Debt Collector's Due

The exasperated tone breaks the solemn mood, and we all chuckle. “That’s because your father was the only person I ever imagined myself walking down the aisle with.” I’m telling half-truths. I didn’t want to risk my heart a second time around. That’s why I vowed to never marry. But I had thought of being Alfie’s wife.

“So you’re in love?” Kier asks.

“There are some loves, you never truly fall out of. I’ll explain it to you more when you’re older.”

“When is this going to happen?” he asks, crossing his arms. The protective gleam in his eyes makes me want to giggle. I’ve never seen my son like this. But I kept men from around the house unless they were in the friend zone.

“Within the week. You’ll both be needing name changes so we can get you back in school and her back to working in Pharmaceuticals.”

“None of this is normal. We can’t just pretend like it is.”

“No, but we can do our best to work through it,” I say.

“Is that what we’re doing?”

“Aye, lad. It is,” Alfie says.

He studies his father with a thoughtful gaze. “Do I have to call you, Dad?”

“Not if you don’t want to.”

“Mom. I don’t know.” He shakes his head.

“We’ll figure it out as we go along. No one has the answers to his yet. We’ve all been brought together in a peculiar manner, and we’re going our best to adapt. No matter what, you’re going to be taken care of. My top priority is getting you back on track and settled in.”

“What about my friends back home, my coaches, and teams.”

“I’m sorry, Kier. Maybe you can join some here.”

“It’s not the same.” His chest is heaving, and his voice is loud and wavering. His eyes shimmer with unshed tears.

“I know baby, and I am so, so sorry.”

“That changes nothing.”

The venom he’s spewing rips my heart open. I’m metaphorically bleeding out when he steps away from me. “I want to be alone.” He storms into the room and slams the door. I rest a hand onto my stomach and take a deep breath.

“He’ll come around. We need to give him time.”

“It’s not so easy.”

“Never said it would be, just necessary. You hold on too tight, and he’ll fight you even more. I understand what it’s like to be a boy his age dealing with a lot. There was no man in me life, and I put my mother through hell. You love him, but there are things a man needs to talk to another man about. Let me ease that burden.”

I close my eyes. “I can’t lose him.”

“You won’t.”

“You can’t promise me that,” I whisper thinking of my father.

***

Alfie

Sadness has settled over the house in the past few days, and what should be a happy occasion feels more like a memorial. We’ve signed the proper documents, and soon Kier will be a Bowring. I’d give her a wedding worthy of royalty if she wanted one but now isn’t the time. Not when we’re still waiting for the phone call to come confirming Douglas’s death, and Kier is running hot and cold. I’m standing in a gray suit with a white button-up and a skinny black tie with Kier in a similar outfit at my side in front of the mantle below the ornate stain glass window letting in light. We went with a Petite wedding package at Dreamcatcher in Cornwall. The small, unique space gives an intimate vibe that suits the occasion. We’re not simply getting married. We’re properly joining our family. It’s as much a day for Kier as it is for us.

Which is why we’ve opted to do things a bit differently. The opening Notes of Dido’s Here With me begins to play, and I stand up tall as I turn to face her and I’m floored. The short-sleeved cream-colored dress flows down her body, accentuating her shapely collar bone, full breasts, slim waist, and curvy hips before it falls to the floor in an almost sheer layer. She has a textured overlay that catches the light, dazzling me with its simplicity.

Her caramel-hued skin glows, and her hair is done in big girls with tiny white flowers woven into the loose spirals. She’s like a pixie come to life as she steps into the room clutching a small bouquet of large peach-colored flowers. A sweet smile lines her full lips and my heart accelerates.