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“You’ve got a dog?” When he nods, I say, “You’re lucky. I always wanted a dog when I was your age, but my brother Timmy used to sneeze and cough like crazy whenever he was around animals, so we couldn’t have one in the house.”
He looks at me, all wide-eyed innocence. “I don’t sneeze.”
Charlotte chimes in. “That’s because you don’t have allergies. If you did, Moe would make you sneeze.” He laughs when Charlotte lets out an exaggeratedah-choo. “Where is Moe, anyway?”
“Out back chasing after something or other,” Lawrence says. “Maybe after we eat, you can show your dad how you feed Moe.” Lawrence looks to me. “Ethan’s very responsible with the dog.” Taking small bites of his sandwich, a shy smile takes shape as Lawrence continues to praise him. “He’s getting real good at brushing his coat out at night, and always makes sure he has enough water and food.”
Ethan looks to Lawrence. “And I teached him fetch.”
Lawrence smiles and musses Ethan’s hair. “That’s right, you taught him to play fetch.”
I’m a little envious of their close relationship, but grateful at the same time. It’s easy to see Lawrence is a positive influence on Ethan. And he strikes me as a Grizzly Adams kind of wilderness man with his beard and calloused hands. He’s someone who can protect his homestead. With him around, you know Charlotte and Ethan are in good hands, they’re safe.
I’m reaching over for another roll when Charlotte says, “Three sandwiches…Some things never change.”
I smile, remembering the way she used to tease me about how much food I could put away. I want her to remember the good parts, the times when we were together and it was good between us. It makes me feel like she’s letting me in a little, makes me feel like I belong here.
Turning to Ethan, I say, “Yeah, that’s something you should know about me. I eat,a lot.”
He laughs as he copies me, taking a big bite out of his sandwich.
“Big man, big bites,” Charlotte reaches for the sandwich and gently pulls it back from Ethan, “little man, little bites. Now chew, you don’t want to choke.”
I watch Ethan chew his food and then mouth the wordsorryto Charlotte. She shakes her head, reassuring me it’s no big deal.
“I done,” Ethan announces as he squirms his way down off his chair. “Wanna see Moe?”
“Can’t wait,” I answer, feeling as if I’ve just been handed an invitation to ride shotgun on the space shuttle.
I watch as he uses all his might to slide open the back door and then follow him onto the deck. The home backs onto an inlet where you can see the great expanse of Lake Superior just beyond. The beauty of it stops me in my tracks for a moment, and before I know it, Ethan is running at his version of full speed towards the water.
“Wait up!” I’m sprinting to catch him when he suddenly stops to pick a tennis ball up off the grass. My heart is beating double time and I’m running through scenarios of what could have just happened when I hear soft chuckling behind me.
“He nearly gave me a heart attack.”
“It’s nerve racking being around a toddler, right?” She takes in my wide-eyed look of panic and busts out laughing. “Sorry, but you should see your face right now. It’s not as bad when you’ve had the benefit of being eased into it.”
“Is he all right around the water?”
“He’s not reckless by nature and he listens to what he’s told, but no, one of us is always out here with him. He knows he’s not allowed outside unless he tells me or Lawrence first.”
“That’s good.”
“I want to get him into swim lessons but that’s going to have to wait a while.”
“When do kids usually start?”
“Are you kidding? They have swim lessons designed for infants now.” She shakes her head smiling. “Ann Arbor is chock-full of overachieving parents who want their kids to be skilled swimmers, champion chess players and fluent in multiple languages by the time they hit kindergarten.”
“Just like home, right?”
I notice she doesn’t take her eyes off Ethan when she laughs and says, “Oh yeah, just like home.”
“Is it because of his heart?”
“It’s really about making sure his immune system is strong. Like, he could be enrolled in preschool this coming fall, but I’m waiting on that too.” She looks to me, maybe to gauge my reaction before she looks back to the shoreline. “Last winter was rough. I can’t put him in a classroom full of germy kids until I’m sure he can handle it.”
“We didn’t start school until kindergarten, right?”
