“All the time. Most of my nightmares are staged in that house, and I have one recurring dream which takes place in my old bedroom.” I started shuffling uncomfortably in the chair and he straightened his back.
“We can stop this conversation if it’s making you uncomfortable. But we’ll need to revisit the issue another time, kiddo.”
I exhaled a long breath of relief. Thank God he wasn’t going to interfere with my good mood by wanting to talk about my family. “Is it too warm here for the leaves to change colors, Daddy? My favorite autumn scenery is in the rolling hills of West Virginia.”
“Hmm. Let me think. If we venture out a little farther than Austin, you can see ancient oaks and cedar trees turning from green to rich gold.”
“Really? I’d love to see that.”
Now he was on the edge of his seat with excitement. “When the time is right, we can take a hike on Mount Bonnell and check out the Austin skyline over the Pennybacker Bridge, or we can travel to the vineyards in hill country. But if you really want to see the foliage close up, we’ll need to head to McKinney Falls State Park when the leaves are changing colors. Like I said, the autumn season may be short here, but it’s still one of the most glorious times to see the city!”
“How about drive-in movies? When I was a kid, my friends always talked about going to an outdoor movie screen with their parents. And they went in their pajamas!”
“Have you ever been?”
My eyes opened wide in an overly dramatic fashion. “No way! My dad was afraid someone would scratch his precious car. Malls and drive-in movie theaters were off limits.”
“Surely you saw indoor movies on the big screen?”
I nodded with reluctance. “My friend’s parents took me to a movie once. After that, I had to wait until I was old enough to get there by bus. I took my first bus ride by myself when I was ten years old.”
“Your parents let you travel on a bus alone as a child?”
“Are you kidding? They encouraged it.”
His expression was one of utter disbelief. “Okay, that does it. I’m going to conjure up a long list of fun fall activities for us to do together.”
“Can you do it now, Daddy?
“Hmm. First, we’ll go to a Texas Longhorns football game, and then I’ll make plans for us to visit a pumpkin patch. Of course, we should take in a movie at the local drive-in theatre before Halloween because I’m sure there are some great films already scheduled for the haunted holiday.”
“But not too scary, right?”
“Naturally, we’ll avoid any of the Poltergeist sequels,” he deadpanned.
After musing over all the fun events, I decided to switch the channel and ask him a serious question. “Have you talked to Jake since our cookout?”
“I talk with him occasionally—but our conversations have been brief.”
“Do you think he’ll ever accept the idea that we’re in love?”
John crossed one leg over the other and sighed. “He evidently needed a break to sort out his feelings. But it’s been a while since we’ve seen him, so maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea for you to extend the olive branch.”
“You think I should invite him to come over? Doesn’t he view me as the interloper?”
“No, but he probably views you as his fault,” he joked, laughing softly. “Remember, it was his idea that you come and stay with me for a week.”
“Is this your attempt at comedy, Daddy?”
“Aren’t you the one who wanted me to have a sense of humor?”
Inhaling a cleansing breath, I considered what he had to say about reaching out to Jake. After all, John did receive a master’s degree in psychology. “Okay, I’ll call him.”
