Another sorrowful laugh. “I’m home.”
He opened his eyes, patted Caleb to sit up, and reached for a pen and notebook from the coffee table. “Give me your address, I’ll get dressed and come over.”
“No, you don’t understand. I’m home. In Oregon.”
He had to process that. “Oh.” He was already calculating his bank account and vacation and leave time. He couldn’t go this week, ahead of the workshop, but he could the week after.
“I used up all my vacation time flying back and forth,” she said. “And most of my savings.”
Now he felt even guiltier. “I can’t come out this week, because there’s stuff going on at work I cannot miss. But I can fly out late Friday and stay that whole week, through the next weekend.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. Just tell me where to fly into, and I’ll book the flight. Can I stay with you, or do you want me to book a hotel room?”
“I…” She started crying. “Really?”
“Yeah, really. Ella, I swear, if I’d known about you, I would have been there. I would have taken care of you. I feel guilty as shit about all of that. But most of all, I feel guilty because maybe had I been involved in your life, maybe your mom wouldn’t have moved, and maybe she might still be alive. And I’m still trying to process all of that, but I feel fucking guilty about it.”
He could hear her openly crying now, but that was okay, because he was, too. Caleb wrapped his arms around him and held him.
“Please,” she whispered. “Please come visit.”
“Will you please stop shutting me out? Please respond to my calls and texts from now on?”
“Yeah.”
“So I book the flight into Portland, Oregon?”
“Yeah. It’s the closest big airport to me.”
“Okay. I’ll book the flights when I get off the phone with you and call you back with the info.”
“Thank you.”
“I…I’m sorry. I can’t say it enough. I want to get to know you. I want to be as involved with your life as I can be, or you’ll let me be, but I won’t force myself on you. I want you to know me, and I want to tell you about my parents. Show you pictures. Tell you stories. They would have loved you, I know they would have.”
More crying. “They…they’re dead?”
“Yeah. I’m sorry. But they would have wanted you. I don’t have any brothers or sisters. They always wanted grandchildren.”
“I’d like that. Thank you.”
“Okay. Let me get off here and I’ll call you back as soon as it’s all booked.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
He stared at his phone for a minute, leaning against Caleb.
He kissed Boyd’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Sir. This is a good thing.”
“I wish you could go with me.”
“I don’t have vacation time yet. And I shouldn’t use up my leave time. Plus I can’t afford it.”
“I can afford it. I can fly you out the next weekend. I’ll leave late Friday or early Saturday, then fly you out the next Friday and we can fly home together on Sunday. You can leave your car at the airport and we’ll ride home together.”
He turned his face to look into Caleb’s eyes. “I am going to marry you. I want her to get to know you, too. And I want you to meet her.” He kissed him. “Just say yes. Please, just say yes. To all of it. To me. To this. Please say yes. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
A sweet, perfect smile curved his lips. “Yes, Sir.”
Relief washed through him. He slanted his lips over Caleb’s. “Love you so fucking much.”
“I love you, too, Sir.”
THE END
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