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“—on my side.”
“Yikes!”
“Or on my hands and knees…” She burst out laughing. “Forget it. I’m just teasing you.”
“I’m calling the police.”
“Go ahead. They’ll say you’re nuts. I can barely walk.”
“You did fine in town,” he said, gathering the bags. “Are you ready? It’s a five-mile drive.”
“I think I’ll be okay. I could always lie in the back of the truck.”
“No, you can’t. That’s another fantasy of mine.”
“Ha! Jake, you are really nuts.”
While he drove the short distance, she laid her head back against the seat. “I’m so at peace right now. It’s wonderful your dad is home. I hope things can stay just like this.”
“You have your class to finish, too.”
“Yep, I need to take a final test online, and then the real semester starts after the first.” She looked over at him. “I hope you’ll be okay with me being preoccupied with school.”
“I’ll be fine. You know I don’t need a lot of attention.”
“You’re easy,” she said. “Wireless headphones for the TV and noise canceling for me and we’re good to go.”
He put his hand up to high-five just as he pulled in front of his parents’ house. The driveway was full of pickup trucks.
“All the Saints are here,” Geri said, sitting up. “Are you sure it’s okay if I visit now?”
“You’re part of the family,” Jake said, getting out. “I’ll help you. Stay put.”
They walked down the path to the front door hand in hand. The house was decorated for Christmas with all the lights ablaze in the middle of the day.
“Look at this place!” Geri cried. “It’s like the North Pole!”
“I forgot you worked on Christmas,” Roberta said, hugging her. “I owe you such a debt of gratitude. Thank you so much. Everyone’s talking about it.”
“Ma, take it easy,” Jake mumbled, shifting his eyes over at Geri. “Where’s Pop?”
“Holding court in the kitchen, where else?”
She led the way to the back of the house, and the greetings roared up. Jake pulled out a chair for Geri, who gingerly lowered herself, laughing with Big Mike. He commiserated with her.
“I know you must be sore. This little gal held me up for miles down that mountain.”
“I bet your arms are amazing,” Leon said admiringly.
Geri teasingly tried to make muscles and groaned as they all laughed with her. But the couple didn’t stay at the house long.
“I’m still feeling out of sorts,” Geri admitted to Big Mike. “But we’ll come to visit again before I have to go back to work.”
Big Mike leaned in and hugged her. “Thank you for everything.”
“Here, take some food,” Roberta said, handing Jake a canvas bag full of food containers.
Out in the truck, he added the bag to all that they’d brought from Geri’s apartment. “I’d better stick some of this in your freezer.”
