Page 63 of Paging Dr. Summers

I drew her as close as possible to me, but it didn’t feel near enough. I was finding I could never get enough of her, and that was a difficult thought. It didn’t help that her body seemed to conform perfectly to mine. But so had Erica’s.

Thoughts of my late wife were always on the surface, though I was getting better at not letting them interfere with my time with Brooke. But they were there all the same, and they served as reminders of my past and the things I had said to Brooke about us not having a future together.My mind was constantly playing tug-of-war between the love I had lost and the possibility of a love I knew I couldn’t let myself have.

“You deserve your shot.” I breathed in Brooke’s sweet scent, trying to soak in our time together.

Before Brooke could respond, the doorbell rang.

Reluctantly, I let go of Brooke. “Are you expecting anyone?” I asked Eden.

She shook her head.

“Don’t peek at my painting,” I teased Brooke before walking over to the door. I opened it, and the best woman in the world immediately accosted me, hugging me and kissing my cheeks.

“My boy.”

“Mom,” I stammered, staring at Victor, who was carrying two large suitcases and wearing a sheepish grin. “I thought we decided it would be better if you visited in September.”

“That’s whatyoudecided, but it wouldn’t be summer without a trip to the lake, and I wanted to meet Brooke.” Mom pulled no punches.

That was what I was afraid of and had been trying to prevent. The nature of Brooke’s and my relationship didn’t warrant meeting the parents.

“Why are you wearing a smock?” Mom asked.

“Well ...,” I hesitated, not really wanting to own up to it. Not that Mom wouldn’t find out any second now, but I knew how she was going to react.

And find out she did. Sophie zoomed our way. “Nana! Grandpa!”

“There’s my baby.” Mom pushed me to the side and reached for the apple of her eye, her favorite person. She took Sophie’s hands and held them out, taking in every inch of her beloved granddaughter. “Look at you. You’re so beautiful and grown up and wearing a smock too.”

“We’re having a paint night with Brooke,” Sophie explained.

Mom’s eyes lit up like she’d struck gold. “Well, let’s go meet Brooke.”

I watched Mom and Sophie skip off while Victor walked in and dropped the suitcases in the entryway. He patted my shoulder. “I told her we should call, but you know how she gets,” he said fondly.

“Believe me, I know. It’s good to see you, Victor.” While he would never—and had never tried to—replace my father, he was a good man, and I was happy he was part of the family.

“You too. You might want to go save your friend,” he whispered conspiratorially.

“Don’t worry; Brooke can hold her own.” All the same, I thought I better get in there.

Victor chuckled as we walked back together.

When we arrived on the scene, Mom and Brooke were high-fiving while Mom laughed hysterically.

Eden sidled up to me to fill me in on what I’d missed. “Brooke asked to high-five her. Said she deserved it for making a human as beautiful as yourself.”

Brooke never ceased to amaze me or make me smile.

Mom looked mischievously between Brooke and me, wheels spinning behind her eyes, which looked especially refreshed. She’d probably taken a trip to a plastic surgeon while they were in Portugal, although she would never admit it. She liked to claim she was too down-to-earth to do anything like that and all she wanted to do was age gracefully. But we knew the truth—she was always on the lookout for the latest and greatest treatment.

There was nothing wrong with it. Eden and I just found it funny she would never own up to it. Especially because the treatments had paid off. Mom looked like she was in her fifties instead of her mid-sixties.

I smiled uncomfortably at Mom, hoping she wouldn’t make more out of Brooke’s and my relationship than was necessary.

“Brooke, I see you’ve met my mom, Marianne,” I said, hoping to stave off any uncomfortable topics or comments. “This is her husband, Victor.”

“It’s nice to meet you both.” Brooke’s smile said,Why didn’t you warn me your mother was coming?I hoped she didn’t think I would just spring something like this on her. Or was she worried that I wanted to go back on our deal and make our relationship more official? Not that I hadn’t thought about it, but then I would think of Erica and of Brooke’s wish to not play backup quarterback, as she put it, and I would push the thought to the back of my mind.

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