Page 209 of The Woman Left Behind

Greg called when we were about ready to head back, telling us not to because, “The fight is over, and from the sounds of it, they’re busy making grandbaby number three for me.”

I could hear Greg’s laughter over the phone.

I could also see this information made Harry throw up in his mouth a little.

So my laughter joined Greg’s.

Oh, don’t think I missed Greg’s ploy.

My dad was a handyman.

And Greg pretty much gave up on retirement in order to horn in to be my handyman.

Honestly, the more I got to know all of them, it was no surprise Harry turned out to be all that was Harry.

No one could replace my dad (or my mom).

But straight up, there was nothing but beauty adding Greg, Caro, Josh, Amanda and the kids to my life.

Yep.

Nothing but beauty.

Yes, Harry did close down our street so that everyone who showed (and so many people showed, it was amazing!) would be safe as they wandered the Halloween extravaganza, the kids got their candy, and the adults were offered wine, beer, cider or hot cocoa.

We one hundred percent gave out full-size candy bars.

A few weeks later, Harry went with me to Indiana to spend Thanksgiving with my grandparents.

Ronnie helped me find them, and I gave my grandparents pretty little boxes with some of Mom and Dad’s ashes mingled inside.

There were tears. A lot of cooking. Wholehearted approval of Harry.

And I learned Harry was a sucker for my gram’s pecan pie.

So it was good I had the recipe.

Things changed at our house, and I didn’t mean just Mom and Dad’s bedroom becoming Harry’s and mine.

Primarily, Harry lifted the ban of no human food for the dogs.

So, okay, it wasn’t like we fed them rashers of bacon every morning.

But we both knew there was a good possibility Harry would have returned home from work that day to find me dead or dying of gunshot wounds in the backyard if those pups hadn’t intervened, which would be a different but no less tragic repeat of something he’d already endured.

And that left one puppy daddy both proud…

And very, very grateful.

Ronnie and I talked, and she shared the touching information about where George was at that he shot a man.

“That was about you, darlin’, but it was also about Sonny. I think he feels better now, more at peace with the whole thing, because he was there when Sonny wasn’t, and he got to look after you.”

A chat with Susan gave me much the same thing.

Had I mentioned how much I loved my neighbors?

Well, I loved them.

---