“I have, actually,” he replied. “My family and I have done several. We’ve cruised to the Bahamas, Mexico, and the Caribbean. A couple of years ago, my folks did an Alaska cruise. I would have loved to go with them because Alaska is a bucket-list destination for me.”
“Why didn’t you go?” Gammy asked.
“For starters, it was their anniversary, and they didn’t invite any of the kids or grandkids, and I couldn’t take the time off from the pub even if they had.”
Willow saw him squirm in his seat and wondered why.
“No backup bartenders?” her father asked, and she wanted to slug him. Why was he fixating on what Levi did for a living? Why couldn’t he just be normal and look at him as a person and not a profession?
“There was a…um…a change in management around that time, and it wouldn’t have been right for me to take off. I’ve been there the longest, so…”
“That’s very commendable, Levi,” Gammy gushed. “So many young people don’t have any real commitments to their jobs. If they’re not the boss, then they just don’t care. Such a shame.” And with a tsking sound, she took a sip of her tea.
The oven timer went off and Willow jumped to her feet, thankful for the distraction. They had a wonderful frittata baking, and it was the last item they needed before serving. She put the oven mitts on her hands and felt Levi come up beside her. “I’ve got this,” she said softly, blushing at his heated gaze.
“Nonsense. You don’t need to do everything yourself. I’m here to help.”
“And I appreciate it.” Pausing, she went and pulled the frittata from the oven and placed it in its warming basket. “But I know you’re just trying to get away from the table.”
“Was it that obvious?”
“Only to me.” She kissed him on the cheek. “And Gammy, probably. No biggie.”
Together they worked to put the rest of the buffet on the table–muffins, chocolate croissants, bagels, assorted cream cheeses, butter, breakfast sausage, and the frittata. It was way more food than five people could possibly eat, but it was all Gammy’s favorites. When the last plate was set, Willow straightened and smiled. “Hope everyone’s hungry!”
Luckily, after that, the conversation turned toward Gammy’s Mahjong group and local retirement community gossip. Then it went to the new golf cart she wanted to upgrade to. After that topic was exhausted, her parents talked about what was new with Willow’s siblings and that eventually led to what was new with them in Seattle. It was only a matter of time before all eyes were on her.
Awesome.
Now would be the perfect time for her to spill something or maybe choke on a muffin, but for the first time in her life, she was getting through a meal without incident.
Seriously, Universe?? You couldn’t have helped me out when I fell on my face in front of Levi? Or when I fell off the stage in my third-grade play and showed the whole school my Little Mermaid underpants??
“You know, Willow,” her mother began, “we just moved into a larger office space and have several offices for you to choose from. Fully furnished.”
She studied the muffin on her plate for a few moments, mentally counted to ten, and prayed for patience all before raising her head and giving her mother a serene smile. “Thank you for the offer, but I’m still not interested in moving to Seattle or joining the practice. I’m sure you’ll have plenty of candidates to rent out the space to.”
“Willow,” her father chimed in with a much less pleasant tone than her mother. “We’ve tried to be patient with you. It’s time for you to stop being difficult and settle into a career. You can’t keep being irresponsible!”
“Paul,” Gammy interrupted. “Now is not the time…”
“Mother, this isn’t a damn Norman Rockwell painting. We all fawned all over you yesterday and most of the morning. Five minutes of talking about how your granddaughter is behaving like an ungrateful child isn’t going to hurt anyone.”
Um…really? Because I’m kind of hurt…
“With all due respect, Mr. Andrews,” Levi said evenly, but Willow immediately stopped him.
“It’s okay, Levi. I got this.” Then she looked at her father. “How exactly am I being irresponsible or ungrateful? I’m not asking you to help support me, nor have I been disrespectful toward either you or mom. I’ve never lied to you; I never wanted to go into psychology. I said I wanted to work with children and you pushed for child psychology rather than letting me go into early childhood education or…or…anything that I wanted to do! Did Gammy force you into psychology?”
“That’s not the point…”
“Actually, Paul,” Gammy said, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest. “Willow has a very good and valid point. If you’ll remember, you getting a psychology degree was not what I wanted for you.”
“Yes, I know, Mother, but if it were up to you, I would have gone to clown college or majored in basket weaving. The only thing you were vocal about was…” He stopped mid-sentence as if he realized what he was saying.
Gammy’s smile was a little smug as she stared at her son. “The only thing I was vocal about was finding your passion because without it, a degree was worthless.”
Willow was fairly certain her jaw was on the floor and as her father stood and excused himself, she had to wonder what was going to happen from here.
They all watched as he stalked across the room, out to the lanai, and then out to the backyard. She was about to get up and follow, but again, Levi beat her to it. He bent and kissed her on the cheek and whispered, “Don’t worry. I got this one.”
Once the back door closed a second time, Gammy clapped her hands together and reached for a chocolate croissant. “So, Marilyn, how are the beds at that hotel you’re staying at? Good
