“Water would be great, Gramps.” Jake was done with alcohol for the moment.
“I’ll take a soda.” Caleb raised his hand.
“How’s your father, Caleb?”
“He’s fine. Shop’s doing great.”
“You seem to have more ink than the last time I saw you, boy.”
Jake smirked. “Yeah, he got his sleeves finished.”
Gramps shook his head. “I never did understand all that, even in the Army.” The timer on the stove buzzed. “Jake, hand me those oven mitts, it’s time to pull dinner.”
Jake passed over two oven mitts as Gramps opened the oven. “Can I help with anything?”
“You can get the serving plate down, and a bowl for the mashed potatoes, if you would, please.”“You didn’t have to get fancy for us, Gramps,” Jake added, doing what he was told.
“Well, son, I thought maybe your guest was of the female variety, so that’s what I planned on.”
Jake nearly dropped the ancient ceramic platter on the counter. Caleb hid a snicker behind his hand. “Sorry to disappoint you, Gramps.”
“What happened to your lady friend you were telling me about last time? Ophelia, right?”
“Olivia,” Jake corrected him in a soft tone. Flashes of her sparkling eyes and golden hair flitted across his vision.
“He screwed up and she won’t talk to him anymore, Gramps.” Caleb filled in. “This is why I don’t date.”
“Wooing women is not for the faint of heart, Caleb Gray. It’s more painful than those tattoo needles. But, I think it’s a far more worthy endeavor.” Gramps took the plate of meatloaf into the dining room and Jake followed with the mashed potatoes.
“Maybe in your day, old man, but not anymore. Women are too much drama.” Caleb brought up the rear with a dish of roasted brussels sprouts.
“That’s partly because of the new technology you kids insist on using. But they caused plenty of drama back in my day. It was just a different kind of trouble.” The three men sat down to dinner, Gramps said grace, and then there was no talking at all while they ate their first helpings.
“Now, tell me what you did to upset your lady friend,” Gramps demanded after they’d all slowed down their chewing.
“Nothing. Which was apparently the wrong thing to do at the time.” Jake took a sip of his water. “And since when did you care about my love life?”
“I guess I’ve been missing your grandmother recently. It would’ve been fifty years with her next week.”
A somber hush fell over the table. “I’m sorry, Gramps. I had no idea when your anniversary was.”
“S’alright, son. We got married quickly when my number for the draft came up. Took four years for them to send me home. I’m just glad it wasn’t longer. Not long after I got home, she got pregnant with your mother. So we never really celebrated it like we probably should have. But enough reminiscing.” The old man put his drink down, and pointed at Jake. “I’m going to give you the same advice my father gave me when I married your grandmother. ‘Never make the one you love feel alone, especially if you’re there.’”
Jake nodded. That was exactly what he’d done. He’d been sitting right there and left her on her own. He cleared his throat.
“How do you come back from messing up that bad?”
“You gotta show her that you’re all in, and that you won’t do it again.”
Show her that you’re all in.
Maybe Garret and Marie’s ideawouldwork.
“Thanks, Gramps.”
“If we’re done with the hen chatter, can we please talk football orsomething else? I feel like y’all are going to pull out a romance novel or something.” Caleb knocked back his soda with disgust.
“Hush son, your time will come.”
