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Graham
“Is that Taeli?” Mom asks as the black Volvo pulls into the gate.
“Yeah. You wanted me to be nice, so I invited her and her son over, so he could meet some of the other kids,” I tell her as I load the debris into the dumpster behind the office.
“That was a great idea,” Mom says as she hurries over to where Taeli has parked.
She hugs her as she exits the vehicle, and they both walk around to the passenger side and wait for Caleb to emerge.
I watch as the boy grins up at her while Mom fusses over him.
She points him in the direction of the playground, and then she calls over Chris, one of the long-term campers’ grandsons, and introduces them.
The boys speak for a moment, and then they take off, sprinting toward the sprinklers.
Pop makes his way over to Taeli and Mom. He hugs Taeli and kisses the top of her head. The three of them chat for a long while before she and Mom disappear into the office. I close the dumpster and head back to the pool area to finish cleaning up before the sun sets.
When they reemerge, Taeli is clutching some paperwork, and Mom is talking her ear off. Taeli’s right hand comes up and shades her eyes as she looks over the grounds, searching for her son. When they catch sight of me, she smiles and waves. I wave back, and she excuses herself from Mom and makes her way over to me.
She is breathtaking. Her long, toned legs are on display in a simple cotton dress that fits her oh so well. Her sun-kissed brown hair is pulled back in a ponytail that brushes the middle of her back as she walks, and she is smiling. She and Caleb must have had a good day.
“Hey,” she says as she approaches.
I stop and pull off my work gloves.
“Hey yourself. How was the afternoon, introducing Caleb around town?” I ask.
“It was good, I think. He didn’t say much, but I think he liked the creek and the trolley ride. He wasn’t very interested in the mountains and the views. I guess observation sites are lame or something.”
“You took him to observation points?”
“Yeah. I used to love them when I was his age. Daddy would take Gene and me up to the highest points. I loved standing and looking out over the mountainside. It was thrilling, being able to see for miles and miles. I would just sit and think about how big the world was and how I wanted to see it all,” she says.
“I wouldn’t let it bother me that he wasn’t excited. Boys like action more than quiet contemplation,” I tell her.
“Hence his fondness for the creek and trolley,” she agrees.
I look out to where Caleb is currently running through the sprinklers with the other kids.
“I think he’s going to like his time in Balsam Ridge just fine. We tend to grow on people.”
“I hope so.”
“What about you? How are you, really?”
“Why does everyone keep asking me that?” she asks, clearly agitated.
I shrug. “Because they want to know how you’re doing.”
“No, they don’t. They are just being nosy,” she barks.
“Jeez, the city really jaded you,” I accuse.
Offended, she points to a man standing off to the side, watching his kids play.
“Do you care how he’s doing?” she asks.
“Yes. As a matter of fact, I do. He lost his wife last month but brought his kids here for vacation anyway because that’s what they’d always done, and he didn’t want them to lose that too. I do care if he is okay. And I stopped by his camper last night and left a basket of fresh banana bread my mom had baked to make him smile because she knew it was his favorite. I’ll probably call him this weekend to see if he wants to go fishing to get him out for a while.”
“Oh,” she mutters, averting her eyes.
I take a step into her space, and her amber eyes come up to meet mine.
“You’re going to have to retrain your brain to care about your community if you’re going to live here. We aren’t folks who just walk around, ignoring each other’s pain,” I tell her.
She sighs. “You’re right. I’m jaded.”
“I reckon you’re allowed to be a little. Are you at least happy to be home?” I ask.
She shrugs. “It’s humbling to come back. I didn’t realize how much I’d missed it until I was taking Caleb around. So much has changed, yet so much is exactly as it was when I left.”
“That’s the way we like it,” I tell her.
“Caleb kept asking me where the McDonald’s and Taco Bell were,” she says.
That’s one of the things I love best about Balsam Ridge. We don’t allow chains to come in and push out the small business owners.
“You’ll have to take him to Bubba Jay’s Steakhouse and ask for them to put pickles, lettuce, and Thousand Island dressing on one of their Angus burgers. It beats the fast-food stuff, hands down,” I suggest.
“I’ll do that. Does Bubba Jay make a dupe for the McRib too?”
I chuckle. “I’m sure he could find some pork product to mold into a rib and smother in barbeque sauce for you.”
She smiles so big that a dimple pops out on her right cheek. It’s the most carefree I’ve seen her.
Mom calls to me from the office porch. “Graham, can you light the charcoal, please?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I answer. “Duty calls,” I tell Taeli.
“Meet you at the picnic tables,” she says and walks off toward the kids.
I help Pop man the grills while Mom, Taeli, and the other parents wrangle the children and get them dried off and washed up for dinner.
“The patch looks good, son,” he says as he looks back at the empty pool.
“The tear was in a good place. I think it will hold and get you by. The glue should set overnight, but I’d give it another day. You can start filling it back up Friday morning,” I suggest.
He nods.
“What do you think of Taeli?” he asks.
“Not you too, Pop,” I grumble.
His brows furrow. “Huh?”
I sigh. “I think she’s beautiful and smart but unsure and hard on herself. Scared and a bit lost. She feels guilty for dragging her boy across the country, and she doesn’t know what to do to make it better for him,” I answer.
He looks in her direction. “Wow. That’s very observant, son. I was just wondering if you thought she’d be a good fit around here,” he clarifies.
“Around here? What are you talking about, old man?”
