Page 17 of Meet Me on Lilac Lane

Wow, Dad. A whole ten words. But he had a point. Cody needed to wrangle his thoughts. He was working with power tools here. He shook out the pain in his foot. Could’ve been a lot worse.

“Sorry.”

His dad grunted in reply.

“Where do you want these bigger logs?” Cody followed his dad’s pointing finger and started a stack of firewood near the back of the house.

The mid-May sun pushed its way through the cloud cover, mottling the ground where it fell. Cody’s work boots squished through the muddy grass, sending up the musky, earthy scent of spring. The yard probably would have dried out by now if they hadn’t had a rash of storms for the past week.

His parents had lived in the single-story rambler since before he and his sister, Lily, were born. The house in the north end of the Driftwood Hills neighborhood had been the first big purchase his parents had made after getting married. His dad always talked about buying one that was bigger, fancier, but Cody’s mom resisted, insisting that she loved the house and the quiet neighborhood.

He dragged another branch from the downed tree and laid it on the pile next to the firepit. That pit hadn’t seen much use in the past few years, but before that, they’d had a bonfire party every weekend. Those parties saw the whole neighborhood turning up at one point or another, adults and teens and kids.

Some of the best times of Cody’s life happened right here by the firepit, laughing with Troy, teasing Mia, and horsing around with their other classmates. Usually around ten, the adults would drift off, back to their homes and beds, but the teens stayed much longer until they too followed their parents home. Then it was just the three musketeers: Troy, Mia, and him. “Hey, Dad, remember those bonfires we used to have?” But before he could finish his thought, the chainsaw revved and whined as Dad chopped another piece off the fallen log. The smell of sawdust lingered in the air.

A breeze picked up, sending a shiver down his spine.

The back door opened and his mom came out, wrapping a sweater tightly across her chest. Her salt and pepper hair was held back from her face with a pair of clips, softening the fine lines around her eyes. Picking her way around the tree debris, she halted next to Dad.

“You’re making good progress out here,” she said during a break in the chainsaw’s activity. His dad grunted again. She turned to Cody.Talk to him, she mouthed. “I’ll leave you to it.” She leaned over and kissed Dad on the cheek then rubbed a circle on his back. He gave her a swift smile before turning back to his task. She gave him one last pat before returning to the house.

Cody rubbed at the sudden ache in his chest. For all his dad’s faults, Cody never doubted his love for his wife. The two of them shared a bond that seemed to get even stronger after almost thirty years of marriage.

“Mom says Lily is coming home in a couple of weeks,” Cody said to his father’s back.

“Yep.” His dad tossed a log aside.

Cody picked it up and moved it to the pile. “Will you be picking her up at the airport here?” The island boasted a small airport, mainly used as an air ferry stop.

“Yep.”

“Is she staying long?”

“A week.”

Okay, then.I tried, Mom. How was he supposed to talk to his dad about buying the business if his dad wouldn’t even talk to him about something as mundane as his sister coming home?

The back door opened again. Mom came out carrying two steaming mugs. “I brought coffee!” She handed them each a cup. “And I have a request. Can you cut me some pieces like this?” She pulled her phone from her pocket and swiped to the internet browser. Pictured were several pieces of paper birch, each with a small hole cut in the top. “It’s a candle holder,” she explained. “I thought it would look cute on the mantle. I’ll take care of the details, but if you could cut a few pieces of different lengths and sizes? I need a creative outlet since I’m not doing as many cakes or any fudge right now.” She put her phone away then massaged a few knuckles on her left hand.

“Will do,” Dad said. “How many you want? There’s five in that picture.”

“You should probably cut some extra in case I mess up the first ones. Maybe nine or ten.”

Dad nodded and the group fell silent.

“How is your boat project coming, Cody?” Mom asked, her eyes wide with innocence. Dad stiffened. Cody could almost feel the cool breeze coming off his dad’s cold shoulder.

“Slow but steady.” Cody resisted the urge to run his hand through his hair. That nervous habit would scream his lack of confidence.

“It worked for the tortoise.” His mom winked at him. Then she inclined her head toward Dad in a short, swift motion. If Cody had blinked, he would have missed it.

What did he have to lose? It seemed like it was now or never. Dad already wasn’t speaking to him. “Have you given any more thought to me buying you out, Dad? With the money I’m earning from the town, I’ll have the full amount by the end of the summer.”

The wind chose that moment to quit blowing, and everything around them stilled.

“I told you no before, and that’s still my answer. Nothing to think about. It was never about the money.” Dad handed his empty cup back to Mom and picked up the chainsaw again.

“But why? I don’t understand.”

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