THREE DAYS AFTER dinner and two days after the park, Dan pulled into the school car line, fixed his gaze on the sedan in front of him and not his brother, who was beside him. The one speaking French fluently. And typing rapidly across his notepad like a seasoned business executive. That was, if the exec wore workout clothes and a black baseball cap to assist with Ben’s afternoon soccer practice.
Dan self-assessed: pulse normal. Vision clear. Airways unobstructed.
Only, a deep chill seeped from his core. Had he ever really known his brother?
Jason ended the third of his business calls and shifted easily into English. “So, this is what school pickup is all about.”
Deciphering the letters on the sedan’s license plate was simpler than figuring out his brother. Dan spit out one word: “French.”
“Spanish, too.” Jason waved to an excited Ben on the sidewalk. “Some German and Mandarin.”
Dan’s jaw dropped, letting his racing thoughts escape unspoken. What else didn’t he know about Jason? “Why?”
“Keeps the misunderstandings to a minimum for work.” Jason unlocked the doors.
Dan spoke English and misunderstood. “You’re a poker player.”
“That’s only one of the hats I wear.” Jason twisted in the seat to greet Ben.
Ben tossed his backpack on the bench seat and climbed into the truck. “Dad, did you check on Archie?”
Jason looked at Dan. “Who’s Archie?”
“Archie lost his eye and part of his ear.” Ben leaned between the front seats, wonder and pride in his voice. “Luna helped take out Archie’s stitches, too. Because the animals knew it was infected. Isn’t that awesome?”
“That’s...” Jason’s voice trailed off as if he struggled to find a good response.
Dan could relate. His brother spoke multiple languages. For business. Wore multiple hats—whatever that meant. And made Dan reconsider everything he’d assumed he knew.
Ben sat back and buckled his seat belt. “I need a pet like that, too, ’cause it would save me.”
That was Dan’s job. That much Dan knew.
“Sounds like you have quite a few smart animals at your house right now,” Jason said.
“They belong to Brooke,” Ben said. “Dad keeps warning me that they’ll all be leaving. Soon.”
That chill turned to frostbite. Brooke. Jason. They’d all leave. And Dan wasn’t certain he’d be as numb to their departures as he wanted to be.
“You want them to stay?” Jason asked.
“Definitely. Brooke let me make dog treats with her last night. And I got to hold Rex’s leash by myself on our walk. Even Grandpa came with us and walked Luna, so Brooke could work on training things.” Ben’s backpack fell on the floor with a thunk. “Dad won’t let the dogs use the backyard so we gotta walk them.”
Ben and his grandfather didn’t have to walk the dogs. The dogs belonged to Brooke. Dan had to work, otherwise he would’ve walked, too.
“Grandpa claims he likes the exercise,” Ben added.
“Or the company,” Jason offered.
Dan had enjoyed Brooke’s company at dinner. And the next day at the park. Then he’d worked, caught up on his sleep and hadn’t seen Brooke yesterday or today. Now he missed her. Not in the I-can’t-live-without-you kind of way. More in the I-wish-you-were-here-so-I-could-share-a-story kind of way. The kind of way that made his day better because she was in it. The friends-only kind of way.
“Auntie Ava is gonna come over, too, so she can walk and exercise with us.” Ben unwrapped a granola bar. “And Wesley’s mom. She says she’s too clumsy in a gym, but she thinks she can handle walking. So she’s gonna walk with us, too.”
It was like a walking club. With so many people walking with Brooke, how was Dan supposed to have any time with her?
“But you know what?” Ben’s voice dipped into seriousness and he sat forward again. “Brooke won’t walk toward the Garden District or Bayview Street. No matter how many times you ask her. Even though there’s a dog park that way.”
“Maybe she’s worried about Rex and the other dogs,” Dan suggested. Yet Brooke talked about the importance of socializing the dogs.
“Grandpa says he thinks it has something to do with the accident,” Ben said.
“What accident?” Jason asked.
“I don’t know.” Ben rummaged in his soccer bag. “Grandpa said there was a bad car accident and her husband became an angel.”
Brooke only ever mentioned the accident to Dan. She’d never given any details. Never said it had happened in the city. Then again, Dan never pried. Still, Brooke always asked about Bayview Street and State Street whenever he drove. On the way to the vet. The grocery store. Even dinner.
Was that why everyone wanted to walk with her? Had he been forcing her to walk, even though it scared her? Surely, she would’ve argued more to let him use the backyard. Surely, she wouldn’t believe he could be that cruel. But then, she’d have to trust Dan with her painful past. And if she trusted him, Dan would have to trust her. That was precarious territory. They were better like they were.
“Sounds like Brooke has been through a lot.” Jason slipped on his sunglasses, but the concern was there in his voice.
What had his brother been through? He’d assumed it’d been one endless travel party fashioned by Valerie.
“Yeah. But you know what?” Ben asked repeatedly yet never waited for a response. “She’s still really nice and happy. Except she gets sad but says she’s fine. Dad can fix that.”
Dan cleared his throat, swallowed. A tightness settled in. He wasn’t responsible for Brooke’s sadness. If he was, he’d want to hold her tight and protect her. Promise her that she wouldn’t ever be sad again. Not with him. That was impractical. Impossible. No one could keep a promise like that.
“How so?” Jason asked as if he sensed Dan was struggling for a response.
Dan was struggling, period. To explain his brother. To help Brooke. What had she told him? Let the moment be as it is.
“That’s his job, Uncle Jas.” Ben’s tone was direct, as if he stated what should’ve been obvious. “Dad says some people tell him they are fine, but he can tell by looking at them that they aren’t fine. Then he helps them feel better.”
“You think Brooke needs to feel better?” Jason asked.
Yes. Definitely. Dan had seen the sadness in Brooke, too. And that already pulled at places inside him that he was trying very hard to ignore.
“No one wants to be sad, Uncle Jas,” Ben said. “That’s not fun.”
Dan had to switch the subject. Now, before Jason and Ben brainstormed ways Dan could cheer up Brooke. Dan already had a few ideas and those weren’t appropriate for the friends-only zone. Things like more dates. More Friday nights around the fire pit. Sharing butter-pecan ice cream.
Dan glanced into the rearview mirror and caught Ben’s gaze. “Speaking of fun and exciting things, we never talked about the picnic on Sunday.”
Ben held Dan’s gaze and chewed on his snack bar. “You want to know what I think about Valerie.”
Dan considered correcting Ben. Valerie was his biological mother. But did that mean Ben had to call her Mom? This was new territory. “Yes. I wanted to know what you think. How you feel.”
“Well, we both like nachos and white-cheese sauce with cilantro.” Ben swiped his hand under his nose. “She ate my jalapeños for me.”
Dan had to smile. That wasn’t exactly what he’d wanted to know about his son’s feelings. “Spicy food has always been one of your mom’s favorite things.”
“Did you know basketball is one of Brooke’s favorite sports? She played even though she isn’t tall like us at all.” Ben’s wonder and excitement sped up his words. “In college, Brooke managed the recreation center and won basketball shoot-outs because no one thought she could play.”
“Nice. A basketball shark.” Jason rubbed his hands together. “Wonder if Brooke plays pool, too? We could team up and make some extra money.”
Dan countered Jason’s one-sided grin with a frown. This was supposed to be about Valerie—Ben’s mom—not Brooke. “You’re not helping.”
Jason shrugged. “Brooke is hard not to like.”
Jason—the man beside him—might not be too hard to like, either. But could he trust him?
As for Brooke, he already liked Brooke too much. Worse, now he considered challenging Brooke to a shoot-out in his own backyard. The bet: winner picks their next dinner destination. Because he wanted to have dinner with Brooke again. Preferably alone. If he won in a basketball shoot-out, it wouldn’t be considered a date. It’d only be a bet that had to be upheld.
“Wesley and I are playing Brooke on Thursday after soccer practice.” Ben peered between the front seats again. His fingers tapped an animated beat on the console. “Whoever wins gets to pick what dessert we eat for dinner.”
“Can I join in?” Jason shifted to face Ben. “I’m a huge fan of dessert for dinner, too.”
“Sure.” Ben followed his swift agreement with a fist tap against Jason’s as if that sealed the arrangement. “But you need to make all ten baskets from behind the free throw line just like Brooke.”
Time to redirect the conversation. Again. Before Dan agreed to the shoot-out terms, too. “That sounds like fun. I can’t wait to see who wins. Your mother thinks it might be fun to go on vacation.”
That was Dan’s attempt at easing back into the conversation of Valerie and her plans. He wanted Ben’s reaction to the idea of vacationing with his mom. That would guide his strategy going into court.
“Are we going to Disney? They have a new Star Wars area and ride.” The delight in Ben’s voice bounced around the truck cab. “What about Universal? They have roller coasters, too.”
“Roller coasters are the best,” Jason added. “Especially the ones that go upside down.”
“Definitely,” Ben said. “We definitely need to go to a place with those roller coasters.”
Dan pulled into the park and eyed his brother. Jason was never quite so cheery. Not even as a kid. Right now, he looked almost gleeful. Over roller coasters. Or was it that none of Valerie’s vacation spots included roller coasters? Or was it simply that Valerie wasn’t in the truck, claiming all the attention.
Dan stopped and cleared his throat. “Your mother was thinking something farther away, like Amsterdam. They have one of the best science museums.”
“That could be cool if we get to touch things and build things like we do with my science projects.” Ben pulled his soccer shoes from his bag. “Remember that volcano we built that exploded all over Grandpa on the way to the car? That was so funny.”
“Your dad and I used 623 rubber bands to split a watermelon in half. It exploded in the kitchen, all over Grandpa, the kitchen cabinets and even the ceiling.” Jason leaned down to retie his shoes. Yet he failed to contain his humor. “It wasn’t even a science project.”
Laughter surged inside Dan and spilled into the truck. That still ranked as one of their best ideas. “Grandpa refused to buy watermelon after that.” Even when they promised they only wanted to eat it. Their father had complained about finding watermelon seeds a year after the explosion.
“And he forbade rubber bands in the house,” Jason added.
Ben fell across the back seat in a fit of laughter. “How mad was Grandpa?”
Dan smiled at his son, his face as bright as his hair. That was how he preferred to see Ben: carefree and happy. “We were grounded for two weeks and forbidden to watch TV for one month.”
“That didn’t stop us.” Jason glanced over his shoulder at Ben. “We moved from fruit to paint balloons.”
Ben sprang up, interest widening his eyes. “What are those?”
“We filled balloons with paint instead of water,” Dan explained.
“Then exploded them in the driveway in a brilliant colored burst.” Jason raised his hands as if reliving the balloon drop.
Ben covered his mouth. More laughter squeezed around his fingers.
His brother left out the roof part of their brilliant plan. They’d determined they needed the extra height to ensure maximum splattering range once the balloon hit the driveway. Their dad hadn’t agreed. Or even cared about maximizing the splatter range. Dan said, “We ended up getting grounded for another month.”
“One of the best summers being grounded we ever had.” Jason’s tone was wistful, as if he missed those childhood days spent plotting and scheming and laughing until their stomachs cramped.
“That summer was definitely one of our most creative.” Dan turned in his seat and pointed at Ben. “Don’t get any ideas.”
Ben shook his head. “Wesley already has a lot of ideas for the summer. Can he come with us to Amsterdam?”
“How many people are going with us on vacation?” Jason shrugged at Dan’s confused look. “We need to consider how many hotel rooms we’re going to require for this vacation.”
If Valerie had her way, only one. Enough room for her, Jason and Ben. Dan didn’t want Valerie to have her way.
Ben lifted up his hand and counted on his fingers. “Dad. Uncle Jas. Me. Valerie. Wesley. And we should ask Brooke and Wesley’s mom, too.”
“We should?” Dan’s voice was tight. When had this become a group-vacation discussion? With Brooke. She’d be a welcome addition, Dan admitted. Like Nichole and Wesley, of course. Traveling with good friends was more fun.
“Of course, we should invite them. Wesley’s mom really likes Brooke. She told us in the car.” Ben pulled his soccer ball from his bag and balanced it on the console. “We all had so much fun at the park on Sunday.”
Simple as that. Why couldn’t more things in life be just that simple?
“We forgot Grandpa.” Worry rang through Ben’s words as if his grandfather might have overheard. “We have to bring him. And Grandma Lulu. If they get tired, they can hang out together.”
“That makes perfect sense.” Jason nodded, his tone thoughtful. “I’ll add them to the invite list.”
And Dan could hang out with Brooke. No, that was wrong. He glanced at his son. “What if your mother wanted to go with just you?”
Ben’s fingers stilled on the soccer ball and his eyebrows lowered.
Dan added, “You’d get to fly all by yourself.”
“You tell me never to go anywhere alone.” Ben scowled at Dan as if Dan had forgotten his own rules. “And you tell me it’s better to share special times with the people I love.”
Ben had him there. Dan had said all that and more. “Those are the people you love, then.”
“Pretty much.” Ben shrugged. “But there’s also Auntie Ava and Kyle, too. I bet Kyle would like the science museum, but Auntie would like Disney.”
Soon they were going to need to book an entire hotel wing. Valerie most likely didn’t have this kind of vacation in mind. Although she loved entertaining large groups. “What if everyone couldn’t go in the summer?”
“Then we’ll have to wait until we can all go together.” Ben zipped up his soccer bag as if that ended the discussion.
Would a judge accept that argument? Your Honor, my son will only go if everyone he loves is able to join him. Since schedules cannot be aligned, I request a passport not be granted. Dan would ask his legal team, but he doubted that constituted a valid defense. Even though it worked quite well for Dan.
“Well, everyone lives here except your mother and me,” Jason said.
“You guys could just come here. Then we’d all go to Disney and ride roller coasters.” Ben opened the truck door and jumped out to join his friends. His vacation preference more than clear.
“He’s not wrong,” Dan said. He smiled, watching Ben’s teammates yell his name and wave. He’d built a good life for him and his son. He was content knowing Ben was happy. And if he sensed something was missing in his own life, well, he could find it later. After Ben grew up and headed out to start his own life.
“About Disney?” Jason asked.
“About us having fun at the park on Sunday.” Dan shuddered, remembering the ice war. His dad and Brooke had even joined in to help Ben and Wesley. Dan had ended up with an entire cooler of ice dumped on him. The food had been delicious. The conversation free-flowing. The laughter unrestrained. Even Valerie had joined in for their impromptu card game.
“It was a really good afternoon.” Jason’s face revealed his surprise. “One of the best I’ve had in quite a while.”
Dan leaned his head back on the headrest and confessed, “I don’t want to go to court and have to fight Valerie.”
“Her mind seems set,” Jason said.
Dan’s mind was set, too. Traveling abroad wasn’t feasible. And he wasn’t putting Ben on a flight by himself. Alone. Without Dan to protect him.
Even more, he wasn’t going to let Ben get his hopes up only to have them crushed when Valerie changed her mind. And she would, Dan was certain of that. Wedding vows recited before family and God hadn’t been enough to keep Valerie from changing her mind about marriage. Her own son hadn’t been enough to clip Valerie’s travel wings and anchor her to the city. Dan had recovered. But Ben—he was still a child. And the disappointment his own mother could inflict would leave a deep, possibly lasting wound.
“Valerie could’ve asked about the passport over the phone.” Of course, she might’ve anticipated Dan’s refusal.
“Valerie doesn’t ask,” Jason said. “She just does.”
“You didn’t know Valerie wanted to travel with Ben?” Dan asked.
“I didn’t know Valerie was coming to San Francisco until she sat down next to me on the plane.” Jason’s tone was resigned.
They hadn’t designed their trip together. Together wasn’t a word Dan would use to describe Valerie and his brother. He doubted pressing his brother for insight into Valerie’s intentions would prove useful. But perhaps he could learn his brother’s intentions. “Why are you here?”
“Business.” Jason stepped onto the pavement and looked back at Dan. “And now, it seems, for soccer lessons.”
Business brought Jason home. Not the family he missed.
Jason jogged onto the practice field, shook the coach’s hand and high-fived every player. He demonstrated a drill, organized the players and transformed into a teacher. His brother might claim business brought him back. But Jason looked comfortable on the field with the kids surrounding him and a soccer ball at his feet.
The younger brother Dan remembered stood on the soccer field. Dan noted the differences—the ones time caused and others not so obvious. From the scars on Jason’s arms to the way he never touched the beer Valerie had ordered for him at dinner to the shadows that never quite cleared from his gaze.
Dan wasn’t sure who Jason wanted to be. Dan wasn’t certain who he wanted his brother to be. Accepting Jason for who he was now meant Dan also had to own up to the man he’d become. They’d both made mistakes.
Dan had kept his distance all these years. Told himself he was only doing what Jason wanted. Then Valerie had happened. And Dan had retreated completely. After all, his brother had chosen Dan’s ex-wife over his own family. But life had proven to Dan that nothing was ever that cut-and-dried. Most of life was lived in the messy area in between. If he wanted to know the man his brother had become, he’d have to uncover the truth of the past few years.
And that would only happen if Jason let Dan in.
Coach Barnes motioned for Dan to join him on the sidelines. Dan climbed out of the truck and spent the rest of the hour assisting Jason and the coach with drills.
Ben gathered his soccer ball and water bottle and pointed toward Dan’s truck. “I think Valerie’s here.”
“That’s definitely your mother.” Valerie’s signature platinum hair was hard to miss. He handed the orange cones to Coach Barnes and walked across the field. “Maybe she wanted to watch practice.”
“Not her thing.” Jason shook his head and checked his phone. “It’s close to dinnertime. That brought her here.”
“Does she have another picnic?” Ben asked, a hint of curiosity in his voice.
“Let’s find out,” Dan suggested and headed toward the truck.
Valerie clapped her hands together and smiled. “I figured you’d all be hungry after practice. I thought we could go out to eat.”
“Where?” Ben asked.
“I’ve been collecting donations for the fire victims all day and you guys are sweaty, so I was thinking The Boot Pizza,” Valerie said.
Ben grinned. “Really?”
Valerie nodded. “Unless you want something fancier.”
Ben scrunched up his face. “Pizza sounds great.”
“Why don’t you change your shoes?” Valerie said. “Then we can go.”
Ben raced around to the side of the truck.
Valerie shifted her attention to Dan. “I was hoping it could be just Jason and I and Ben. It’s only dinner. Not a trip to Europe.”
Dan rubbed the back of his neck. “We should ask Ben what he prefers.”
Valerie agreed and called Ben back. “Are you okay going to dinner with just your uncle and me?”
Dan shifted from one foot to the other. He hadn’t had to share Ben ever. Surely Ben would want Dan with him, too.
Ben grabbed Dan’s hand and tugged him down. Then he whispered, “Dad, I’ll be okay. Uncle Jason will be with me.”
Dan wasn’t happy about it, he couldn’t deny it. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah.” Ben wrapped his arms around Dan’s neck. “I’ll be good. Will you?”
Dan held on to Ben. He wasn’t entirely sure. “Have you checked your numbers?”
“Just now in the truck.” Ben leaned back and beamed at Dan. “You didn’t even have to remind me.”
“Looks like I’ll see you later at the house.” Dan rose. His gaze collided with his brother. Jason nodded. That was all Dan needed to know. His brother would look after Ben. “Have fun, you guys.”
“You, too, Dad.” Ben hugged Dan around the waist, then climbed in the back seat of Jason’s rental car.
Dan waited until the taillights disappeared out of the parking lot. What exactly was he supposed to do now? His afternoons and evenings were reserved for Ben’s soccer practice, dinner, then homework.
He had to eat. He could update his résumé for his supervisor—a task he’d been pushing down his to-do list for the past week. But that was work-related.
And Dan had an unexpected free night. These were rare and something of a gift.
He texted his dad to see if he wanted to join him for dinner. His father responded that he was headed to the Second Winders dinner hosted by Evie.
Dan wished his dad luck. The Second Winders had started as a widow-and-widowers support group. Somehow—and Dan wasn’t quite certain how—the group began playing poker. Now the Second Winders met twice a month to deal the cards and share a meal. A different group member hosted and supplied dinner each time.
Dan started his truck and dialed Ava.
She picked up on the second ring. “Hey, I’m helping Sophie and Brooke at the pet store. Everything okay?”
“Ben got invited to dinner,” Dan said. And I don’t know what to do with myself.
“Come join us,” Ava said.
“What do you need?” Dan asked, even though he’d already turned in the direction of the pet store.
“Another tall person,” Ava said. An ouch quickly followed. “Sorry, Sophie hit me. Even though I said nothing about Brooke or her being short.” Ava laughed into the phone, then rushed on, “I have to go. Now they’re both coming at me. See you soon.”
The call ended, and Dan smiled. He had something to do.
Fifteen minutes later, Dan walked into The Pampered Pooch. Sophie stood behind the checkout counter, punching a calculator. Ava and Brooke stacked dog food onto a shelf. “How can I help?”
Ava brushed her hands on her jeans and grinned. “You can go with Brooke on an errand.”
Sophie’s head popped up, her smile slow but full. “That’s a great idea. I could really use Ava’s help with a few senior cats upstairs.”
“Dan doesn’t need to join me.” Brooke’s slow nod discounted her claim.
“No. This is perfect. You can visit my customer and then go out to dinner.” Sophie stuffed dog biscuits into a paw-print bag. She looked at Dan. “You haven’t eaten, have you?”
“Not yet,” Dan said.
“Brooke hasn’t, either,” Ava said. “Even though we promised to feed her.”
“I can order takeout on my way home,” Brooke said.
Ava grabbed the treat bag from Sophie and shoved it into Brooke’s hands. “This is better. Dan knows the best hidden places to eat.”
Dan glanced between Sophie and Ava. His friends were acting strange. Then again, he wasn’t going to argue. He’d wanted to have dinner with Brooke. Now he had an excuse. “Where are we going?”
“Earl Powell’s house,” Ava chimed.
“Why?” Dan asked. Ava and Dan had transported Earl Powell more than once. But house calls were something else.
“Brooke’s doing me a favor,” Sophie said.
Ava ushered them toward the door. “Get going. You don’t want to be late.”
Dan held open the door and pointed at his prime parking space. “Lucked out.”
Dan opened the passenger door for Brooke. She was up inside the cab before he could lend her a hand. He heard her deep sigh as he closed the door.
Inside the truck, she buckled her seat belt and shifted toward him. “This won’t take long. Then we can get Ben for dinner.”
She remembered Ben. Wanted him to join them. Pleasure, as if she’d hugged him, filled Dan. He placed his hands on the steering wheel instead of taking Brooke’s. “Ben is with his uncle and Valerie.”
“Wow. Really?” Concern widened her eyes.
Eyes that locked on Dan and searched. Not to judge or criticize. Rather to comfort and console.
She asked, “How do you feel about that?”
Lost. Off balance. But steadier beside you. “Ben assured me that it would be fine because his uncle was with him.”
“They’ve become close,” Brooke said. “Do you mind?”
Dan shook his head. He only minded that his brother might leave a second time—disappearing from Dan’s life if Dan pushed too hard.
But it really all came down to Ben.
Jason had walked away from his family once before. Valerie had walked away from her son. Would they do that again? And if Dan couldn’t trust family, who could Ben trust?
Dan pulled out into the traffic.
Ben could trust Dan and his grandfather.
As for Dan, he’d trust in himself same as he always had.