On 4/19 (On 4/19 and Beyond 4/20) (23 page)

“This year will be really difficult for my mom. I know I need to be there for her.”

“You should be. I’ll fly out with you.” Since her accident, they had spent very little time apart. While he hadn’t put much thought into it yet, at the spur of the moment he decided he would fly out with her, get a room in Tulsa, and then fly back with her. Surely he could drum up some kind of business while he was there. He never traveled without some element of business attached to it.

Stammering, she said, “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”

Smiling, he assured her, “I don’t mean to actually
go
with you. I’ll just fly out and wait. You don’t want to fly commercial during the holidays. I’ll find something to get into. You know me.”

They were nearing the house as he made the offer; it was then that her own words came back to haunt her. She remembered the night she told him she wanted their relationship to be real, at least real for the time being. His first reaction to that was to bring her home to meet his family. As for her, she kept their relationship hidden, and it wasn’t fair to him. Certainly, she was not embarrassed of him. How could she be? He was truly the most incredible man she’d ever known. Instead, her reservation in bringing him was
for
his own good. Between her dad and her older brother, she was not exactly sure who would be more upset about the age difference. Bobby was so overprotective of her, he nearly beat Tuck to death when he hurt her the way he did.

When she and Tuck, Bobby’s best friend, began to date, at first they were hesitant to tell Bobby. Once they found the courage to tell him, he was surprisingly calm about it. But he assured Tuck that if he ever hurt her, he would beat him until he couldn’t walk. He kept that promise.
Now, the thought of bringing John home to meet Bobby scared her as much as when she knew Bobby left the house in search of Tuck that night. Years had passed, and Bobby was married and had children. Surely he wouldn’t react towards John as she feared he might.

“If you go with me, it would be the worst Thanksgiving you have ever experienced.”

“I’ve spent Thanksgiving alone before.”

His willingness to spend Thanksgiving alone, simply to be with her as she traveled, made her feel even worse for her hesitation in taking him. “No. That’s not what I mean. I mean if you go
with
me to meet my family, they will make you miserable. I guarantee it.”

“I think I can handle it. But I don’t want you to be uncomfortable. I’ll just hang out in Tulsa.”

“I want to be with you on Thanksgiving.” She stopped, turned to him, and slid her arms around his waist. Resting her head on his chest, she whispered, “This is our only one.”

Sighing heavily, he wrapped his arms around her, saying, “And I want to be with you.” It had crossed his mind on several occasions that if they stuck to the contract, they would only have the upcoming holidays. It was such thoughts that caused him to wonder if maybe there could be more. While he would never voice his feelings, not yet anyway, he admitted to himself how much he wanted a future with her. No matter how ridiculous it seemed with such a drastic age difference, he wanted her to be his. Since the accident and once they settled in to this new way of life, he’d come to believe that he really could do life differently with her. Business meant little to him in comparison to giving Chelsea what she needed. He wasn’t destined to treat her as he had Tracy. Love really did make all the difference in the world.

Chelsea looked up at John. “There’s no telling how they’ll react. Does that bother you?”

“It bothers me that you’re worried, but I’m hardly worried.” He reached for her hair and tucked it behind her ear. “Baby, I can handle myself.” Wondering, he asked, “Will it embarrass you?”

“Of course not. I‘ll be proud to have you with me.” That was true. No matter their age difference, she thought John was the most handsome,
most interesting man on the planet, and once they got to know him better, they’d see what she saw in him, at least she hoped.

It was settled. They assured his mom they would come Thanksgiving week, but it would have to be early. Once they explained the loss of Chelsea’s grandfather and the fact that it would be her mother’s first holiday without her dad, Louise understood fully. To her, which day didn’t matter, only that John and Chelsea would come again for a visit.

Later that night, alone in bed, John found himself revisiting his earlier thoughts. Could there be a future for them? Thinking back to his proposal to Tracy, he had an entirely different mind-set then. Once he calculated the pros and cons, he decided he and Tracy were a good fit. Having similar goals, they simply made sense. Without question Tracy was smart and beautiful, which was a bonus, but for the most part, he more valued their similar temperaments, their outlook on life and business, or more accurately, on business and life. Never did emotional issues such as love play a factor in his choice to ask her to marry him. It was a rather sterile proposal, one Tracy seemed to expect. Soon after, they married in a small ceremony with just a few friends.

With Chelsea, nothing rational ever came to mind. As a matter of fact, everything about loving her was totally absurd. Beyond his ability to control or manipulate, John was simply along for the ride. Though the thought of where it was taking him was frightening, in some ways it was comforting too. After the past weeks with her, catching a glimpse of what their lives could look like together, he could think of little else but marrying her and, maybe even beginning a family with her. While he knew they would always appear to be a dirty old man and a gold-digger, as Chelsea once said, they both knew that wasn’t the case. Anyone who knew them knew better. Wasn’t that what mattered most?

W
hile packing, Chelsea wondered what John would be bringing to wear. Her family dressed casually, and if he showed up in a suit, he may feel uncomfortable. Texting him to let him know to only take casual clothes, she thought that would be the end of it. But when he texted back that he thought he would make a better impression if he at least wore a jacket, she called him.

“Really, jeans and shirt will be fine. We will all be casual. If you’re in a suit, you may feel uncomfortable.”

Chelsea’s tone caused him to believe she was not quite as concerned about his comfort as she was about the impression he made. “You tell me what would make
you
feel comfortable for me to wear.”

Knowing he sensed her unease, she admitted, “I’m afraid if you show up in a suit, they’ll think you’re rich.”

“I am rich.” He could only smile at how she was already overthinking things.

“I know, but they don’t have to know that. If they do, then they’ll think I’m dating you for your money.”

Chuckling, he teased, “You are dating me for my money.”

Her stomach turned at the truth of his words. Her voice grew softer. “I know, but you know what I mean. I don’t want them to think badly of us.”

“And thinking I’m poor will make them more comfortable with you dating an older guy?”

“Honestly, yes.”

“I’ll do whatever you say,” he said with a grin, and he suspected it was the first in a lifetime of such statements. The thought of marrying
Chelsea gave him an entirely different perspective on the trip. He did want to make a good impression. As funny as it seemed, he was about to meet his potential mother- and father-in-law. He actually laughed out loud at the thought.

They landed at a small airstrip normally used for crop-dusting planes. As was the mystery of being with John, just after they exited the plane, a limo arrived to pick them up.

“We can’t show up at my parent’s house in that.”

“Then how do you suggest we get there?”

“Can’t we get a normal rental? You know, like normal people.”

She was terribly nervous and fidgety and had been since he picked her up for the airport. To help calm her, he found himself agreeing with anything that may alleviate her fear, so John had the driver take them to a rental car office. As he scrunched into the driver’s seat of an economical compact car, he looked at her, saying, “You owe me for this one.”

She reminded him, “It’ll only be for two days.” Then she added, “Are you mad?”

John leaned over and kissed her. “There, that makes it better. And no, I’m not mad at all.”

When they were in sight of her childhood home, he asked again, “Are you certain you prepared your parents for this?”

“I said you were older.”

“But did you tell them how much older?”

“No, just older.” Wishing she’d been more honest, she knew that once they saw John, they would flip out. She had tried to tell her mom, knowing she would tell her dad, but each time she talked to her, she simply couldn’t bring herself to. Her mom was so excited she was coming that Chelsea hadn’t had the heart to burst her bubble. That was probably a mistake.

“So as far as they are concerned, I’m probably like thirties older?” John chuckled under his breath, suspecting Chelsea underestimated the firestorm they were about to walk into.

Wrinkling her nose at him, she asked, “Wanna just drop me off and let me tell them something came up so you couldn’t make it?”

“No way! I can handle whatever they throw at me.”

Sighing heavily, Chelsea hoped he was right.

As soon as they stepped from the car, the front door opened and a mass of people came barreling out to greet them. The closer they got, though, the more slowly they moved. Expressions varied. Most were clearly shocked, but it was her dad’s and Bobby’s expressions that made Chelsea wonder if a fight might break out right there on the front lawn. Though they shook hands with John, they openly disapproved of him. Nervously, Chelsea held his hand as they walked into the house.

John felt Chelsea’s hand tighten around his, so he gave it a little squeeze, trying to reassure her. It was going to be a rocky two days. But the truth of the matter was, John wasn’t the least bit shaken. If anything, he was so thankful he came, if for no other reason than to see Chelsea’s mother. Chelsea looked just like her. It was as if John were peering into the future, catching a glimpse of what Chelsea would look like when she was his age. What a gift that was. He might never get to see that. That thought caused him to become momentarily sad and weary.

The rest of the afternoon and evening went terribly. Bobby and his wife Macy left early with their kids. Her sister Caitlin and her husband David stayed much longer; and all the while they stared at John but hardly spoke. Their oldest daughter Tess once said to John, “You’re old.” He simply agreed with her. Through it all, he remained surprisingly good humored about it. Each time Chelsea would look at him, he was smiling softly at her, seemingly unaffected. No matter how difficult it was, she was glad to be with him, glad he came.

Once it was finally time for bed, her mother gave them that look like,
I know you don’t plan to share a room
. John was shown to Preston’s room, while Preston was put out on the couch in the den.

Chelsea sat in her old bedroom, wondering what John must be thinking, certain he must regret coming. At that very moment, her phone chimed. Reaching for it, she read John’s text: B:
being with you
, W:
being old
. Texting right back, hers read: B:
seeing my family
, W:
Seeing my family. So sorry!!

After reading her text, he sat his phone on the table beside the bed. Leaning back on the headboard, he rested his hands behind his head.
Certainly, the evening was awkward, but it was worth it to be with her for Thanksgiving. He really expected nothing less. As he had thought many times, if it were his daughter dating a forty-nine-year-old man, he’d neither approve of it nor stand for it. With that thought, he wondered if her parents were waiting for her to be alone to say what they really thought of him. For Chelsea’s sake, he hoped they’d take it easy on her.

John woke early and found Chelsea sitting on the front porch alone, wrapped up in a quilt. When he stepped out onto the porch, she asked if he wanted to take a walk. Of course he was up for anything that would get him out of her parents’ house. It was sometime after midnight that he heard her parents arguing down the hall. He was relieved at least that they weren’t taking it out on Chelsea. As his room was closer to theirs, John hoped she slept through the heated conversation.

After they’d walked for some time, she told him about hearing them, and he admitted he had also. The things they said were true, especially how a future together would be disastrous for Chelsea. Her dad argued that if she married him, she would have a geriatric husband when she was still a young and vibrant woman, and that no doubt, she’d be a young widow. It was the latter that impacted John the most. Having lost his wife at such a young age, he knew what it was like to face a future alone. That was the last thing he wanted for Chelsea.

Knowing they only had five months left together, he could hardly imagine what life would be like without her in it. Early on, his hesitations about ever marrying again were based on his history with Tracy, because of how he failed her. Recently, as his feelings had intensified, he’d begun to consider those failures as a means to do it better with Chelsea, to learn from them and put her first in his life. After the things her dad said, though, things he already knew but had given much too little thought to, he knew he could never guide her into a future where she would be his caretaker and inevitably a young widow. She should begin life with a man she could grow old with, not one who’d grown old while she was in high school.