable with me now, and you will get there with Zander, too.”
I do the dishes, and then we settle on the couch until bedtime.
Chapter 13
I wake up late on Monday morning. The house is quiet as I stretch my arms above my head, arching my spine before rolling onto my side to face the door and see a note on my desk from Sue.
