“We aren’t leaving for another week,” I called after them, but they were already gone. After so much heartache, these kids finally had something to look forward to. My worry was whether Jake and I would be able to live up toexpectation.
* * *
Lukeand I waved the kids off at school and then drove to a coffee shop. After parking, I sat in the car a few seconds longer thannecessary.
“You weren’t kidding aboutSydney.”
“No.”
“She’s exhausting,” I admitted. “Mom can’t handle that day in anddayout.”
“No.”
“The counseling doesn’t seem to behelping.”
“No.”
“Stop saying ‘No.’ Don’t you have anything elsetoadd?”
“What do you want me to say? I don’t have an answer to this, other than to pawn them off on you and Jake for a fewweeks.”
“Yeah, I like how you sprang it on me before I had a chance to see them in action with my own two eyes. Thanks for that, bytheway.”
His brows furrowing in response, Luke said, with clear desperation in his voice, “You aren’t backing out,areyou?”
“Of course not. I’m just worried about Sydney. She’s not thesamegirl.”
“And she probably never will be again. I think the goal now is to just make her a functioning member ofsociety.”
“That’s not enough. I want her to behappy.”
“Surrounded by all of us sad-sacks? Unlikely. Are you getting out of the car? I needcoffee.”
Luke and I waited in a line eight people deep, feasting our eyes on the baked goods calling to us through the glass. While we waited for the person in front to pay for her order, a pretty young cashier smiled at Luke before gliding her eyes over mecuriously.
“Mornin’, Tess,” he said, “How’s itgoing?”
“Can’t complain. I haven’t seen you in here for a while. I thought maybe you didn’t like the way I was preparing yourcoffee.”
“No, nothing so scandalous. I’ve just been holed uplately.”
“You haven’t been sick, I hope.” She scanned him covertly, and I could tell she hadn’t seen him since his massive weight loss either. It was ratherjarring.
“No, just, you know… hitting the gym.” Luke flexed his arms in his attempt to be the douchebag he’d only seen in movies. He failed miserably. My brother was just too nice a guy to ever pull off a movelikethat.
“Well, you look great.” Her eyes lingered on him longer than was required for a random barista, and I took note. Luke, on the other hand, seemed completely oblivious. No wonder he never had adamndate.
After sitting down with our coffee, I asked, “You know she likes you,right?”
“Who? Tess?” he asked, glancing over. “Extremely doubtful, if not downright delusional. She’s datingsometool.”
“Really? Because that’s not how it looked to me. She seemed overly interestedinyou.”
“Trust me, Casey. I’d have a better chance of winning the lottery than getting a girl like that. Can we talk aboutsomethingelse?”
“Like yourweightloss?”
“Why is everyone making such a big deal outofit?”
