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Back in the car, Macy relaxes back into her seat and sighs. The detour into dread has backed off, and the easy smile I love is back in place.
She looks over to me, a curious light twinkling in her eyes. “So, what did you have planned for the rest of the day?”
I can’t help but to grin widely at her.
“Well, as a matter of fact, I do have something special planned for our last day.” I pause for a second before I swallow down my own dread and continue. “I arranged a dinner for this evening, but I was hoping I could take you somewhere beforehand.”
“What did you have in mind?”
Macy’s flirtatious grin and shoulder wiggle have me cracking up, and I start up the engine for the first stop on our adventure.
It’s not too long before the lake comes into view from the car, and Macy lets out a happy gasp.
“It’s gorgeous. I can’t believe this is what you wanted to do, though.”
“Why’s that?” I ask.
“You’re just such a city boy. Coming out here to a lake doesn’t seem like something you’d go for normally. Are you trying to appeal to my country girl roots?”
I chuckle. “Actually, I used to come here a lot…. It was one of my mom’s favorite spots.”
Looking over at Macy as I pull into the gravel parking lot, I see the glassy reflections in her eyes, and she squeezes my hand.
“Jett.”
I shake my head with a smile, fighting back my own tears, and shut off the car. “I thought maybe we could have a picnic by the water and, you know, talk.” Shrugging, I nod at the trunk.
Macy smiles as she unbuckles. “That sounds amazing. Thank you.”
We head down to the bank, and I lay out a large blanket for us to sit on. Romance is still unfamiliar territory to me, and I can’t help but wonder if Macy will realize I’m taking all my tips from the movies we’ve watched.
As we sit down, Macy takes the bottle of wine I brought and fills our glasses.
“Was your mom more of a country girl like me then?” Her question is simple and unhurried, and still, my heartbeat goes frantic.
“Yeah. We’d go fishing as a family down here. It was a brief break from city life. Mom grew up in a small country town, like you. She hated city life, but she moved into town for my dad…”
I feel her hand on mine, holding tightly while she stays quiet, creating space for my words.
“He was never a great guy by any means. I don’t know what she saw in him. But I guess that’s the rub. I was a kid. I didn’t know what was going on, and she tried so hard to protect me from all of it. Lot of good that did.”
Sipping the merlot, I focus on the way it tastes, the subtle burn trickling down my throat.
“I think she wanted to fix him or something. My mom always wanted to see the best in people. Even people who didn’t deserve it. When she got sick, the effort she put into keeping my dad in check was gone. He got worse and worse until I found as many ways to be out of the house as possible. I was on the streets and running errands for my dad’s “friends” every day.”
“Friends?” Macy’s words refocus me on the present, and I nod at her.
“Yeah, our shining city has quite the underbelly. Mafia mostly, and they're always looking for errand boys and ways to make more money.”
Macy coughs on her wine, and her eyes go wide. “The mafia?”
“Didn’t really think about where my uncle was getting all that money to lend out, did you?” I cock a crooked grin at her.
“I guess I didn’t. Wow, I feel really stupid now.”
“Don’t. It’s easier not to face the dirt behind the scenes. I get it.”
She sets down her glass and moves closer to me, putting both her hands on my knee. “So, your uncle just pulled you into it? Made you one of his loan sharks at what, thirteen?”
