On a bright sunny Saturday in June, there was a lot of activity at the house. Alyssa was getting Jessica ready for the youth golf tournament at the country club and collecting her gear. Debbie had already left to help get everything set up for the kids. Robert and Gini planned to watch Jessica play.
They were walking toward the club’s front entrance when Robert realized he had forgotten Gini’s dark glasses. They stopped in front, next to one of the benches that lined the sidewalk going to the door.
“Gini, sit here while I run back to the car for your glasses. I’ll be right back.”
“Be, goo. I, can, way.”
A few minutes later, two young boys came running up to the sidewalk. Gini heard their mother in the distance telling them to wait for her. They stopped in front of Gini.
“Hey… yo,” she said. Her eyes were closed.
Both boys turned toward her. The older one asked, “Are you sleeping?”
Gini giggled and opened her eyes; they soon slid closed. “No. No, have, goo, eye.”
“You talk funny.”
“Bain, dam…age. No, goo, bain.” Gini laid her hands flat with palms up toward the brothers. The younger one took her hand and sat next to her on the bench.
“Wha, name?”
“I’m Toby,” the older one said. “And that’s Jack. I’m going to win the tournament today.”
“Play… uff, gahf?”
“Yes, I’m the champion of the five- and six-year-olds.” He sat down on the other side of her.
“Jess…eek, be… uff, gah… fer.”
“Jessie Young?”
“Oh, yes, my, dah…” The rest of the word got caught in her throat, and the younger boy finished the word for her.
“You’re Jessie’s mom?” Toby asked with surprise.
Robert and their mother came walking up the drive together.
“Look at them,” she said. “Gini has them eating out of her hand.”
Robert smiled. “She’s so good with kids.”
“Robert, she’s remarkable. I remember when you first brought her to the club. No one could understand her when she talked, and now look at her, so confident and talking all the time.”
“Yeah, pretty amazing.”
“Mommy”—Toby jumped up—“this is Mrs. Young, Jessie’s mom. She has brain damage.”
“Toby,” she said quietly.
“That’s what she told us.”
“Come on, boys, we need to get inside. Good to see you again, Gini.”
“Oh, yes.”
Gini stood up, and the two boys both held her hand and led her to the door and held it for her to go in.
“Goo, luck, Toe… bee.”
“Thank you. See you later,” Toby said as they walked away.
“Nye, boyze.”
Robert kissed her on the top of her head. “They are.” He slipped her sunglasses on her face.
Jessica and her two buddies, Jason and Timmy, were in the same group playing. Timmy was a big boy with freckles and copper-orange hair. He was tall, but Jessica was a little bit taller with a lanky body, long arms and legs, and straight light brown hair. Jason was shorter and dark-haired, with strong arms. They were quite the team, and with Jessica constantly encouraging Timmy to hit hard, they won the five- and six-year-olds’ trophy.
Legotti
“Come on, babe, our car is here.”
“Papa, I’m so excited about camp this year, science and cooking. They’re going to show us how to play golf. Do you play golf?”
“No, Lizzi, I’ve never had time for such a slow game.”
“What sports do you like?”
“I was a pretty good football and baseball player when your mom and I were in high school, but that was a long time ago.”
“Was I born then?”
“No, it was a lot longer ago than seven years. More like fifteen or twenty.”
“Wow, Papa, you must be really old.”
Franco rustled his daughter’s curly locks. “Yeah, really old. Ancient, in fact.” He felt that way sometimes. Besides his daughter, he felt like most of his life was in the past. But he’d never say that to her.
He picked her up and headed to the car. She took the long braid down his back and let it run through the circle she made with her fingers like she always did. She loved her dad.
“When we get married, Papa, we’re going to have a little boy to play football.”
“Oh, babe, you can’t marry me. Remember, I’m old.”
“Papa, you’re so funny. We’ll name our boy Jason, like your son.”
Franco had no life other than his daughter. His company had prospered over the years and he had plenty of money. But life wasn’t all about wealth. He would love to have a wife, someone who loved him as much as Gini had. But he had screwed that up royally, and even though he had tried to date, the woman generally either walked out or asked him to take her home early. He’d never learned friendly social skills. Gini took care of all that when they were together; people flocked around them. He’d have to admit he was lonely, but that was totally his fault.
He squeezed his precious daughter tight. Virginia Elizabeth Legotti was the most important thing in his life. He was going to give her everything he could and try his hardest not to lose her love like he had his wife’s.
Santini
“Ric, don’t you dare hang up on me,” Janet said on her cell phone when she heard dead air. “Ahhh…” She threw the phone at the bed. It hit the nightstand, and the cover popped off. “I hate that man sometimes,” she yelled.
Ric walked up to his daughter, who was running through the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
“Daddy, who was on the phone?”
“Your mom. Come on, sweet Gins, we’d better get going so I don’t get spanked when we get home.”
“Oh, Daddy, you’re so funny.”
“You think so?” He swept her up off her feet. “Tell your mom that.”
“Mommy, we’re home.”
“Virginia, go to your room;
