She opened the screen door and stepped out, reaching for my face with a tired smile. She was thinner than the last time I saw her. Her fingers were cold against my face, but her eyes told me that Mom was still somewhere inside that tiny frame. The green scarf I got her for Christmas was wrapped artfully around her head.
Mom had been diagnosed with lung cancer two years ago. She had already been through two surgeries and five rounds of chemo. Her body was frail and slowly giving out, but her spirit never broke. She was a fighter and the strongest person that I’ve ever known.
I wrapped my arms around her, squeezing her against my chest, wishing I could keep her safe if I just held her close enough. I reluctantly let her go and turned to see Red standing on the steps behind me, eyes wide. I should’ve told her about Mom’s diagnosis, but I couldn’t figure out a way to say it.
Sean bounded past her. “Hey, Mom.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek as he headed into the house. Sean had been a part of the family for years now. That is how we Collins work. Once we claim you, you’re ours for life. I just wished I could get Red to understand that. I hoped inviting her home with me would help to convince her.
After Sean disappeared, Mom, Red, and I stood awkwardly on the porch. I cleared my throat, gesturing for Red to come closer. “Mom, this is Red.”
Red shook her head at the mention of my nickname for her, extending her hand to Mom. “Alex,” she said as mom took her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Collins.
“Oh please, that makes me sound old. Call me Emma.” Mom smiled. “Well, come on in and meet everyone.”
Mom waved her fragile arm toward the door. I picked up our bags and followed Mom into the house with Red following close behind.
As soon as I stepped inside, my childhood rushed back to me. I was lucky. We weren’t rich, but we had enough. My dad owned a bar not too far from home and Mom was a second grade teacher until the cancer progressed too far for her to keep working. Dad worked a lot, but he always made it home for dinner before heading back to the bar every night.
I headed into the kitchen, walking past family photos from over the years of David and me with missing teeth, grinning like idiots. There was one with Dad, David, and me after our little league team won the regional championship. Dad was wearing his world’s best coach hat the team pulled together and bought for him and David and I were in our uniforms holding baseball gloves the size of our heads.
I didn’t realize I had stopped walking until Red said, “You were so cute. What happened?” I smiled and nudged her with my elbow. She giggled and followed me to the back porch.
The backyard looked exactly the same. Mom’s vegetable garden lined the fence on the right side of the yard and our tire swing still hung from the only tree. David and I wanted so badly to build a tree house, but the old oak tree only had one limb strong enough to carry a weight. Dad said we would break our necks and hung the tire swing as a compromise.
There was a small deck just big enough for a patio set and the grill. For years Mom tried to convince Pop to move the grill off the deck because, with a good wind, we all ended up with a face full of smoke, but he said he was the head of this family and would be damned before he was banished from the deck.
Everyone was sitting around the patio table, talking, when Red and I approached them. “Well, look who finally showed up,” David said as he slipped his arm around his girlfriend, Millie. “You were supposed to be here an hour ago.”
I held my hands up. “Don’t blame me. Sean had to pee every five minutes.”
I dropped a hand on my dad’s shoulder. “Hey there, Pop.”
He placed his giant paw over my hand and gave me an affectionate pat. Jack Collins was not a cold man, but he was not much of a hugger.
“Who do we have here?” David asked, nodding toward Red.
Everyone turned their attention toward her and her cheeks began to turn pink. I’d never seen her blush before. It was cute. It seemed to bring her entire face to life.
“This is my girlfriend, Alex,” Sean said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.
“In your dreams. I-I mean, I’m not,” she said as she fought against her natural instinct to be sarcastic.
I laughed. “Relax, Red. No one here believes anything Sean says.”
Mom came out of the house with a couple of beers. She handed them to Red and me before taking a seat on the arm of Pop’s chair. He wrapped an arm protectively around her waist, pulling her in tight against his side. Mom’s diagnosis was hard on all of us, but it was devastating to him. He hid it well, but we could see the toll her illness was taking on him.
I took a sip of my beer and started the introductions. “The big guy there is my Pop. We call him Papa Jack.” Pop nodded at Red with a smile, which she returned. “This is my brother, David, and his girlfriend, Millie.” They both smiled and waved at her. “He is older and maybe a tad wiser, but I am definitely better looking.” I winked and Red giggled, waving back at Millie and David.
We sat down, easily joining in on the conversation. After a while, Red started to loosen up and really enjoy herself. It felt right to have her here. She was easily fitting into my family’s rhythm, which was both amazing and terrifying at the same time.
We ordered pizza, ate, and laughed ‘til long after the sun went down. Papa Jack got up and lit the citronella torches surrounding the deck to keep the bugs at bay. When he was back in his seat, David got to his feet, hitting his fraternity ring on the side of his beer bottle to get everyone’s attention.
“I have an announcement to make.” He paused, waiting for all of us to get quiet. “Millie and I are getting married.” He looked happily down at Millie, who beamed back at him.
We all jumped and cheered. “It’s about time,” I said, looking at mom, who had tears in her eyes as she stood to embrace them both.
Papa Jack shook David’s hand. A smile spread wide across his face. “You don’t deserve her.”
“I know, Pop,” David said, kissing Millie’s hair.
We all took turns congratulating them, and soon Mom and Millie were heading into the house to look at Mom and Papa Jack’s wedding pictures. Papa Jack took the empty pizza boxes inside. Sean and David followed behind with plates, while Red and I gathered the empty beer bottles.
“Why does Jack think David doesn’t deserve Millie?” Red asked me, her hands full of empty bottles.
I laughed. She furrowed her brow at my reaction, looking even more confused. I grabbed another bottle and tossed it into the recycling bin just off the deck before turning to face her. “He doesn’t actually think that.”
“Then why say it?”
I looked out into the yard and did my best to explain. “When we were kids, Mom always told us that when we fall in love, we should never stop trying to be the man that she deserved. Papa Jack just likes to remind us to be that man.”
When I looked back at Red, she had tears in her eyes. The look on her face made me desperate to pull her close, but I resisted.
“I hope I can find someone to love me like that,” she said, her voice low and hoarse as she fought back the tears. I gave her a sad smile, hoping someday I could be that man.
Chapter 8
Alex (Now)
Friday afternoon, I walked into the office with an arm load of wallpaper samples and coffee. I wasn’t two steps into my office when I almost collided with Wiley.
“You’re avoiding me,” she said. She folded her arms across her chest, letting me know I was in trouble.
“No, I’m not. Madeline has me slammed with errands for tonight.” I breezed past her to drop the samples on my desk.
“This is about what I said at the bar.” She leaned a hand on my desk.
“What? Of course not.” I was getting good at playing dumb. Too bad Wiley was getting better at figuring that out.
She straightened up and let out a frustrated sigh. “Look, I get that you want to be in denial.”
I started to protest. It wasn’t denial. It was avoidance. There is a difference. She held up a hand, her fingers splashed with a deep purple paint. “I will drop it, but let me just say one more thing.” She took a deep breath. “It’s obvious you have feelings for him that extend beyond friendship.” I opened my mouth again, but she lifted her chin, warning me that she wasn’t finished. “But it’s just as obvious that he feels the same way about you.” With that, she turned on her heel and walked away.