“Yes! Books! Okay, I need to plan. What do you want to do for sure, Dad? Or are there things you don’t want to do? Like if you hate lighthouses, I need to know.”
“Do people hate lighthouses?” Alex looks perplexed.
Bean shrugs. “I’m sure at least a few do, and it’s not really a major topic of conversation for most people, so maybe it’s never come up for us.”
“I don’t hate lighthouses.” Alex’s eyes flash with amusement.
“There’s that old shipwreck at Fort Stevens and the Maritime Museum in Astoria,” I remind her.
“We can pick a day and hit the coastal stuff, I think, as long as we just pick a few. When is the kite festival?”
“Not for a few weeks.”
“Damn it. Okay, that’s out. Dad, seriously, any input here?”
“Anywhere you want to drag me is fine, kiddo.”
“What about you?” Bean looks at me expectantly. Fuck. I was really hoping to avoid more days like today.
“I’m helping at the studio, and with the millions of kids at the house, I can’t just jet out every day. And if there’s stairs like the Astoria column and the lighthouses, you can count my ass out.” Well, my leg, at least.
Bean pulls out her phone and opens her notes, then lists the days until the wedding next Sunday. “Look, I learned from all your fucking planning out everything for everyone. Okay, when are you for sure on full kid duty?"
“Thursday. I’m playing chauffeur all day.”
“And what about studio stuff?”
“Tuesday, I’m helping with some stuff for the next show, the dance camp kids, and teaching classes. I think that’s the only full day, I can do everything else in little bits or when I go early to use an open room.”
“Dance camp! You get to hang out with Raerae! Lucky bitch. Okay, so Tuesday and Thursday, I’ll pick stuff you don’t give a shit about. Youdocare about books and cheese.”
“I care very much about books and cheese, yes.” I nod seriously.
“Next weekend is wedding stuff at the venue. But that leaves this coming Monday, Wednesday, and Friday you get to tag along.”
Damn, that’s three full days of Alex. I don’t know if I can take it. But I guess I’ll have to try, for Bean’s sake.
“Tomorrow, we’re going up the mountain. Tuesday, I’ll take Dad to Seattle because you don’t care about seeing Seattle. Wednesday, we’ll do the cheese factory and whatever other coastal stuff we can squeeze in, then Dad and I can go back out on Thursday to hit the stuff we miss on Wednesday.” She holds up a hand when I start to talk. “Yes, we can go see your damn bunnies.” I grin at her. “Friday… Powell’s and who knows what else. Then we have the bachelorette party that night.”
I snort. “Party. It’s like four or five of us girls going to Mickey’s to shoot pool, drink, and eat fried appetizers. We did that two nights ago. After two hours, everyone else will bail on us, and it’ll just be you and me and maybe Haven, who won’t be drinking anyway, and our favorite table.” That’s not really the plan, but Bean doesn’t know that.
“At least we know we’ll have fun.” She shrugs. “There’s probably a game on TV that night if you want to hang out with Barry, Dad.”
Our food arrives, and as we eat, the topic turns to memories and our families.
“Think Henry’s half-naked stage will last as long as Justin’s did?” Bean asks between bites of ketchup-covered fries.
“Seeing as how Justin’s is still a thing, I fucking hope not. But Aaron’s was worse. That kid stripped all the way down and never gave two shits where he was.” Bean’s little brother was naked at my house more often than the people who live there.
“Oh god, remember the naked cowboy days?”
“And the naked firemen days.”
“Did you do that kind of shit, Dad?”
Alex raises his eyebrows, and one side of his mouth raisesin a smirk. “Strip down naked at the neighbor’s house and pretend to be a fireman? No, I don’t think so.”
“I mean the naked thing in general.”
