Ever the Same (25 page)

“Oh, that’s a good view.” The pool was covered and so was the hot tub. “That might take a few days, baby girl.”

“Okay. We can play in the sprinklers until it’s ready, right?”

“You sure can. That won’t take hardly any time to make sure there’s nothing that will cut y’all.” He wanted to scoop her up and hug her. So he did.

She looked at him, so serious. “Are you going to be Daddy’s boyfriend now?”

Chapter 19

“M
R
. D
IXON
?”

“Yes, Son?” He hadn’t even known Grainger was there, the boy had been so quiet and still.

“Do you think Daddy would get some brisket too? Instead of just Popeyes?”

“I bet he would, yes.” Grainger sounded so worried, and it broke his heart. “Would you like to see my studio?”

“Is that where you played your guitar?”

“It is. I have guitars, mandolins, a banjo.” Dixon hoped that would pull Grainger out a little. “I’ll need your help, though.”

“Yessir!” Grainger hopped up, chair scraping the floor. “How do I—do you want to put your hand on my shoulder?”

“That works.” Okay. Okay, he could do this. “Do you see a door with a window in it? It leads to a little bitty walkway deal?”

“I do. If I go too fast, just say.” Grainger did well, leading him to the door.

“Okay, can you reach to unlock it?”

“Yes, sir.” He heard Grainger grunt, and then the lock clicked. They headed over to the other door, which had a number combination on it. He felt for the buttons, punched in Randi’s birthdate, and the door opened to Grainger’s gasp.

“Oh, look at all the instruments.” Grainger sounded so much happier.

“Yes. Show me my chair, and we’ll explore.”

“Over here.” To his credit, Grainger stayed slow, steady, helping him to his familiar seat.

“Rock on. So, everything’s in cases, yes?”

“There’s one guitar on a stand.”

“Oh, that’s Betty. Bring her here. Be careful-careful.”

“I will, Mr. Dixon. I like this room. The other part of the house is real pretty, but I worry I’ll touch something.”

“This is my favorite room too. I think the rest of the house is too grown up. Well, the game room is cool.” He smiled, hoping he was aiming it toward Grainger. “And, you know, if something breaks, it breaks. Can you imagine all the stuff I can break, stumbling around like a trained bear?”

Grainger giggled. “Nah. You’re way more graceful than that.”

“Ooo! Graceful, that’s a good word. Did Daddy teach you that?”

“No, sir. Auntie Grace did.”

“Ah. Yes, that makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? Go get Betty and… do you see the case that….” He fought to remember. “Do you see one that’s a color? Not black?”

“There’s one that’s dark red.” Grainger was good with him, just like Audie.

“Okay. After you get me Betty, you pull that one down for you. It’ll be a little big, but you can handle it.” He’d picked that up in a junk store, thinking Randi would learn to play one day.

“Thank you!” Grainger moved around, and he felt it when Grainger got close. “Here you go.”

“You’re welcome.” He brushed Betty off and started tuning.

He heard the scrape of a stool across the floor, heard Grainger panting, wrestling with the other case.

“Need some help?”

“I won’t drop it, I promise.” Grainger sounded out of breath, but not worried.

“I trust you.” He went back to tuning, and soon Grainger was doing the same. The kid had one hell of an ear. He wished he could see what Grainger looked like, if he resembled his dad or the unknown, to him, mom.

Maybe he’d ask Audie.

“Okay. Let’s run through some chords,” Dixon said.

“Yessir!”

They put their heads down and started playing, and it wasn’t long at all before Audie opened the door. “I’m going to take Randi and grab food. Y’all okay?”

“Grainger, you cool?”

“I’m good,” Grainger never stopped strumming.

“I’ll get brisket too, okay?” Audie said. “Don’t worry.”

“Thank you, Daddy! You rock.” Grainger sounded happy now, at peace with the world at large.

“You got it. Come on, Randi. You can pick out cupcakes at the store.”

“Bye, Daddy! I’ll get you a strawberry one.”

“Thank you.” He waved, and then he and Grainger were off, having a little jam session.

Chapter 20

When Randi
asked if he was Dixon’s boyfriend, all Audie could think to say was “yes.”

Randi grinned and hugged him and said, “Oh good” and that was that.

Audie was still a little stunned, and watching her pick out a cupcake for Dixon was not helping him get over that at all.

She talked. A lot. Like a-lot-a-lot about all the things. She didn’t even seem to care if he responded, so long as he listened.

Bless her, Audie would bet she felt a little lost. Her other Daddy seemed like a good man, one who would let her ramble. Dixon hadn’t had a lot of time to do that lately.

“What do you want me to call you, Mister Audie?”

“Well, Mister Audie seems awful formal.” Maybe he should ask Dix what he thought.

“Can I call you Uncle Audie, maybe?”

“If that works for you, honey.” In time she might just call him Audie, or maybe something less formal, but he would never force it.

“Okay. I like you, Uncle Audie. Do you think Daddy Ron would be okay about that?”

“I think he would. No one wants people to be sad forever when they pass, honey.”

“No. No. Especially not Daddy, ’cause he lost Daddy Ron and his eyes. That’s…. Dalton says it’s crappiola.”

Audie chuckled. “That’s a great word for it.”

“You make Daddy smile, though. You and me and Grainger.”

“I’m glad. Do you miss your house here a lot?” he asked.

“No. I miss having a house that’s not Granny’s.”

He could totally get that. Until he’d gotten his little place, he’d had to share with his mom, and he thought that might be why his dad did so much long-haul trucking.

“Are we moving back here?”

“I don’t know for sure. I know your daddy will need to come back here and go to school.” Audie wasn’t sure he could live in that house every day. It was so perfect.

“Yeah? With me and Grainger?”

“No, kiddo. Blind school. He might even get a dog.”

He parked in the lot at the Rudy’s and then went around to help her down out of the truck and grab her hand.

“Oh… a doggie! Can I have an orange Coke to share with Grainger?”

“Sure.” She was adorable and pretty darned easy-going, really.

They got into the line, and he scooped her up. The place was packed and those coolers were so big. Randi leaned easily against his chest, humming a little.

“Beautiful little girl.” An older woman in line just beamed, smiling at them both.

“Thank you.” He smiled back, tickled as all hell.

Randi beamed, but stayed close, letting him hold her.

“What should we get besides brisket?”

“Tatoes and turkey.”

“Okay. Then we’ll go by Popeyes and get chicken and biscuits. It will be a feast.”

“Onion rings for Daddy. Can we have puddings?”

“Sure, kiddo.” Anything they didn’t eat they’d have for leftovers.

“Thank you. Which is Grainger’s favorite? Chocolate or ’naner?”

“Banana.” Audie liked the chocolate, but he’d just have a cupcake.

“Daddy doesn’t like it at…. Oh. Oh, Uncle Audie. We have cakes.”

“We do, but we can put something away for later. We’ll be here a few days, at least.” She was a good kid. He needed to tell Dix that more often.

She squealed and kissed his cheek, just so tickled, so funny.

“Okay, it’s our turn.” He carried her to the counter. “She’s a professional,” he told the server.

“I am. I used to live here when I was a little girl.”

The lady behind the counter chuckled. “Lay it on me, then.”

Audie ordered brisket and turkey and potatoes and beans and handed over the coleslaw and the puddings. The little gal’s eyes just gleamed as she called out the order.

They got the big bag, and he had to let Randi down, holding her hand. She insisted on pickles and onions, too, so they stopped at the condiment bar.

“Now, Uncle Audie. Popeyes.”

“Right. Then home to the boys, huh? I like biscuits.”

“Uh-huh. I like honey on them. Do you think Daddy is still playing with Grainger?”

“I bet. They get to doing music, and they get lost.” He wanted to watch Dix play someday when it was just them. Maybe tonight, if Dix was up to it.

It had been kind of a long day, though. Maybe they’d wait. Audie had no idea what to do next, beyond supper.

He wasn’t even 100 percent sure how to get back to Ron’s house. He could put it into the GPS.

“Huh?” Randi had asked him something.

“The Popeyes is right there, across the street.”

“Well, darn.” He barely stopped the damn from slipping out. “Thank you.” Took some fancy driving, but he made the turn.

“You’re welcome.” She sang happily, sounding like a little bird.

He pulled into the drive-thru, humming along, knowing he was less than melodic.

He ordered chicken and onion rings and biscuits, and then headed back to the house, sipping a Sprite and singing with Randi.

They made it without the GPS too.

They headed in and, sure enough, the main house was empty. Randi pointed to the door leading out from the kitchen. “You push my birthday numbers. Daddy thinks I don’t know, but I watch. Lots.”

Lord have mercy, that little gal was smart as whip. He headed out, thankful that the door was cracked open a bit, because he wasn’t 100 percent sure whether it was a twenty-one or a twelve he would be putting in. Grainger and Dixon were playing, his boy so serious, so intent on everything Dix taught him.

“Y’all ready to eat?” he asked when they stopped for a breather a few minutes later. “Randi is setting the table.”

“Daddy! Daddy, Dix says I can learn to play the mangolind!”

“The mandolin? Cool.” He did love that sound, so he would like that, a lot.

“Dix says so. Dix says I can learn anything I want to.”

“I bet you can, then.”

“Of course he can.” Dixon handed out the guitar. “Put her away please, Son?”

“Yessir!” Grainger took the guitar like it was precious and carefully walked it to the stand.

He was so proud of his boy, at how easily he’d taken to music and to Dix.

Dixon stood, stretched. “Randi was good?”

“She was a doll.” Audie gave Grainger a hug when his boy came asking, holding the slight body tight.

“Thank you for the barbecue, Daddy.”

“You’re welcome. Thank Randi when you have your banana pudding.”

“Oooh! I’ll go help Randi.”

“Real food first, buddy.” He let Grainger go, then went to kiss Dixon hello.

“Hey you. Welcome to the studio.”

“I like it.” The space felt relaxed. Easy. Masculine.

Totally different than the rest of the house. Audie could actually breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that Dix liked things a little simpler.

“Let’s eat, huh? You’ve worked hard all day.”

“Yeah. I think we all go to bed early, huh?” He put an arm around Dixon and headed for the kitchen.

“Yeah. We might let the kids sleep in the game room, if they want. They seem worried.” Dix could hear things just as easily as Audie could see them.

“Works for me. They can camp out.”

“That’s what I thought. This place….” Dixon shook his head. “I told him we were going to have to change things. No way to stay so clean all the time.”

“Randi was getting older, huh?” Oh. Okay. He breathed deep.

“Yeah. We were reaching the point of backpacks and sleepovers. She used to be containable. I told him we were going to get leather couches and unhurtable stuff.”

“Well, we can kinda go over that, huh? The game room will be great. We can make them a tent.” Audie was so damned relieved.

“Works for…. Oh God. That smells good….”

Randi cracked up, clapping. “Fried chicken and brisket and onion rings!”

“Oh, all my favorites in one night!” Dixon smiled, the tired falling away from his face a little.