“Noah?” she calls for me from downstairs. I wonder if there will ever be a time when hearing her say my name won’t cause a stirring. I duck my head and discreetly adjust my pants. My dad laughs and slaps me on my shoulder.
“I feel the same when it comes to your mom.”
Gross. Gag. Barf. No, just no. I can’t. I refuse to think of my parents doing… not gonna happen. “Right, I’m going to go bleach my ears now.” This only makes my dad laugh harder.
“He’s coming, Peyton.” Again, with another snicker.
My cheeks are instantly on fire. I can’t believe my dad, who somehow thinks my embarrassment is funny. I give myself a few moments, taking in some deep breaths to calm myself down before I head to the stairs. My breathing hitches as I see her, the woman who I’m hoping will be my wife by the end of the year, standing there looking up at me. Her dark hair is plaited and hanging over her shoulder. Her blue eyes, growing more expectant as I take each step toward her.
When I finally reach her, I lean down and kiss her softly. “I love you,” I tell her. I say these words a lot, multiple times a day because I don’t want her to forget. Not that I think she would, but I think it’s important that she knows at random times throughout her day. The words shouldn’t be reserved for when we’re parting or after making love, but for when she’s standing in the kitchen or when she’s come in from a run.
“I love you too. Are you ready?”
I nod just as my dad comes back into the room. “Peyton are you okay if I steal your groom away for a bit?”
“Dad, we are about to look at flowers.”
“You can have him,” she says. I look at her and she winks. “Between your mom and sister, I think I’ll be able to come up with a good idea. Besides, it’s not like we can’t show you later. We do know the owner,” she laughs, and I’m trying to figure out if she’s really okay going by herself. My dad hands her the keys to his car, and she waves as her and Paige head out.
“What just happened?”
“She’s giving you a reprieve.”
“I get that, but I want to go with her.”
My dad pats me on the back. “Give her some time with your mom. You can check in with her later and if you feel like you need to be there, we can go over. There’s something I want to show you.”
As much as I don’t want to agree with my dad, he’s right. He did warn me that some of the wedding planning will be done by the moms and sisters, and I just have to sit back and wait. Thing is, I want Peyton to know that I care, that it’s not just a day where I’ll show up. I want to be present in the process, right alongside her. And right now is the time, because once training starts, my time is limited.
Still, I follow my dad to his truck, even though I’d rather be with Peyton. Once we’re on the road, the drive becomes familiar and I find myself looking in the back for a cooler of beer. Sure enough, the old faded red ice box is back there. Question is, is it full?
We pull into the field where generations of parties have happened, except something’s changed. For one, the tower has been painted red and Beaumont stands out in white. However, that’s not what stands out the most. There’s a staircase leading to the top. I get out of the truck and stare dumbfounded at it.
“What the fu—”
“My thoughts exactly,” my dad says appearing next to me with the cooler in his hand. “Some kid fell last year and broke his leg. His parents tried to sue the city, so the council tried to remove the ladder altogether. A bunch of guys that I went to school with, who have kids, fought back. Saying the city was taking away a piece of our heritage. This is the answer.”
“A staircase so anyone can climb up.”
“Yep.” He nods toward the tower. I look over to find two figures waving back. “Nick and Mack are up there.”
“No shit?” My dad and Nick aren’t exactly friends, but not enemies either. I think it’s pretty stand-up of my dad to put his feelings aside so I can have a relationship with Nick.
“Come on, we have guy stuff to talk about.”
I follow my dad up the stairs. It’s nice that I’m not worrying about my life, but they defeat the purpose of having to climb a ladder to get up there. Still, the view is amazing once we’re at the top.
Mack rushes over to me and shakes my hand. I squeeze it a bit tighter than I should, sending him a message that despite the relationship I have with his dad, I am Paige’s big brother and she will always come first. There’s no secret that they have crushes on each other and I know both parents have gone to extremes to keep a tight eye on them.
Nick follows, but he and I hug. We’re as close as father and son. “Good to see you.”
“You too,” he says. Because of his coaching schedule, he doesn’t get to Portland often to see me play. He’ll make one game this upcoming season, two if he gets bounced from the playoffs, but from what my dad and Nick have been saying, Beaumont High is going to be a powerhouse this year. They have a running back similar to my uncle Mason.
“So, I feel like this is some sort of intervention,” I say as I sit down. My dad hands me a beer, one to Nick and a soda for Mack.
“Nah, just some dad time,” Nick adds. Beside me, my dad cringes and I laugh. Some things will never change.
“Noah, are you ready for the season?” Mack asks.