Page 22 of First Comes Marriage
“Dex, is the rig really big?” Thad asks as the women fix the kids’ plates.
“Yeah, it’s kind of like a small town that floats,” I admit, pulling out my phone. Scrolling through my pictures, I find the ones from my last job and pull them up and hand it to him, the girls huddling close. “Scroll through and you can see for yourself,” I tell the three of them.
“Wow, you have a cafeteria like at school!” Arya exclaims, her eyes shining brightly. She has such a zest for life, and I send up a prayer that she never loses her sense of wonder or her thirst for more knowledge. Then I scoff at myself because I just admittedI’m ambivalent about the whole religion aspect of life and that includes prayer.
“I think the food is marginally better,” I tease, remembering the school lunches that Brock and I ditched countless times, only to go off site and grab some fast food instead. At least on the rig, they have decent cooks who aren’t constrained by federal guidelines and bullshit like that, and I’m grateful for that fact!
“Do you only get lunch?” Anniston questions. She’s another one who has a precocious streak. In reality, despite the hand they’ve unfortunately been dealt, all three of them are good kids. I’m sure they’re still being on their best behavior and that’ll change, but maybe we’ll get lucky.
“No, the cafeteria is available twenty-four hours a day because the crew works in shifts. And sometimes, when I’m knee-deep in work, I might eat what y’all would call dinner at two in the morning. Because once I start welding, I have to see it through to a good stopping point.”
“That makes sense to me,” Jolie murmurs, “but I hate that you go so long without food.”
“Oh, I have my water bottle and several protein bars so I’m not starving,” I reply. “But I won’t eat a true meal until I’ve either finished the job or it’s safe to stop for a bit.”
“You have everything packed, mijo?” Abuela asks, finally sitting down with her own plate as Nonna and Jolie do the same. She and Nonna bow their heads and silently pray over their food, the rest of us waiting until they lift their heads and pick up their forks. “Let’s eat,” she encourages, looking at the kids.
“Yes, Abuela, I do, and Jolie was a huge help,” I admit.
Jolie looks at me and asks, “What did I do?”
“You got me a hygiene kit, so all my stuff isn’t stuffed in my duffel bag all willy-nilly,” I tell her. “You’re getting me organized.”
“I mean, your case with your work tools looks like a surgeon packed it, but you had your deodorant stuffed in a side pouch. You didn’t have any over-the-counter pain meds or bandaids just in case you hurt yourself, and who doesn’t want to have the shampoo and body wash they prefer?”
“It’s such a wifely thing to do,” I tease so I can watch her blush. It’s become one of my favorite things to see her do, if I’m being completely honest with myself.
“Well, she is your wife,” Arya states, “so it’s okay that she helped you, Dex.” She reaches over and pats my hand like I’m an imbecile or something and I hide my chuckle with a cough, so I don’t hurt her feelings.
I don’t want Jolie uncomfortable, so I change the subject and ask, “Who wants to go into town for ice cream sundaes after we eat and clean up the kitchen?”
“Can it be our new tradition?” Thad slyly asks.
Anytime we’ve introduced something new since Jolie moved in, she’s told the kids it was a new tradition for our family because those are important. I’m sure she’ll have more to add as time goes by, but so far, what we’ve implemented based on her suggestions has been met with awesome results.
“Absolutely,” I decree, grinning at them. “And we’re taking Abuela and Nonna too.”
“Ay yi yi,” Nonna sputters. “These hips don’t need any ice cream, Dex,” she mutters, giving me the stink eye.
“Nonna, I bet you could still wear your wedding dress,” I retort. Hopefully, the remediation company is able to clean the garment. What helps is it was cleaned and sealed professionally, but to be safe, they’re running it through their processes.
That’s another headache to deal with. At this point, the company has gotten all the critical items out and clothes have slowly started coming home, as well as a few other cherished mementos, but I’m of the opinion that once they’ve done all they can, rather than rebuild, maybe I should check into whether or not the fire department wants to use it as a training exercise once the garden comes in and raze the fucker to the ground. Then after cleanup, I’ll sell the land and divide the money between the four of us. It’ll be good to give the kids a nest egg once they’ve graduated, that’s for sure. I mean, they already have one because of the life insurance policies, but this might allow them to purchase their own home after they go to college or a trade school.
She grins and nods. “Fine, I’ll go with everyone.”
“It’ll be a good memory to have, that’s for sure,” Jolie replies.
“Thanks for sharing the sundae with me,” Jolie says as we get ready for bed. “I had no idea it was one that would feed two people when I ordered it.”
“That’s why I offered. I knew you hadn’t ever been in there when you ordered it,” I reply. “It’s never going to be a hardship to share something with you, Jolie.”
I watch as wonder fills her eyes and she once again blushes. “Thanks again,” she whispers before scuttling into the bathroom to do her nighttime routine. I chuckle as I get myself ready so I can slide in once she’s done and brush my teeth before sleeping.
As we settle into bed, I turn to her and say, “If anything happens to me, please promise you’ll take care of the kids and my grandmothers.”
“Hopefully nothing does, Dex, but if it ever does, they’re stuck with me. I promise,” she earnestly states.
Reaching out, I touch her cheek and tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Thanks,” I murmur. “All of y’all mean the world to me, Jolie.”
