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I should tell her. Confidence in the decision washed over him. As supportive as Del had been since first they’d met, she out of everyone would understand.
“You know, there is—”
Del’s phone started playing James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain,” and he felt her hand leave his.
“Sorry, I should get this,” she whispered. “Heya, Pops. What’s up?”
Isaac held his breath. This was it, the cease-and-desist call from her father, ordering her to stop seeing him after Mia put two and two together. Isaac drove on, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“Aw, man, sorry to hear that about poor Rex. Sure, that’s no problem at all. I’ll pop over a few times tomorrow while you’re at work to make sure he’s doing okay.”
Isaac held his breath while she chatted a moment more, then exchanged good-byes with her father. “Everything okay?”
She offered him a small smile. “Oh, yeah. My father’s dog is just getting older and has seizures every now and then. Vet doesn’t seem too worried about it so long as they are few and far between, I guess. Pops will be at the station tomorrow, so I need to stop over a few times and make sure Rex is doing all right.”
Relief washed over him; no second shoe yet. “Ah, I see. How old is he?”
“My dad? Fifty-six, though I swear the man thinks he’s in his twenties some days.”
Isaac chuckled. “I meant Rex.”
“Oh.” Del laughed. “We’re not really sure. He was a rescue dog like Louie.”
“Man, I hope he’ll be okay.”
“Me too. Rex has been a great dog, having him around has helped Pops a lot.”
“Oh?”
Del kept her gaze forward, her voice taking on a softer tone. “My youngest sister, Hannah, skipped town after high school. No one knows why, but I always kinda thought she might. Hannah Banana never really fit in here. Always had her head in the clouds and got picked on a lot. Chase, he loved her from the day they met and made it his personal mission to protect her from the jerks and bullies.”
“Just Chase?”
She flashed him a mischievous smile. “Oh, I may have kicked a few butts, too, over the years. Gotta take care of your own, you know?”
He didn’t know. His parents had always been distracted by life, his sister in her own little world. Their chemistry was nothing like what he sensed Del shared with her family. It’d never bothered him, though, because he hadn’t known any better. Hearing the adoration in Del’s voice now, he found himself envious of what she’d grown up with. “I’m sure you took very good care of her.”
“I did.” She dipped her head. “Hurt like hell when she left without saying good-bye.”
Isaac reached for her hand. She let him take it, offering him a smile full of false bravado.
“I’m sure she had her reasons. But Pops, he took it the hardest. Aunt Faye brought Rex home a few weeks later—someone she knew was going into a nursing home and couldn’t take him with her. My father had never been an animal person and wanted nothing to do with him at first; he was too busy sitting on the front porch each night, being mad at the world. Honestly, I think he sat out there so much that first summer holding out hope my sister would change her mind and come back home.”
“I take it that didn’t happen.”
Del shook her head. “But ole Rex, he was bound and determined to worm his way into my father’s heart. Each night, he’d go out and sit on the end of the porch while Pops glared at the front yard. And each night, Pops would ignore him, so the next night, Rex would scoot a little closer. By the end of week three, he was at Pops’s side, and he’s been there ever since.” She sighed. “My old man still sits out on that porch most nights, watching and waiting.”
“Do you think she’ll ever come back?”
“I don’t know. Aunt Faye insists she’ll find her way home when she’s ready, but only time will tell.” Del shook her head. “Wow, sorry. Here I was trying to get you out for a fun evening and I went and got all serious on you.”
“You talk about whatever you need to, Delaney. I’m happy to listen.”
She gave his hand a squeeze then released it, smiles replacing the worry on her features once again. “Careful what you wish for, buddy.”
His GPS guided them to turn into an empty parking lot small enough if he’d blinked, he would have missed it. Weeds grew waist-tall around the edges of the gravel surface, and a rundown camper trailer sat on blocks to one side. Isaac angled his vehicle into an imaginary parking space, in case anyone else showed up here tonight.
“Is this place even open?” he asked, eyeing the sliding window beneath a makeshift letterboard menu.
