“I don’t mind kids. I still hope to have a couple of my own before all is said and done.”
“Life comes at you fast, and all of a sudden, you’re staring down forty,” Mac said.
“When will you hit the big four-oh?” Morgan asked.
“February. What about you?”
“May.”
“I’m the year after,” Grant said. “And I can’t believe it.”
“You’re getting a late start with kids,” Morgan said, “as I would be as well.”
“That’s okay,” Grant said. “I wasn’t ready before now, so the timing is perfect for me.”
“Good way to look at it,” Morgan said.
“Do you have a candidate in mind to mother these children of yours?” Mac asked.
“You already know I’m seeing Sierra, because you saw us together the other night.”
“He wants details,” Grant said. “That’s why he asked you.”
Morgan laughed. “I see how it is.”
“Mac is the biggest gossip on the entire island,” Grant said. “If there’s a scoop to be had, he sniffs it out.”
“Whose idea was it to invite Grant?” Mac asked.
“I believe it was yours,” Morgan said.
“Big mistake,” Mac said. “Anyway, about Sierra…”
The other two laughed.
“I rest my case,” Grant said.
“Sierra is amazing, and we’re having a great time. But I’ve been wrestling with the push-pull of making a life here and going back to the one I have on the mainland. I have a kick-ass job, and the boss wants me back. I’ve been trying to picture myself here full time after spending my entire childhood trying to get the fuck out of here.”
“I feel that so hard,” Mac said. “That was me, too, as you know.”
“I remember how much you hated being trapped here.”
“If it helps you at all, I never feel trapped here anymore. I have everything I could ever want right here, and as an adult, I can leave any time I want. But I go months without going anywhere, and I’m completely fine with that. I have my wife, our kids, our extended families, tons of friends, satisfying work that keeps me so busy, I barely have time to breathe. What else is there, you know?”
“For what it’s worth, I feel the same way,” Grant said. “When we get back here in the spring, we rarely leave until we go to California for the winter. And after a couple of months there, we can’t wait to come home and see everyone. Once our child is in school, we’ll be here full time, too, and that’s fine with us.”
“You guys have given me a lot to think about,” Morgan said. “I appreciate you taking the time.”
“Always a pleasure to catch up with an old friend,” Mac said. “Impartially speaking, I sure as hell hope you decide to stay. I can keep you busy for years.”
“Helps to know there’d be work in addition to the gym. As much as I love that place, it’s not my calling, you know?”
“Yeah,” Grant said, “it was Billy’s thing, but everyone is thankful you’re keeping it open.”
“That’s the plan.”
Mac downed the last of his beer and signaled Jace to cash out. “I hate to drink and run, but my wife is alone with five kids, and the sooner I get home, the better.”
