Super Seven Ch. 08

"I know. I feel it, too. Last night hurt more than I can possibly ever imagine. But it's nothing compared to what I think I'd feel if I lost you."

"Losing Mary broke my heart. Losing the kids nearly killed me. How I survived, I still don't know. Finding you has healed me in ways I could never imagine. Regardless of what your dad said, this is right. We belong together. I love the other girls so much, but that's my bonus. You are my reason to live."

Allison looked deeply into his eyes, tearing up as she did. Nothing more needed to be said. They touched foreheads again. After another minute, they kissed and then pulled back slightly.

Greg broke the silence. "We better head back before they send out a search party for us."

"Knowing the girls, they probably think we're making love again."

"As nice as that sounds, I'm pretty sure my mom will be heading this way shortly to find out why we're hiding."

Allison giggled, "Well, we could give her a shock."

"Remember, you have to live with her now. Do you really think she won't be teasing you unmercifully is she caught us doing something?"

"Good point. Time to head back." They headed back up the path.

As they emerged from the woods back into the main yard, Debbie was twenty feet away. "Well, you couldn't have been doing that much. You haven't been gone long enough."

Allison laughed loudly.

"What?"

"Greg said you would tease us, and you did."

Debbie confidently said, "That's what good mothers do. They keep their children on their toes."

Debbie squeezed in between them taking both their arms. "Time to head back."

Greg was a little shocked at the transformation of his deck and patio. He normally had a single table with four chairs. Now there was another three tables and seven more chairs. "Where did the extra furniture come from?"

Bill replied, "Carol and I brought them. Between us and one of our neighbors, we got it covered." With a wink, he added, "Of course, with this crowd, you might want to invest in more for yourself."

"Fair point. I hadn't really thought that far ahead yet."

Liz then unexpectedly whistled very loudly. "Alright, everybody, we've got enough food for a small army here. We've got brisket, pulled pork, and chicken. There's baked beans, mac and cheese, and coleslaw. Debbie brought corn casserole, and Carol brought apple and cherry pies for desert. Let's fill our plates and dig in."

Everybody excitedly filled their plates and the conversation was very animated. Greg really sat back and listened. This was mainly so Debbie, Bill, and Carol could get to know the girls better. They talked about families and school and the girls' plans for the future.

Every now and then someone would get up to refill their plate with something from the spread Liz laid out. Lots of compliments were given about the smoked meats. Bill was truly impressed and talked to Liz about her plans for the future.

"Do you want to open a restaurant someday or maybe a food truck?"

"Honestly, I've dreamed of both, but I really haven't done any research on either. At this point, I've really been concentrating on perfecting my cooking."

"Maybe I can help. I have a little experience writing business plans."

"Really? That would be so great."

"Well, I don't know if we'll be able to make it work yet. After all, you're still pretty young and inexperienced." He could see a cloud of disappointment appear in her eyes. He was quick to add, "That's not necessarily a cause for rejection. It's just another obstacle we would have to consider, but based on what I'm tasting, I think you have a real chance at succeeding."

Liz glanced in Greg's direction and saw a look of joy and pride on his face. She looked around the patio at the others, seeing tons of support in the smiles and nodding heads.

"Okay, let's get together soon to make some plans."

Someone was frequently getting up to get a little more food. The one thing they didn't eat was the pie. Everybody basically decided they wanted to save it for later in the afternoon. Once everyone was stuffed, they started the cleanup process. Again, Liz was prepared. She pulled out a huge supply of deli-style plastic storage containers and a few sharpies. She put them on the end of the tables that contained the food, pointed out that there was still enough food to feed a small army, and instructed everyone to get what leftovers they wanted, reminding them that Greg didn't have the space or desire to keep all of this for himself. They needed to fix their containers, put their names on them, and remember to take them home.

Quite a few voices said nearly simultaneously, "Yes, ma'am," followed by a few giggles.

"Ha, ha, very funny."

Greg's mom threw in, "You're going to be great in the kitchen, throwing orders to your staff like any great chef."

Liz blushed slightly, "Thank you."

Debbie gave her a quick hug, "You're very welcome, my dear." She then looked at the others, "Now, let's get this cleaned up quickly. I need a little bit of a walk after all this great food or I'm never going to be able to eat pie latter."

Everyone agreed, and with so many hands, they quickly accomplished it. Food was put away, and the dishes were carried back into Greg's kitchen and washed. Liz's smoker was still too warm to move, but all of the rest of her equipment was cleaned, packed up, and put back into her dad's truck. They left the tables and chairs, knowing they'd still need them later.

Before they knew it, they were heading out across Greg's huge back yard as one large group, just heading in a circle around the property. Shortly, the group divided into smaller groups, constantly changing. Every now and then, Bill, Carol, or Debbie would grab one of the girls to talk a little more privately. After a while, Greg stepped back onto the patio to sit in one of his chairs so he could just watch what was going on.

His observations picked up on multiple things. First, Brianna was much more animated as she was talking and joking with the other girls. Second, his mother and Allison seemed to be talking quite a bit. Based on the fact that Allison seemed to be struggling with her emotions, Greg felt that they were planning how to get Allison's stuff from her parents. Finally, and this one was the most puzzling to Greg, Bill and Carol both seemed to spend quite a lot of time with Kim. It started with Carol one on one with Kim. Then Bill popped in for a few minutes, leaving Carol to move on to chat with Sarah and Mia. A few minutes after that, Catie and Brianna joined Bill and Kim. The only one not really talking much was Liz. She wandered over to one of Greg's Adirondack chair looking like she needed a nap. Greg thought she probably did after cooking off an on all night. He realized he would need to give her some extra special pampering that evening to thank her for what she put together.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Greg looked up to see Allison standing beside his chair. "Hello, love. I thought you were talking to my mom."

"We were, but we think we have a plan now." She hesitated, "I hope."

Greg pulled her into his lap, "Don't worry, my love. One way or another, everything will work out."

"As long as we're together, I believe you're right."

They sat quietly together for several minutes. "So what are you thinking about?"

"I'm not really. I'm just watching everyone wander around and talk."

They continued to sit and cuddle. Another half hour passed. Allison slid off Greg's lap. "I'm going to check on Liz. I think she's worn out." She gave him a quick kiss and moved away.

Greg just smiled as she did. He looked around the yard and was even more puzzled. Bill and Carol had moved off by themselves holding hands and clearly talking about something serious. Although he was positive it was about something involving the last 20 hours or so, he couldn't for the life of him figure out why it would require them to talk privately. He didn't want to worry, and yet it did trouble him. They had been such an important part of his life the last few years. Like any child (even an son-in-law), he sought their approval. It worried him that maybe they didn't approve of some part of this.

It looked like Bill asked her a question. Carol nodded. Then she asked him a question. He nodded. They smiled and hugged each other tightly for three or four minutes. They then moved quickly toward the group of girls on the other side of the yard. Greg couldn't hear what the girls were saying, but after Sarah said something, they all laughed.

Bill walked up to Kim, and said something. She nodded, took his hand and walked with him and Carol off to the side. They talked for a few minutes before Kim burst into tears, and collapsed to her knees. Bill and Carol joined her in a group hug. Greg leapt up so quickly his chair flew backyards, as he sprinted across the yard. Allison saw him running, not understanding what had gotten into him. She looked over the tableau of Bill, Carol and Kim hugging and crying, and took off as well. The other girls then reacted in much the same way, all arriving at the same time.

Greg was barely ahead of them, "Kim, what's wrong?"

She was crying so hard, no one could understand a thing.

Bill tried to stand, but Kim clung to him hard. He turned to her, "It's okay, Sweetheart, I'm not going anywhere. But you've got to let me tell everyone what we've decided."

She nodded her head, and then buried her face into his chest.

"Well, Carol and I have done a little talking this afternoon. You know that there's been a hole in our hearts ever since that day we lost our little girl. We never believed that we could feel that love again. But today, we met all of you, and we feel the love that's in this group, and it's helping us believe healing is possible." He paused, lowered his head for a second, then kissed Kim on top of her head. "But then Carol and I realized we weren't the only ones that needed healing in terms of the whole parent/child relationship thing. Just like we have a child-sized hole in our hearts, Kim has a parents-sized hole in hers. So we just asked her if we could adopt her, and be her parents. What brought you all running was her acceptance."

Mia was the first to react, "Wait, is that even legal?"

Bill nodded his head. "I know a family from our church that adopted an adult. It's actually surprisingly easy. Because Kim is a legal adult, she doesn't need anybody's permission. It's totally her choice. We know we can give her the love and stability she needs, just as she will give us the love and, to be honest, a reason for us to feel like we're needed."

Greg shook his head a little, stunned, almost like he needed to clear the cobwebs, "Of course, you're needed."

Bill and Carol both teared up. "We know we're needed, but when you lose your child, and your grandchildren so suddenly, some days you struggle to find a reason to get out bed, to have a reason to make life meaningful. It just plain hurts every damn day knowing that your child will never be there again to say 'Dad, can you help me with this?' You know?"

By that point, everyone was trying to wipe away the tears.

Kim raised her head up and kissed Bill on the cheek, "You can't imagine how many millions of times I've wanted to say those very words."

"Oh, yes, Sweetheart, I can imagine the pain you've felt wanting to say those very words, and I promise you, for the rest of our lives, we will do everything we can to help you."

Carol had been quietly joined with them in the hug. "Today, you'll go home with us. Monday, Bill will start working on the legal stuff."

"Can I call you Mom and Dad?"

"We'd be very disappointed if you didn't, Sweetheart."

Debbie thought maybe it was time to bring everybody back to earth a little. "You know, we never did get to eat Carol's pies. Sounds like the perfect way to celebrate."

Everyone agreed, and they moved back up to the patio. The pies were delicious, and they had a good time joking and laughing again. This time, they didn't drag the conversation out. They finished the last of their clean-up, loaded the tables and chairs into Bill' truck, and hooked up Liz's trailer.

She gave Greg a quick kiss. "I'm going to run this home real quick. I'm pretty sure my dad is anxiously wanting his truck back. I'll be back in a hour."

"Ok, dear. I think we can skip dinner tonight. I think we both need to just relax and cuddle. What do you say?"

"I think that sounds perfect. See you soon."

"Be careful, and hurry back."

The other girls, Bill, Carol, and Debbie all made their goodbyes, leaving just Greg and Allison.

"Debbie, I'll just be a few minutes behind you."

"Take your time, dear. I know you need a little more time with Greg."

A few more minutes, and Greg and Allison were all alone.

"It's been a very interesting 24 hours."

Greg nodded, "Yes, it has. Are you okay?"

"Honestly, no, but as long as I'm with you, I will be."

"And as long as I've got you, I will be. I hope your parents will come around. And try not to let my mom corrupt you too much."

"Ha, like that could ever happen."

"You are my light and my life. I love you Allison."

"I love you, too."

They kissed for a long time.

"Good night my love."

"Good night. Until tomorrow."

Allison got into her car, and pulled away.

Greg watched and waved until she was out of sight. "A very interesting 24 hours indeed."

**********

To be continued...