Kathleen continued to ignore her, turning her attention back to the notepad she was reviewing when they’d first entered the room. Dane busied herself by scanning the nearby bookshelves. None of the titles seemed familiar, so she focused on the awards, wanting to see what else Nicole was a champ in. There were so many softball things, but also tennis and school stuff.
“So, she talked you into meeting her father’s family during their one-time annual camping trip,” Kathleen said out of the blue. She didn’t take her eyes off her notepad, so it was as if she spoke to the air.
Dane couldn’t control her hard blink as she drew her hand through her short hair. “Uh…she didn’t talk me into it. I want to go.”
Kathleen glanced up and made a curious, but soft noise as she focused back on her notepad. “I never would’ve thought you’d be the type to go camping, being a city gal and all.” She didn’t look at Dane at all as she spoke.
Dane opened her mouth, but closed it. She wasn’t sure what was going on, if she was in a parallel universe or if she was being pranked somehow. Briefly, she wondered if she had fallen asleep in Nicole’s bedroom and this was a dream. What the hell do I say? What do I tell her? Come on, brain, make words!
“I want to see if camping is like sleeping in the park,” Dane replied, and then mentally slapped herself. Shit, why the fuck did I say that? I don’t want her to know I was homeless or else she’ll keep thinking I’m a gold-digger!
Kathleen arched an eyebrow as she looked up again. “Like sleeping in the park? Why would you want to make such a comparison? After all, once you go camping, then you have to go sleep in the park.”
A grimace cut through Dane’s face and she glanced away. “Uh…I covered the sleeping in the park already.”
Kathleen stared at her now, notepad forgotten and sitting on the armrest. A small frown marred her face and her chocolate eyes studied Dane, almost as if she were about to cross-examine her. Dane did her best not to squirm or gulp. She hoped those words didn’t bite her in the ass, even though she was certain it’d be hard for Kathleen to hate her any more than she did.
“You slept in the park? For how long?” Kathleen asked, sounding only curious and maybe with a hint of anger. Dane didn’t know what to make of that.
“Uh…I never calculated the days.” It was hard to figure out, even now, because of how high she was the first time.
“More than a week?”
Dane shrugged. “Uh…yeah.”
Kathleen’s gaze narrowed. “More than a month?”
“Yeah.”
Now, Kathleen frowned. “More than a year?”
Her hand sailed through her hair. “Probably around that if you add up the days.”
“So, you mean to tell me that your parents have all of that money at their disposal and they allowed their own child to sleep on the streets for almost a year?” Kathleen growled.
Dane blinked again, as she realized Kathleen was angry for her, not at her. Kathleen was outraged on her behalf. Her brain could hardly comprehend. She was dumbfounded, completely aphonic to the point she was sure Kathleen was questioning her intelligence. She nodded, if only to show she was paying attention.
“Why would they do that?” Tension tugged at Kathleen’s face, making her scowl very tight. A vein in her forehead seemed like it was about to poke out, but it wasn’t quite there yet.
Dane didn’t want to risk opening her mouth and not being able to speak. She took a deep breath and swallowed, hoping to calm herself. Maybe Nick was right. Maybe she likes me more than I thought.
“They wanted a different type of kid,” Dane managed to answer.
“So? They had you already. It’s a parents’ job to take care of their child, no matter what they wanted. They should take care of what they have,” Kathleen stated before she sucked her teeth. “Every time I think that bastard Russell couldn’t be any lower, I find out something new and unholy about him.”
Dane’s shoulders shook a little as she held in a slightly nervous laugh. “Yeah, tons of skeletons in that closet, probably. It’s okay, though. Didn’t want their help.”
Kathleen shook her head. “That’s another failure on their part then. Besides, you shouldn’t have to ask for their help. They’re your parents. They should’ve been there for you. That’s what parents do. When were you sleeping in the park and why?”
Dane took a deep breath and rubbed her forehead. “I don’t really…I don’t really want to talk about it. At least not right now. Nicole deserves those details first.” She wasn’t sure if she’d ever be able to talk about it with anyone beyond Nicole, anyway.
“Does she know what I know?” Kathleen asked.
“Yeah, she knows that much and beyond.”
Kathleen frowned and turned her attention back to her notepad. “Be careful while you’re out there camping. Raymond’s family…they’re not as welcoming as mine.”
Twisting her mouth a bit, Dane drew her eyebrows in close. “What do you mean?”
“There’s a reason I don’t go camping and it has nothing to do with bugs, dirt, or privacy.”
Kathleen then began to write on her notepad and Dane knew the conversation was over. The world returned to normal where Kathleen pretended she didn’t exist and she could breathe easy. Well, she would’ve been able to breathe easy if only Kathleen hadn’t left her curious by simply talking to her.
She wondered if this brief moment of conversation was brought on by her little gift many months ago. She had sent Kathleen and Raymond flowers and thanked them for being good parents after she had to deal with her own mother. Or maybe Kathleen noticed how happy Nicole had been for the past few months and accepted that Dane had helped bring about that emotional state. She wasn’t sure, but she was pleased she was wrong to think Kathleen completely hated her.
***
“Hey, Daddy.” Nicole greeted her father with a smile as she stepped into the garage, which was more his man cave. He’d had such a thing before they were in style. It was his section of the house that allowed him to be alone and focus on his hobbies. Her mother had the same with a little sunroom in the back of the house where she grew plants and, very rarely, crocheted and knitted.
Her parents had long ago had a wide driveway paved on the side of the house, so that was where the cars went. There was a canopy built over it for days when it rained to prevent them from getting wet while going to the car. Thinking about that, for a moment, Nicole considered how good her parents were at their jobs. They had gotten so much work done on the house over the years. It hadn’t really been something that crossed her mind, but now that Danny brought it up, she realized her parents were extraordinary, beyond being great parents.
“Hey, Nikki.” Raymond was going through one of his tool cabinets. Her father was into woodworking and building things when he had the time. He enjoyed working with his hands.
“You still looking for your camping kit?” They exchanged a brief embrace, before he went back to searching.
“Yeah.” Standing still for a second, he scanned the area. “Where’s Danny?”
“I left her with Mommy.” She jabbed her thumb behind her.
He chuckled. “You’ve made us both widowers.”
“They’ll be fine. They need to learn to get along. I want Danny to see that Mommy doesn’t hate her, and I want Mommy to stop acting like she does hate her. I mean, I know Mommy’s not a fan or anything, but I feel like if she gets to know Danny, she’ll be happy I have Danny in my life.”
Snorting, he looked at her with his mouth turned up on one side. “That’s a tall order, sweetheart. Besides, I’m sure they both realized you did that on purpose. They might react poorly if you try to shove them together.”
She shrugged. “I knew it could end badly, but I wanted to take a chance.” It was worth it if things turned out right.
He shook his head. “Danny’s first time in the house and you get her killed.”
“Well, at least I gave her the tour beforehand. I sho
wed her my room, and I told her about how you guys never let me close the door when I had company. Do you think Mommy thought I was gay when I was younger?”
Raymond was silent for a moment and, she suspected it was to make sure he didn’t make an old mistake. When Nicole took a girlfriend to her senior prom, her parents accused her of being a lesbian. They got into a huge fight, because she didn’t like the label. She knew she was still attracted to males as well as females. They were surprised when she started yelling back at them, but she couldn’t take being called something she was not. They had no idea that she put up with every name in the book at school, and she refused to be subjected to the same thing at home.
“Well, you quit dance so quickly and took to softball like a fish to water.”
“Wow, really?” Nicole asked as she drew back a little. She hoped that wasn’t the real answer. She couldn’t believe her mother was that shallow.
“I think your mom worried when she saw how touchy your softball team was. She doesn’t get sports, you know? She doesn’t get that you congratulate your teammates in certain ways. She was also concerned with the fact that you were always touching people when you were helping them with their batting stances and stuff. Hey, she was half-right.” He gave her a playful smirk.
She laughed. “You guys always taught me to help if I could, and my coaches always encouraged me to help, too. One of the great things about team sports is working together and helping each other.” It was a basic concept that she took to her heart, even now, which was one of the reasons why she used to get so rundown at work. She was a team player to a fault.
“Your mother liked that it taught you the importance of teamwork and kept you active, but she worried about your being a tomboy, of course.”
Nodding, Nicole scratched her chin. “Did it ever worry you?”
“Honestly, I preferred it when you were a teenager. When you brought a boy home, I had a panic attack. I was so scared that my little girl was growing up and might be doing womanly things. Remember when you brought Grant home and I almost passed out?” He chuckled, even though that was very accurate. He had turned so pale that it looked like someone had tossed white paint in his face. His breathing had been so bad, and he held his chest, scaring her into thinking he was having a heart attack.
“I couldn’t understand why you were so worried about Grant. He was so wonderful. He was the perfect gentleman, even when we broke up.”
Raymond sighed, shaking his head. “I don’t think you’ll ever understand unless you have a little girl who decides to grow up.”
“Is that a hint, Grandpa?” she teased.
“Grandpa?” The color drained from his face as his eyes went wide, and she laughed. “Don’t do things like that to your father, Nikki, unless you want to give me a heart attack.” He wagged his finger at her.
Nicole smiled and decided to help her father locate his camping kit. She guessed there were some things she’d never understand unless she was a parent. Hopefully, she’d get the chance, and she hoped her father was ready for it. The look on his face showed he hadn’t given much consideration to being a grandfather.
***
Dane noticed Nicole and Raymond outside by a black SUV she didn’t recognize. Nicole popped open the trunk of her car and began to move things from the car into the SUV. Dane moved to go help, but paused for a second, looking at Kathleen.
“Just remember, Raymond’s family isn’t like mine,” Kathleen said.
Dane wondered what she meant. “Yeah, I’ll keep it in mind. Sure you don’t want to come?”
Kathleen’s face twitched like something smelled bad. “Positive. This is the time I get to catch up on my own hobbies. You’ll learn. Or maybe Raymond’s family will help Nikki see what I couldn’t.”
Dane’s forehead wrinkled at that. Just when she thought Kathleen was growing to like her, she seemed to pull back. Dane decided not to think about it and trotted outside as best she could to help pack for the trip. She could only wonder what Raymond’s family was like and what Kathleen was trying to tell her.
“Need a hand?” Dane offered, as she stepped outside.
“Well, the sooner we get packed up, the sooner we get out of here,” Raymond replied.
Dane fell right into step with them. Once they were done, Kathleen came out to bid them farewell. Thankfully, she and Raymond weren’t big on public displays and parted with a simple kiss and hug. She also hugged Nicole, but pretended like Dane didn’t exist.
They climbed into the SUV with Raymond behind the wheel. Dane sat in the back, getting comfortable on tan leather seats, with her guitar next to her. She made it a point to take it with her now, not because it broke the ice, but because music was back in her life. She had to play, she had to write, and the feeling struck her at any time. She liked being ready.
“So, Danny, Nikki said this is your first time camping,” Raymond said.
“Formally, yeah,” Dane answered with a shrug.
He looked at her through the rearview mirror, arching an eyebrow briefly. “You think you’re ready for it?”
She shrugged again. “Yeah, I think I can handle it.”
She had handled everything life threw her way and with Nicole by her side she had handled even more. But, her stomach flipped, letting her know there were some doubts. As she listened to Nicole and Raymond travel memory lane from the excitement of their family trip, she thought about how she had no family traditions to share with Nicole. Last year, Nicole took her to Thanksgiving with her family and Dane was so out of touch she didn’t even know it was Thanksgiving. How many people don’t even have a Thanksgiving tradition to share with their partner? She doubted there were many and, right now, she felt like the only person on Earth like that. I’m so pathetic.
Deciding her head was a dangerous place for the moment, Dane checked in on the father-daughter conversation. If nothing else, she might learn what she was in for. She might also learn about the people that she’d meet on the trip.
“Remember when Junior almost drowned Spider to keep himself from drowning?” Nicole asked with an amused grin on her face. Raymond laughed, so it must’ve been something funny, but Dane wasn’t sure how two people almost drowning was funny. Guess you had to be there.
“I remember you were right behind them, and I had to almost snatch you out of your skin to keep you from going out in the river with them. Was it Junior’s idea that you guys were going to surf in a river?” Raymond inquired.
“Who else would get me and Spider in a river with rotting tree bark?”
“It’s a good thing your mother never came along. God, she’d have had a heart attack the first day. Imagine if she was there when you and Junior decided to climb that cliff.”
Nicole snickered. “She would’ve killed you before having the heart attack, because she would definitely blame you.”
“Thank God you didn’t get Lil involved in any of that stuff. I always thought Lil would calm you down, but you followed Junior and Web like it was in style, even when she was there,” Raymond said.
“Lilly never wanted to do all the fun stuff. We couldn’t even get her to touch stuff.”
“I love this, ‘touch stuff.’ It’s a good thing you know what poison oak looks like. You hooligans were in the woods grabbing stuff. It explains when Beth came back to camp one day, arms full of mud. ‘Oh, I think there’s treasure in here.’ Then you and the boys got all hyped up, swearing Beth had found pirate gold. Turns out it was nothing more than old pots. I hope you’ve all grown out of that!”
Nicole laughed again and Dane couldn’t help sighing. Again, she wished she had something like this to share with Nicole. She didn’t have cousins for Nicole to meet or tell interesting stories about. She could hardly share her stories with Nicole because they were mostly bad. Oh, God, they’re all going to be telling stories and times about their childhoods. What I am going to do when they ask me about mine? I’m screwed!
Chapter Five
THE RIDE WAS TH
REE hours and Raymond drove the entire way. He and Nicole spent the first hour reminiscing about past camping trips and how many times she and her cousins had almost killed themselves or almost killed their parents. Dane could hardly believe her ears. She knew Nicole hadn’t been a delicate flower as a child, but she hadn’t expected her prim and proper girlfriend to be such a wild child.
“Danny, I swear to you, all the stuff you’re hearing about happened before we were in double-digits, age-wise. We weren’t this crazy when we started to realize you don’t live forever,” Nicole said, but then Raymond laughed.
Dane wondered if Nicole was understating when their antics had stopped. How did Nicole go from crazy young person to so put together as an adult? It seemed like such a big change, and Dane couldn’t understand it. Do all people change so much from teenagers to adults? Maybe it was just the company she kept?
“Don’t let her fool you, Danny. They continued almost killing themselves well into their teens. One of the last trips we went on we had to leave early after Beth fell out of a tree onto Junior, and they both had concussions. Beth was, what, seventeen when that happened?” Raymond asked Nicole.
“Okay, so maybe we had a few minor problems every now and then as teens.” Nicole threw her hands up in defeat.
“They had problems all the way until the trips stopped. Our last one, they all almost got killed by a bear,” Raymond said. Dane’s eyes went wide at that news, especially since she hadn’t been told there might be bears around.
“Daddy!” Nicole playfully swatted at her father, but didn’t touch him since he was driving. “Now, you’re telling stories. There’s not a bear within a hundred miles of our campsite.” She turned around to look Dane in the eye and let Dane see that she was telling the absolute truth.
“Thank God for that or one of you little monkeys definitely would’ve gotten eaten. Of course, you’d have given the bear indigestion, but still,” Raymond said.
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