Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 100301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
“I’m fine,” she replied.
We sat down in the chairs across from her, Ian and me on either side of David.
David cleared his throat. “You asked if I love them both, and I do—very much. It might not be traditional, and it might be hard to understand, but it’s true. I told them both there’s no limit to how much love we can feel. How much I love my mom, my sister, doesn’t mean I have less love to give them, just as your love for your daughter didn’t mean you had less for Jordan.”
“I know that,” she snapped. “You’re too old. He has a whole life ahead of him, dreams to make come true. I lost my daughter… I can’t…”
“Granny.” I moved close to her, sat on the arm of the couch and hugged her. “I love you. You’re not going to lose me.”
“You’re right,” David said, surprising me.
“David…?” He shook his head, and I stopped.
“I might be too old for him. And this world can be an ugly place. A man loving a man is hard enough, much less three loving each other, but he’s… He makes us smile when nothing else can. He’s full of light and happiness that we both soak in. I’m sure you know that about him. He’s special. We see that. We love him for it. If it’s hard, we’ll be there for him. If he changes his dream a hundred times, I’ll support him, and if he decides I’m not what he wants, I’ll let him go, but it should be his choice, shouldn’t it? Jordan is smart. He knows what he wants. All we can do is trust him.”
She looked at me then, her eyes watering. “I trust you. I love you, Jordan.”
I wiped my eyes. “I know, Granny.”
“And you love them, you really love both of them?”
“Yes.”
“You’re happy?”
I nodded. “I am. And I want to bake. I know it sounds silly, but it makes me happy, doing that for people. I want to have my own bakery one day. And I want what other people have. I don’t care if it’s with two men. I want to marry them, and I want to have you and David’s family over. He’ll cook dinner, and I’ll make dessert. I want Ian to watch Golden Girls with you and know how awesome it is to have a granny like you. I want you to see how well David loves us and takes care of us, that he would never ask us to do something we didn’t want to do, and he would never try to change who we are. I want us to celebrate holidays together, and we’ll laugh and love each other and be…happy. I lost Mom when she chose someone else over us, and I can’t… I can’t lose you too.”
“No, sweet boy. You’ll never lose me.”
Granny and I hugged and cried. Ian and Daddy gave us time together. We talked some more, and I knew she was trying. Things weren’t magically better, but she saw I was happy, that this was what I wanted, and that I needed her too.
We had lunch together, and she asked David about work, and Ian told her about the house he was remodeling and how he hoped to turn that into a career.
She asked about Ian’s family, and he told her, and when his voice cracked, David was there, supporting him, and I was too. Granny saw this, then looked at me and smiled.
It would take some getting used to, I was sure, but we were all in it together.
When it was time for her to leave, I walked her out.
“I can see it,” she admitted. “The love between the three of you.”
“Thank you.” I cried all over again, hugging her.
“I’m proud of you, Jordan, and I love you.”
When she left, I went to them, and they were there, waiting.
We came together, mouths, tongues, hands, and bodies, wanting, loving, happy.
Whole.
EPILOGUE
David
One Year Later
“Happy birthday, old man,” Granny said to me as she made her way into the backyard.
“Always a pleasure to see you, old woman.”
She swatted my arm playfully before giving me a hug.
It had been an interesting year, to say the least. Things hadn’t changed between us overnight, but I’d worked hard to prove myself to her, to show her I loved her grandson and that all I wanted was his happiness. I didn’t give up easily and was good at getting my way. Eventually she’d come around, and she and I were actually quite close, even if she did tease me relentlessly about being old. The thing was, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Next to arrive was Peyton. “Hi. Sorry. I had to park down the street. I wanted to let Granny out in front.”
Peyton was still incredibly close with Ian, who’d really wanted to help them. When the first rental had been ready, we’d offered it to them, though Ian was worried about Peyton because they didn’t want to live alone.