Our Heart (19 page)

I followed her back, my anger at Nick gone, and even he seemed to be in a more normal state. As we sat down at the table, talk turned toward the baggy war. Blow by blow we recanted the story to the delight of Kara, who had found a way to sit right between Allison and me. I sat across from Nick, and Allison and Kara sat next to me. Kara was already to the point of being a nuisance, one question after the other, but I answered all of them with genuine enthusiasm. Nick and Allison were laughing together as they shared moments from yesterday’s joint adventure. Every so often, Allison and I would search out each other’s eyes and I would feel some reassurance, then Nick would pull Allison’s attention back toward himself.

Kara happily went to get all of us more pop, and I used the moment to slide next to Allison. The ladies emerged from the kitchen bearing delicacies that would have been fit for royalty. Grandma Sarah’s potato salad, Peggy Andersen’s hickory smoked baked beans, and Stacy Dittmer’s soon to be famous whipped chocolate parfait delight graced the serving table.

Larry Dittmer called out from the grill, “Come and get it.”

There wasn’t anyone who needed a second prodding, and the line quickly formed behind my grandpa. After I received an extra-large burger on a way too small bun, I made my way through the fixin’s line. Anything and everything you could put on a hamburger was out on the table. There were several different cheeses and four kinds of pickles alone. I bet I made Dagwood Bumstead proud, as my sandwich grew higher and higher, piling on tomatoes, cheese, pickles, bacon, peppers, onions, more cheese, lettuce and black olives. Kara stood next to me and just giggled every time I added more to my hamburger. With a final sigh, I put the top bun on and squished it all down, hoping it would stay in place. After loading my plate full of baked beans and potato salad, I headed back to the table. I was first back to the table, and I sat where I had before, but hoped Allison would trade places with Kara…no luck, Kara beat Allison to the table and sat next to me. I thought about asking if we could trade places, but decided my hamburger needed the most attention.

Once everyone had been seated, the silence was only broken by the sound of a pickle crunch or the occasional, “Wow! This is great.” Kara continued to plague me with questions and comments, wanting to know everything about singing and my performance last night. I did my best to nod appropriately, not wanting to take any time away from devouring my hamburger. Halfway through the meal, Nick dropped his fork and bent over to pick it up. I happened to be looking towards Allison the same moment he reached under the table to retrieve it. Her eyes grew wide, and she suddenly looked surprised. I narrowed my eyes to her in a questioning manner. Her face flushed a moment, and then she gave me a tentative smile. Nick had retrieved his fork and was taking great care to wipe it off on his napkin. He looked over at me and grinned. I returned his smile, but not without a little bug in my brain gnawing at my alarm center.

Nick did his best, in between bites, to keep Allison in conversation, and I was thankful when we finished eating. I popped out of my spot and stood behind Allison. I leaned over and whispered in her ear, “Let’s go for a walk.” She nodded okay and stood up.

I carried both of our plates over to the big trashcan by the garage and dropped them in to it. The ladies were deliberating intensely about something or another…I’m guessing they were doing their best to pry each one’s secret recipes
out of one another. Grandma Sarah just looked at us as we walked past, but Mrs. Dittmer told us to stick around, reminding us the dessert wouldn’t last long. Allison said we were just going to take a quick walk around the block to let the food settle, and we’d be right back. Her mom reluctantly nodded her approval.

Just as soon as we made it around the side of the house, and on the sidewalk out front, Allison grabbed on to me. I could tell she something was bothering her, but I wasn’t sure how to ask. I’m glad I didn’t have too. She decided to tell me. When Nick had dropped his fork he purposely ran his hand along her calf and knee. I stopped dead in my tracks when she said this. The anger flared inside of me, and I turned around to go pound some sense into him. With a lot of difficulty, she stopped me, pulling me along and away from her house. She was doing her best to tell me to let it go.

I was mad and asked her, “Why didn’t you belt him one?”

“I didn’t want to make a scene or make a big deal out of it,” she responded in a hushed voice, which conveyed her concern over the situation and my attitude. “If you couldn’t tell, Nick has been flirting with me all day long. I’ve been trying to be nice, because I know he is one of your best friends, and I didn’t think it was anything to get upset by or to make an issue out of…until now.”

No big deal…not what I thought! I knew Nick wasn’t happy that Allison and I had hooked up, but I never thought he would be so blatant to make a move like that. I was already determining how I was going to deal with him, when Allison asked me to make her a promise. I didn’t like where I thought this was going, but after she stopped and stood directly in front of me, holding on to both of my hands, I relented and gave her my promise. “What am I promising?” I asked her, pretty much knowing what her answer was going to be.

“You know I’m with you? Right?” I nodded, but I was still seeing red. “I can handle Nick,” she continued, and I don’t want you to blow this out of proportion. I think he’s jealous of you, and he did what he did in response to the kiss I gave you. If you go after him, I think it will only make things worse. I’ll make sure to let him know I don’t have any interest in him, as anything other than friends. Once he realizes there’s no chance for him, I think he’ll be ok.”

I had to admit that what she said made a little sense…maybe. I still didn’t like it, and I knew my relationship with Nick had just taken a major turn for the worse. I also trusted Allison, so I agreed to let her do it her way. I knew I would also be keeping a close watch on Nick, and there would be no second chances.

We took our time walking around the block and, when we did make it back to the picnic, everyone was already into their second helping of Stacy Dittmer’s whipped chocolate parfait delight. Allison broke for the table and nearly knocked Kara over in an attempt to salvage some of the dessert for herself. We didn’t get a lot, but what I had was definitely heaven on earth. I think Mrs. Dittmer picked up three new devoted followers. I watched Grandpa Jake slide his finger along the inside of the dessert bowl trying to get every last morsel out of it. It must have made Stacy Dittmer’s day, as she beamed with all the compliments flowing her way. I kept Allison by my side and never gave Nick another opportunity to even get close enough to her to start a conversation. I was glad when he left with his parents. On the way out, he said, “see you later,” and I forced a smile along with a disingenuous wave in reply.

Not long after they left, the rest of us pitched in and helped the Dittmers clean up the patio area. During the clean-up, Mr. Dittmer made an extra effort to spend some time next to me. He asked several questions about singing in general, what I had done in the past, and what I planned to do with my obviously great talent in the future. I was careful with my answers and tried my best not to ring any alarm bells. He seemed satisfied with what I said, and we fell into easy conversation. Allison looked over at me and gave me a teasing “Thumbs up” gesture.

I asked Mr. Dittmer about his furniture business, and he asked me if I had any plans for the rest of the summer. Before I could even figure out how we got from furniture to my summer plans, he asked if I’d be interested in helping him with his custom-made furniture business, if it ever got off the ground. For the father of the girl I was falling for, he was definitely okay in my book. I assured him I would be more than willing to help out. We talked about what his current plans were and what he hoped would happen down the road.

He seemed appreciative of my questions, and he even said, “You know I never thought about that…I should really look into it.” Shortly after five o’clock, Grandma, Grandpa, and I headed home to our own place. I made a detour over to Allison and asked her if she wanted to do anything later.

She just smiled back at me and said, “I’ll check my calendar and let you know.”

Chapter 12

I spent the next week strategizing the perfect picnic encounter. It was more difficult than I thought it would be. I spent every moment I could with Allison. When I wasn’t hooked to her side, my attention was evenly split between my grandparents and Allison’s dad. Mr. Dittmer had taken me into his confidence and treated me like an adult. He made me feel like I had something worthwhile to offer. We spent a lot of time alone together and shared many conversations about nothing and everything. Occasionally, he’d ask a question regarding Allison and me. When he did I didn’t hesitate to answer him truthfully.

Allison commented to me about how well the two of us were getting along. One morning, she asked her dad if it would be all right if she could borrow me for awhile. I thought he was going to explode, as his face got totally red. He burst into a full belly laugh and, within seconds, the three of us
were holding our sides
, from the laughing fit.

In an unexpected show of emotion, Larry put his strong arms around Allison’s shoulders, and mine, drawing us close to him. He held us that way, protective in his grip, as he told us to go off and find something more exciting to do than hanging out with an old man. It was the first time in a long time when I felt the loss of my father and
it touched me deeply
. In such a short time, Allison’s dad had made a huge impact on me. Sometimes, it’s not what is said, but what isn’t that has the most dramatic meaning to us. With his hug, Larry Dittmer had given me his approval. It was important to me, and I vowed to never do anything to lose it.

Allison didn’t say a word, as we walked silently from the shop to the house. She had maturity and intuition beyond her age, which absolutely amazed me. She could see I had been touched by her dad’s affection and let me walk a step ahead to regain my composure.

I was about to open the back door when she whispered in my ear, “My mom really likes you too, you know!” I didn’t have the strength to open the door and just stood there with my hand only slightly raised, as if it was halted by an invisible barrier.

I think Allison could sense that having her parent’s respect went deeper for me than just the normal “you’re ok to date my daughter.” I was lucky to be with her and for the opportunity to get to know her folks. At some point, she must have realized I needed the connection her parents were able to provide. She, herself, had built an everlasting bridge across the grand-canyon sized gap in my heart. With all the joy that Mr. Dittmer’s hug had brought me, my mind was wrought with confusion and heartache. I thought about losing my mother and then became angry once more at my father for leaving.

Allison wouldn’t let me go down that path very far. She reached
and
took my hand, still suspended in mid air. Standing on her toes, she kissed me sweetly on the cheek. My anger abated, and I got that tingly feeling crawling around my insides. I let all of my senses absorb her, tasting the scent of her strawberry shampoo, feeling the moistness of her lips as the air caressed the spot where she had kissed me. Allison opened the door and I willingly followed her in.

If Stacy Dittmer hadn’t been married, I’m sure every eligible bachelor in town would have been lined up outside and down the sidewalk to take their turn at courting her. She didn’t need any help winning the heart of any man around. Not only was she a looker, but she was also the queen of desserts, an extremely, deadly combination. Today it was hot, homemade chocolate-chip, oatmeal cookies, and the aroma was incredible. This time, my stomach took over and did the talking and thinking. A loud rumbling hunger pang escaped from my stomach, causing both Allison and her mom to turn and look at me. I sheepishly smiled, and Allison’s mom used her spatula to lift one of the hot, gooey cookies from the cookie sheet and put it on a napkin. She hel
d
it out to me, chuckling, as I swiped it from her hand in blazing speed. She headed to the refrigerator and poured two glasses of milk, one for Allison and one for me. By the time I finished my milk, I had personally managed to devour four cookies. I was doing my best to be polite, because I could have eaten more…way more.

It must have been my day for hugs. Mrs. Dittmer gave me one as Allison and I were leaving to walk downtown. My grandma wanted me to stop at the market to pick her up a few necessities.

“Glad you liked the cookies.” Mrs. Dittmer said to me as she embraced me.

With every moment I spent with the Dittmers, I felt that sense of belonging surround me; it was a great feeling to have again. Now that I had a connected feeling, I understood how much I had missed and needed it. It had been absent for too long and, even though I had Grandma and Grandpa, it wasn’t the same. I graciously hugged her back and honestly let her know her cookies were the best I’d ever eaten. She gave me a warm smile, and I could see she was pleased by my comment. Allison and I left the kitchen, but not before I grabbed a cookie for the road.

After we went to the market, I headed home with my sack for Grandma Sarah, and Allison went to see Dani at Dani’s house. I had already let my grandma in on my picnic plans, because I needed her help. The items she had me pick up at the store were for her ultimate potato salad. Grandma was all smiles when I asked her to make a small batch for me. On the way home from the store, I happened to get a melody stuck in my head, from out of nowhere. I kept humming the same part over and over, racking my brain to remember where I had heard it before. I finally talked myself into letting it go, concentrating on the task at hand…the picnic. I could visualize the entire day, and all the preparation I would need to make it memorable. I smiled and then laughed out loud when I thought of how surprised Allison was going to be. I wasn’t only enjoying this, I was also looking forward to it, big time. If the reality turned out to be half as good as the plan, it would be a day to remember.