Afterthoughts: A Charity McAdams Novella (The Charity McAdams Novellas) by Elizabeth Storme Page B

known anyone with cancer. My grandparents are still around and, while aging, they are fairly healthy. It’s hard to imagine the prospect of losing them, let alone one of my parents.
    “So, everyone is at my parents’ house to help out and be there for support. I really appreciate that they are all there but it was feeling a little claustrophobic. I just needed to get out for a while.”
    “When is the surgery?” I ask after a pause.
    “Next week.”
    “Wow. I’m so sorry that this is happ ening . You know how much I love your family. ” I pause, trying to push away all the memories that are threatening to swallow me whole. “ Your mom is strong though, if anyone can make it through this, you know that she can,” I offer with a slight smile and a squeeze of his hands.
    “Yeah, I know. She will,” he agrees, returning my sad smile. “She has to.”
    A long silence stretches out, both of us lost in our own thoughts. Brandon is staring off into space, his eyes are dry now but red and he looks tired. I imagine he didn’t get a whole lot of sleep last night either and then had to deal with an emotional bomb on top of that. His hand is warm and comforting and I don’t want to let go.
    I realize that lost in the moment , I had dropped Maci’s leash but when I look back toward the pond I can see her laying at the edge of the water. The ducks seem to have gone back to their nests for the night. The sky is overcast and rapidly getting dark. I have no idea what time Ashley is supposed to get back but I know I need to get Maci back home and try to wash her off a little so that Ashley doesn’ t have to deal with a dirty dog when she has a big jewelry project already looming over her.
    As if reading my thoughts, Brandon stands, and pulls me up from the bench. “ I guess you probably need to get the little troublemaker home.”
    He snaps in Maci’s direction and she leaps up to run to his side. He pets her head and scratches at her ears.
    I smile at the way M aci is relishing the attention.
    “Yeah, probably should clean her up a little too, or Ash will kill me,” I agree, reluctantly. “What about you? Are you going to go back to your parents?”
    He shakes his head. “No, they’re going over to my aunt and uncles house for the rest of the night. They have some game night thing they do . My brothers are with them too. They invited me to go too but I said I’d wait and come back over tomorrow. It just feels weird how they can go on like nothing is happening.”
    “Well, they’ve had more time to adjust to the news. I imagine, in some way, it helps to continue to live a normal life,” I suggest.
    Brandon nods. “Yeah. So, I don’t know. I guess I’ll get some dinner and go back to my room at the inn . Maybe catch up on the news. Is Little Ricky’s still open? ” He asks, referring to a hole in the wall Italian place that we used to go to in the next town over.
    The image of him sitting alone in a hotel room , with a plastic container of cold spaghetti , watching the nightly news is more than I can handle. “You can’t go to Little Ricky’s, come over to my place. I’ll make us something.”
    The invitation seems to surprise him just as much as it surprises me.
    “ Really? That sounds perfect,” he says , with a genuine smile that both warms, and breaks, my heart.

Chapter Ten
    I try to keep calm as we walk to Ashley’s house. Brandon has the leash and Maci is trotting along after him, quite contentedly. I smile at her, wishing I felt as relaxed as she looks. I probably look like I’m fine but everything inside me feels like a wound up jack in the box that could spring at any time.
    An awkward silence has settled between us as we walk. I figure he doesn’t want to talk about his mom and I don’t want to talk about us.
    “So, uh, do you like living in California?” Must seem pretty gloomy being back here with the cold and all,” I ask.
    “It’s ok. I think some things are better than I expected