As the next hour passed by, we ate, talked about Maegan, talked about Brad as a baby, looked at baby pictures, and bonded like we never had before. I sent Brad a text, letting him know things were going good.
As we left the restaurant, Carol reached for me and gave me a hug.
“Thank you, Amanda. Thank you so much. I’ve had a lovely evening. ”
I smiled and thought back to when I used to work for her. We actually had a few occasions where we got along so good and even laughed a lot.
“I’m really glad we did this, Carol. I think this will be great for Maegan to be able to know both her grandparents. But mostly, I think this will really help Brad to continue to heal and move on. He still holds onto a lot of pain and guilt. But with the baby, and now y’all coming back into his life…I think things will be even better for him. ”
She grinned and nodded her head. “I certainly hope so. ”
She gave me a kiss on the cheek, and we made plans for her and Brad’s father to come out for dinner after the new year.
Driving home I was overcome with the incredible sense that everything was as it should be. Things happen for a reason and I truly believed that for Brad to be completely free of his past addictions and fears he needed this more than any of us.
I couldn’t wait until New Year’s Eve. It was going to be a new year, new beginnings, new relationships, and a new sense of believing that my husband was the happiest he’s been in a long time.
Chapter 10: Brad
“You are officially getting your man card revoked,” Jeff said to Josh.
“Fuck you, asshole,” Josh said as he got up and grabbed another beer from the cooler and sat back down. “No one is revoking my man card. ”
“Dude, you watched The Notebook, alone,” Jeff said with a serious look.
Gunner started laughing and shook his head. “That is a good movie, I have to say. ”
Josh jumped up and pointed at Gunner. “See! Gunner watched it. Why can he watch it and it’s okay, but if I watch it, I’m a pussy and get my man card revoked. ”
I looked over at Scott’s best friend from college, Lark, who was sitting there, just taking it all in with a smile.
Jeff took in a deep breath of air and blew it out. “Gunner can watch it ’cause he’s Gunner. He’s a romantic pussy who lost his man card years ago. ”
Gunner sat up and said, “Hey!”
Lark lost it laughing, as did I. Jeff continued on with his explanation as to why Josh must lose his card.
“You, on the other hand, are not Gunner. As much as you’d like to think you’re romantic, you will never be like the master himself,” Jeff said, and pointed toward Gunner, who stood up and took a bow.
I shook my head and took a sip of water as Josh stood up to plead his case.
“Uh, excuse me, asswipe, but I kicked your asses with my song to Heather, let’s not forget that. I kick your asses every day, you just don’t know about it. I got up and went out the other morning and found wildflowers, in December mind you, and made a little bouquet and brought them up to Heather with breakfast and fresh squeezed orange juice. Then I gave her a certificate to go and get a message while I watched the kids for the afternoon. When she got home I had one of her favorite meals cooked, had the kids washed, fed and ready for bed. Don’t tell me I’m not romantic. ”
He looked around at each of us. No one said anything for a few seconds until Lark said, “Holy fucking shit. You’re whipped, dude. ” Lark threw his head back and laughed some more. We all laughed and Josh just sat there, shaking his head.
“Okay, I will say that was pretty good, Josh. ” Gunner said.
“Thank you, Gunner. I’ll just say Heather appreciated it and I was rewarded very nicely that evening. ”
“You’re still getting your man card revoked. I’m logging on when I get home,” Jeff said as he pulled out his phone. “If I thought I could get a signal, I’d log on now and do it. ”
Josh looked at him and shook his head. “Dude, are you kidding me? If you do that I’ll revoke your card. ”
“For what?”
Josh tilted his head and looked at Jeff. “Twilight?” Josh said as he winked at Jeff.
Jeff sat up and dropped his mouth open. “How do you know about that, you little fucker?”