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“Son, you apologize to your mother for raising your voice to her, or you and I are going to have a problem.”
Contrition immediately settled over Levi. He never lost control like that. Never yelled, especially not at his parents. Never fought such an urge to pummel something.
Repentant, he took the porch steps in a few strides and offered his mother an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Ma. I didn’t mean to yell. I shouldn’t have lost my temper.”
“I know, honey.” His mother patted his cheek. “I shouldn’t push you so much.”
“You both are right.” Gary looked from his wife to his son. “I agree with your mother, though, Levi. You should either go to that wedding or break things off with Grace. If you don’t care about that sweet, beautiful girl enough to attend the wedding and meet her folks, then you aren’t that serious about her and should stop wasting her time.”
Levi didn’t like hearing his father’s words of wisdom, even if he agreed with them. He felt like today was a pivotal point in his relationship with Grace. The choice he made was going to have a profound effect on their future.
Everything in him was shouting at him to rush to Holiday as quickly as he could get there. But the part of him that was afraid her family would measure him by his war wounds and find him lacking wanted to hide at home.
“Are you a man worthy of the love of a fine woman like Grace?” his father asked, his voice steady although his scowl deepened as he spoke.
The question goaded and pricked at Levi until he had to take a series of deep breaths to keep from shouting in anger again.
Rather than address the question of whether he would go or stay, he changed the subject. “You need help. I was gone all last Saturday as it was.”
“You were, but you worked an extra ten hours during the week before then to make up for it, and you’ve been working twice as hard this week. We can manage for a day without you here. I know you don’t want to hear what we have to say, son, but it’s time to make a choice. Do you want to keep Grace or let her go? It is as simple and as complicated as that.”
Levi could spend hours—days—searching his heart, weighing the pros and cons, and he knew the answer would be the same. He wanted Grace. Wanted a life with her. Wanted to love her with his whole heart.
Despite his mother’s intrusiveness and his father’s bluntness, they both were right. If he didn’t go to this wedding, then he needed to walk away from Grace and set her free to find someone who would always be there for her.
The thoughts rolling around in his head must have shown on his face.
His father grinned and reached out to thump him on the back. “Hurry, son. You need to hurry.”
Levi turned, tripped over the dog, and would have sprawled on his face if he hadn’t latched onto the porch railing.
“Stop on your way out. I’ll have a gift ready for the bride, and you should probably take one to Grace’s parents.”
“Right. Thanks, Ma! I’ll pay you back.”
“Yes, you will!” she called after him as he ran over to the motorbike, cranked it up, and made it back to his house in record time. He jerked off clothes as he entered through the back door, leaving them in a heap on the laundry room floor, then jumped into the shower and quickly shaved, only nicking himself once in the process.
He combed his hair, slapped on a little aftershave, then rushed to dress in a dark blue suit with a pale blue shirt. He grabbed a burgundy tie and shoved it in his pocket, tamped his feet into his best pair of cowboy boots, stuffed a white linen handkerchief in his back pants pocket, and tried to think if he’d forgotten anything.
After taking several bills from the stash of money he kept in a dresser drawer for emergencies, he slipped his checkbook into the inside pocket of his suitcoat and was almost out the door when he decided he should probably pack an overnight bag in case he decided to stay in Holiday. He grabbed his toiletry kit, dropped it in a duffel bag with a set of casual clothes, then grabbed a blue striped dress shirt, a dark blue tie, and a pair of tan trousers he could wear to church if he went with Grace tomorrow before coming home.
Assured he had what he needed, he removed the suit jacket and tossed it on the bag on his pickup seat, then sped to his parents’ home. His mom ran out the door holding two gift-wrapped boxes in her hands before Levi made it all the way around the pickup. He opened the passenger door and greeted her with a smile.
“This one is for the bride and groom,” she said, setting a box wrapped in white paper with a gold bow on top on the seat after she pushed his duffel bag on the floor and hung his suit jacket on the hook just inside the pickup door. “This is for Grace’s parents.” She placed a smaller box wrapped in blue and red plaid paper on top of his bag.
“Thanks, Ma. I appreciate it, and I’m really sorry about earlier.”
“It’s okay, honey.” She gave him a big hug, then stepped back and offered him a critical look. “You look so handsome. Do you need help with your tie?”
“Yes, please.” He tugged it out of his suit pocket, looped it around his neck, then lifted his chin. His mom had always tied his father’s ties too. It seemed the Gibson men were all thumbs when it came to tying them properly.
“There,” she said, loosening it so he could leave the top buttons of his shirt unfastened. “I hope you don’t sweat clear through your clothes before you get there. It’s warm today.”
“It is, but I’ll be fine.” Levi glanced up as his father raced out of the house with a basket in one hand and an insulated thermos in the other.
“Here’s some grub for the road. The thermos has ice water. There’s also a bottle of pop in the basket.” His father leaned into the pickup and set the basket where Levi could easily reach it.
Levi shook his father’s hand, gave his mother one more hug, then slid behind the wheel and took off in a cloud of dust. According to his watch, he had four hours to get to Holiday in time for the wedding. That should be plenty enough time to arrive, as long as he didn’t have any trouble along the way.
