“He was shocked. You know he’s adopted. So, he has a lot of unresolved issues with that. I didn’t want to tell him, but I had to, because I’ve fallen in love with him.”
My father looked surprised to hear those words coming out of my mouth. I’d never even admitted to him that I liked anyone let alone loved someone.
He seemed to ponder my words then nodded. “I see.”
“What are you thinking?”
“Nothing.” He smiled. “Happy.”
“Yeah, well, I’m just afraid that he won’t be able to get over it.”
Papa always had the same answer for everything. “Pray to Blessed Mother. She fix.”
I normally laughed at him. I mean, this was the same man who swore to have seen the Virgin Mary’s image in a piece of toast. But on this particular day, after my father left, I went over to the statue he’d brought—the one whose primary purpose had been to protect me from Lenny—and prayed.
Later that day, I was checking Landon’s app as I normally did, and something troubling was on the screen.
It was a note that said: Landon’s Lunch Box is temporarily closed. Please check back soon for updates.
Freaking out, I picked up the phone and dialed him immediately.
“Landon, what’s going on?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why is the truck shut down?”
“It’s in transition.”
“Transition?”
“Yes. I sold it. Got a buyer unexpectedly.”
“You sold the truck? Why didn’t you tell me you were selling it?”
“I was going to tell you. I didn’t want to give you false hope until I signed on the dotted line. Today’s literally the first day it’s shut down. I wanted to make sure I had everything else in order before I told you.”
“Everything else in order? What do you mean?”
“I mean…I’m getting out of my apartment, and I have to get rid of the Range Rover.”
“What’s happening?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m moving to Michigan. But I didn’t tell you yet because it still might take a while to sell my car and close out all of my business here. But a buyer came about unexpectedly for the truck, so I had to take advantage of that while I could, since that was the biggest hurdle.”
It still hadn’t fully registered. “You’re…moving…here?”
“Did you really think I could stay out here much longer? Clearly you underestimate my need for you.”
Feeling all kinds of happy inside, I didn’t even know what to say. “I mean, of course, I hoped it would happen but—”
“How else are we gonna work on our relationship? I understand now that there’s no way you could ever move here, nor would I ever want you to now that I know about Lilith. There’s no choice. I don’t want to live without you, so I need to get off my ass and move.”
“I had no idea you were moving here so soon. In fact, I was afraid I was losing you. You’ve been a little distant lately.”
“I’m sorry if it seemed that way. I’ve been so busy trying to tie up loose ends here. And I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting. My therapist has really helped me to look at things from a different perspective. I can fill you in on the stuff I’ve learned when I get there. It’s too much to get into right now and over the phone.”
“I can’t wait to hear more about it.”
“I’ve told you this before, but I think you’d benefit from therapy, too. You can always talk to me—you know that—but it’s nice to have someone totally unbiased to help you work through shit.”
Going to formal therapy was something I’d always avoided.
“I’ll consider it. I promise.”
“I hope so.”
I changed the subject. “What will you do for work here?”
“Well, the money from the sale of the truck will help. I didn’t just sell the vehicle. It was the name and the business as a whole, the app, everything. That, along with the money from my Range Rover, is enough to keep us on our feet for a couple of years, at least.”
Us.
I’d never been part of an “us” before.
He continued, “I’ll have to figure out a way to start over. Maybe I’ll see if I can operate a truck out there, or maybe I can get a cook position somewhere. I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen in terms of work, but it’s honestly not the most important thing. I need to get out there first before I can even interview. I’ll get something. I don’t really give a fuck what it is as long as we’re together.”
His last line made me tear up.