Darren, Male, 53

	- Narrator, retired, father of Gwen and Victoria (Vic)

	- 5'11, beige skin, 195lbs, cropped greying brown hair

Audrey, Female, 15

	- High school student, daughter of Duncan and Theresa

	- 5'9, pale skin, 135lbs, light-green eyes, straight auburn hair over her shoulders

Duncan, Male, late-60s

	- Father of Audrey, husband of Theresa

	- 5'7, pale skin, 175lbs, dark-brown cropped hair

Theresa, Female, mid-50s

	- Mother of Audrey, wife of Duncan

	- 5'7, pale skin, 150lbs, shoulder-length auburn hair

Gwen, Female, 15

	- High school student, daughter of Darren, sister of Victoria

	- 5'5, beige skin, 130lbs, shoulder-length wavy black hair

Victoria (Vic), Female, 14

	- Eighth-grade student, daughter of Darren, sister of Gwen

	- 5'3, beige skin, 115lbs, wavy neck-length light-brown hair

It was only because Audrey can't seem to sleep past five in the morning that we didn't get found out immediately.

I awoke to hear a woman's voice in the house. A woman not Audrey.

Her mother.

My heart raced as I began to panic. I was in Audrey's bed. Naked. Our clothes and the wine, roses, and candle were in the living room. Oh, fuck!

I looked around the room while the woman's voice continued. I couldn't make out what she was saying, nor decide on the tone. Was she angry? Upset? Horrified? Calling the police? The room offered no escape. The window was small and covered with blinds and curtains and probably held a screen, too. The teen's organization skills left no towels or other options to wrap around myself. I had to use a blanket.

I covered myself and listened at the door. Through the crack I could make out the conversation.

“You know your father. You know how he is.” Theresa didn't sound mad. I hoped she didn't sound mad.

“Yeah.” Audrey's voice. “Well, I'm sure he'll be glad to be home.”

“The transport will be dropping him off shortly. Would you be a dear and make him some oatmeal when he arrives. I... I am simply exhausted.”

“Of course, Mom.”

And then there was quiet again. My heart was in my throat as I listened, trying to decide what to do. I heard footsteps, then a quiet voice, “Darren?”

“Yeah,” I whispered.

“Just me...”

I opened the door and Audrey stepped inside, closing it behind her. She carried in our clothes and the other items we'd left in the living room. “Did she see?” I asked insistently.

Audrey shook her head. “No, I hid all this when I got up, just in case. I had no idea Mom was coming home this early. It's not even seven yet.”

I let out a long breath and sank onto the bed. “Goddamn... that was too close... Oh, Jeez. I should get dressed and get out of your bedroom before your dad gets here.”

She nodded. “Sorry, Darren.”

I rose to my feet, catching my breath finally and calming my nerves. “Nothing to be sorry about, my sweet Audrey. What we shared,” I whispered in her ear after wrapping my arms around her waist, “was the most amazing night of my life. I think I'd risk most anything for that...”

“I know... I feel the same way. I'm still buzzing from it. See?” The goosebumps on her arm raised up and I could see the twinkle in her eye from the previous night's lovemaking. “If I was sure Mom was asleep, and Dad wasn't coming home soon...”

“We have to be careful,” I said, less firmly than I should have, “that was close. We can't risk getting caught...”

“I know,” Audrey said again. “I promise we'll be careful. I hope that doesn't mean that... you know... if we get a chance...”

“I hope we get that chance, Audrey... several of them...”

- - -

Duncan arrived a half-hour later in a wheelchair. He could walk short distances, but the doctors suggested he needed to take it very easy for a couple of weeks. We ate oatmeal together in the dining room, mostly in silence, the man clearly exhausted, and me too buzzed from my night with Audrey to know what to say.

“Well,” he said after scraping his bowl, “I need to go get some sleep. Never did get much in that place. Damn nurses kept coming in to poke me with this or draw blood for that. Anyway, my own bed, that'll be nice. Aury, a favor, please.”

“Sure.”

“Would you be a dear and walk down to the drugstore and pick up my medications? They should be ready soon.”

I almost offered to do it for her, but she jumped in. “Sure, Dad. Let me go grab a jacket.” Audrey glanced my way briefly, then disappeared down the hall.

Duncan sat a moment eyeing his bowl. “Darren, can we talk a moment?”

“Of course.”

“Few things I need to talk about. Not really got anyone close-like. And I can't talk to Theresa just yet...”

“Okay...” I was nervous. He sounded quite serious.

His lip quivered a few moments before he said, “Wasn't just a heart attack. I've got the cancer. In my lungs. In my stomach. Bad like. Known for a couple of weeks.”

“Oh, God, Duncan. I'm so sorry.”

He waved his hand to acknowledge then dismiss my thoughts. “Naught to be sorry about. I smoked those damn cigars and cigarettes for three decades before I quit. Didn't quit soon enough, I suppose. Not a damn thing they can do for me. Manage the pain that's coming. Manage my expectations. They said I should go home for now, while I've got time to do so. Here I am.”

I paused, then said, “How, uh... what's the prognosis.”

“Six months, maybe. Could be less. Could be more. Who damn knows?” He was clearly angry, but his weariness kept his voice low and weak. “Anyways... I had to tell someone. Told the doctors not to tell Theresa or Aury. That's for me to do. But I had to tell someone.” The man began to cry softly.

I felt so goddamn powerless. “What can I do, Duncan. Anything.”

He sniffed, then blew his nose. He didn't answer my question. “Theresa just last week got told by her boss that she's being relocated again, this time to Tokyo, late June. I... I can't go with her. Not this time. I can't go with her.”

He cried again, and I got up and grabbed the box of tissues from the counter, setting it in front of him. He nodded briefly in thanks, then blew his nose again.

“On toppa everything, Theresa said some big science organization just called her yesterday. Said Audy won another scholarship. Her last year of school won't be at no public school. She gets a full ride to one of those uppity tech pre-college places. Her choice of where-bouts.” He stared down at his hands as they shook. “Only good in these here United States. Can't do it in Tokyo.”

I shook my head. “Duncan... my gosh...”

“So,” he said, widening his eyes a second before clearing his throat, “I got a lot on my mind, Darren. A lot on my mind. I guess I just needed to spill all that on you. I'm sorry. Not your burden.”

“Duncan, anything I can do...”

He drew a tight, weak smile. “I'm sure I'll think of something.” Duncan took a deep breath. “Until then, please... don't say a word to my wife or Aury.”

I nodded and the man wheeled himself slowly out of the dining room and down the hall. I heard the door close a few seconds later.

I sat spinning. Duncan was dying. Audrey's father was dying. And I couldn't tell her! A sucking hole formed in my stomach. I couldn't breath a moment. How could I not tell her? She'll know something is wrong the moment she sees me. Can I put on a game face? Pretend our shared lovemaking the night before was still the thing in my head? I tried to make it so, but Duncan's words didn't budge, and I sat stewing, frustrated, sad. Scared. Like so many times before, I didn't know what to do.

- - -

“They wouldn't give them to me. Said I had to be eighteen or something.”

“Damn,” I said when Audrey returned. I had swallowed my conundrum as best I could. I'd promised Duncan I wouldn't tell her. For the moment, I tried my best. “Think they'd let me get them?”

Audrey shrugged, “no idea.” Her eyes looked past me to where her father's bowl sat on the table. A smile crept over her face. “We could go somewhere...”

“Audrey...” The look on my face gave away a bit of my emotions.

“What's wrong?” She had a look of part-horror, part-hurt. “Darren?”

“I...” I was stuck. I knew there was no way I could lie to Audrey in that moment. She wanted to make love again, and as much as I wanted that, too, there was no way I could do so with this horrid secret burning in my head. Telling her was going to ruin her day. Badly. I wanted to let her keep believing things were fine. That her Dad was alright. And that we could sneak off somewhere to have sex. I just couldn't lie to her.

I took her hand and led her to the living room, sat us on the couch, and spoke in a low voice. “Audrey... There's something I think you have to know. Not about us...” I added, seeing the expression on her face. “About your dad...”

“What? What is it?”

“He isn't doing as well as he's let on.”

“No...”

“Not the heart attack, not specifically. But... they found cancer. In his lungs, and stomach.”

“No...”

“It doesn't look good...”

“Oh... God...”

“He didn't want me to tell you. He wanted to be the one, but... I can't not tell you. I hate that it is making you cry.” Tears were already sliding down her cheeks. “But you asked what was wrong... I couldn't lie to you...” I pulled her to me for a hug.

“Oh, God. Darren...” Audrey cried against me as we stood in the kitchen. I tried to ignore the fact that her parents were right down the hall.

I let her cry for a while, pulling us into the living room after a few moments so she could sit and I could hold her more comfortably.

“How long does he have?” the teen asked after a some time.

“Dunno. Not too long, from what he said. Six months, maybe.”

She cried again, harder, then, “Does Mom know?”

I shook my head, saying quietly, “Don't think so. He only told me. Seemed he needed to tell someone. He wanted to tell you, but...”

“Thank you,” Audrey said, trying to wipe her tears after I handed her a tissue, “for telling me. For being honest...”

I could only nod.

“So... now what?” She asked. “You told me. Dad told you not to...”

“I don't know.”

Audrey curled around me and kissed my lips. I didn't think about being caught.

“Thought so...” a feminine voice said from behind us.

Audrey barely moved, so caught up in her sadness. I wanted to jump up, but I couldn't with the teen draped over me, holding me tight, her lips just releasing mine.

I turned my head to see Theresa. There were tears running down her face. Her eyes watched mine. Her lips trembled. She blinked repeatedly.

“Theresa—” I started.

She held her hand up and walked to the chair nearby, collapsing into it. She started to cry harder. Audrey seemed to remember what we were doing and slowly pulled herself from me, turning to her Mom a second before she rushed to her and hugged her. “Oh, Mom!”

“He just told me,” the woman cried, “oh, Audrey!” It was the first time in years I'd heard her use her daughter's full name. “I'm too upset about Duncan to be mad about... this!” she said, waving an arm in my direction. “Oh... Audrey!”

The two cried together. I froze in place. Uncertain what to do. What to say. How to react. The sadness was heavy in the room and in my heart. I liked Duncan and Theresa. I loved Audrey. I didn't want any of them to hurt.

I think I sort of had one of those out-of-body, but not-out-of-body experiences. The ones where something awful is going on, and you sort of will your mind to go away somewhere. I don't recall where I went, or what I did. I still knew my body was in that room, the mother and daughter crying together nearby. I could see and hear it all. But most of my mind was elsewhere, providing a distant buffer against the sadness around me, the fear of having been found out.

I couldn't even think about what would happen when Theresa was calm enough to be mad about me and Audrey. That seemed like such a small thing in that moment. Duncan was dying. The woman's husband was dying. Audrey's father would be dead in a few months. It kept me from fixating on the prison term in my future.

“Darren,” Theresa's voice drew my mind back to the present, “could you get a new... box of tissues... from the cabinet... please...”

My legs felt like jelly as I stood and retrieved the box. I handed it to her gingerly, as if I expected the woman to lash out with claws and nails. She nodded, Audrey looking at me a moment before curling up in the oversized chair with her mom.

I stood nearby. Almost as if I was awaiting the sadness about her husband to be channeled into a justifiable chastisement of me. I wondered when the police would be called. I felt really selfish for making it all about me.

I grieved with them, silently. There really wasn't much I could do. I fetched water when Theresa asked for it. I cleared away the old tissues without being asked. I shuffled my feet and felt very small.

Audrey drew away from the chair and I saw her make a decision. I almost stopped her. Instead, she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me very tight. I could only return her embrace. I knew Theresa was watching, but it was too late to care. I whispered, “I'm so sorry, Audrey.”

“How long?” came Theresa's voice. “How long has this been going on?”

Audrey turned but didn't remove her hands from my body. “Only a few days...”

“So,” the woman said, wiping her eyes and looking a touch more composed, “you lied to us at the hospital.”

“No!” Audrey pleaded. “No, I told the truth.”

“So you two haven't had intercourse?”

Audrey paused and I spoke up, “Not until... last night. That was the first and only time...”

Audrey added, “It was all true, what I told you... I told Darren a few days ago, about... my persona... He wanted me to tell you the truth about it... so I did.”

Theresa nodded slowly. “Explains the rose petals.”

“Huh?” Audrey said.

“In the garbage disposal. One popped straight out of it when I ran it this morning. I didn't ask about it, figured I'd see what was going on first. Now I know.”

I looked at Audrey's feet and waited for the inevitable.

I heard Theresa let out a sigh. “Right now... I don't have the heart for this. I just don't. Audrey... any guy who would ask you to tell the truth to your parents isn't all bad. I'm not saying this is over... but today... Today there is something more difficult to deal with.” The wind had gone out of the woman again, and she looked like she would cry more. Before she did, she added, “This isn't to reach your father, young gi—woman. Understand? That man has enough of a burden...”

“I promise,” Audrey said.

“And you... Darren. Don't know what to think about you right now... but... you've been kind to us this week... you've been kind to Aury. Maybe too kind... We'll speak more about this another time, but until then... just don't let Duncan find out.”

“I promise,” I echoed.

- - -

And for a few hours, there was a truce in place between us regarding my relationship with Audrey. Theresa didn't bring it up again, the woman doing little more than dozing on the couch. Duncan had asked her to let him get some sleep, so she feared waking him up by going to the bedroom. Audrey wasn't much better off, lounging on her bed or in a chair. I shared hugs with her often and told her I loved her, but when she fell asleep in her bedroom, I felt it was pushing things too far to join her there.

Instead, I went for a walk.

The neighborhood was one of those planned, multi-use communities. Inside the gates, there was a grocery store, a drugstore, a theater, two cafes, and a handful of restaurants. I walked slowly past the main strip, where most of the commercial properties were located, sometimes staring blankly at menus or posters of upcoming movies.

I should have felt empty inside. With Duncan's condition and Theresa finding out about me and Audrey, I could tell there was a knot of tension holding fast in my gut. But I wasn't wholly depressed. The night I'd shared with Audrey, whatever the consequences for me, had been the best night of my life in many ways. One I knew I would chase for what remained of my life.

My phone rang in my pocket. It was like some other world, parallel to this one, reminding me of what else existed.

It was Gwen.

“Hey Dad.”

“Gwen,” I answered, “everything okay?”

“Yeah, just pouring rain here. Not going to stop for days. Aunt Vivian can't get us tickets home until at least next week.” My daughter didn't exactly sound disappointed. Vivian spoiled my kids when they visited. Even with the rain making it impossible to enjoy the outdoors in Aruba, I was sure Viv had cooked up some fun things to do there.

“Damn... How's Vic?”

“She's good. They sent her home last night. She's watching a movie and sleeping I think.”

“Scary, huh?”

“Yeah, a little,” Gwen said. “Hope I never break my leg. It looked like it hurt a lot.”

“I hope you don't either.”

I reminded her that she was supposed to be back in school on Monday, but if they couldn't fly off the island, I'd need to contact their schools to let the administration know. “Don't suppose either of you took textbooks with you?”

Gwen chuckled, “Seriously, Dad? On vacation?”

“Yeah, never mind. Anything I can do for you or Vic? Need anything?”

“Mmm... Hundred bucks?”

“For what?”

“Uhm... See... there's this dress I want and... I spent all my allowance already...”

“Why this dress?”

I could here the shrug in her voice when Gwen replied, “Umm... it's gold.” As if that explained everything.

I had plenty of money to spend, more than even those two could blow on dresses and other things teens like to buy. But I also expected the girls to learn some discretion. I made enough money to never work again, and if managed properly, Gwen and Victoria could probably do the same with what was left. Still, I'd raised them to not expect to get everything they wanted just because we had the money. I made them make deals with me to earn anything beyond some pocket cash.

“What do I get if I give you the money?”

“Umm... I'll do my laundry for a month,” Gwen offered.

“Yours and your sister's. What else?”

“Trash?”

I laughed. “Your sister already owes me that for a few weeks after I bought her those jeans and the new purse. Try again.”

“I'll learn to cook dinner?”

“I'm intrigued...” It made instantly think of Audrey. “What else you got?”

“Umm...” Gwen stalled. I waited for the obvious offer. The resignation in her sigh told me she got to it. “I'll mow the yard for a month...”

Yes, I could easily afford to pay someone to come once a week and mow the lawn, but it was an important bargaining chip in the chores bucket. “Deal.”

“I hate mowing.”

“But you love gold dresses, apparently...”

“Yeah... Thanks, Dad.” Even with the grudging tone, I knew Gwen was more happy about the deal than she wanted me to think. She was a shrewd negotiator, sometimes, and she was prepping me for some next deal-making talk.

“I'll put the money on your card in a bit. I'll add a bit and put some on Vic's card, too, since you're going to be staying a few unexpected days.”

“Okay, cool.”

“I miss you, Gwenny.”

“Daaa-ad,” she said, drawing out the word in an exasperated manner, “it's Gwen. Just Gwen. I hate Gwenny.”

“Sorry. Gwen.” I forgot sometimes. She was still Gwenny in my head. My little girl. Hard to believe she was fifteen.

Fifteen.

The same age as my lover. My girlfriend. I shivered to connect the two teens so clearly. “I uh, I need to run, Gwen. I love you.”

“Love you. See you next week, Dad.”

I paced back towards the Andrews' house, suddenly missing Audrey terribly.

- - -

“He told me you would tell her,” Theresa said to me from the couch. I sat in the chair nearby, the woman having caught my attention before I could go back to Audrey's room. “Dunno how he knew, but he did.”

“Duncan?”

She nodded. “Said that he told you not to tell her, and me, but after he told me himself, he said that Aury would already know even though he hadn't told her. I asked how. He tells me you would tell her yourself. Didn't say he thought you two were...,” one of her hands fluttered in the air as she looked for the right word, “close... or anything. Don't want him to know. He doesn't need be worrying about that.”

Theresa had calmed some after resting a bit. Still, sadness soaked through in her expression, and her eyes were red and puffy from crying.

I sat silently, awaiting what she might say.

“I want to know it all, Darren. Don't you lie to me. How'd this start? What have you done to her? Why shouldn't I just call the cops and be done with it?”

I stared at her face. It was the face of a woman who was bent and bruised, but not broken. Whatever horrors were turning in her mind about her husband, she could push it aside long enough to deal with me right then. I had no choice but to be very honest.

I told her that, before Audrey's visit to Houston this year, nothing had ever passed between us until the last few days, not so much as a glance of interest either way. I talked about the first evening, with the striptease, and then the movie night, after which Audrey became so upset when I thought she had had sex before. I moved through the days since and how the two of us had rapidly fallen in love. I admitted it was so fast that it was probably hard for her to believe it true.

Theresa stared at me until I got to the point where she caught us kissing on the couch earlier that day. “That's everything, Theresa. I swear it.”

Her gaze pierced me a long time. Then she looked down at her hands, as if checking her fingers for spiderwebs. “I was fourteen when I met Duncan. Did you know that?”

I shook my head.

“Fourteen. Wild, willful. Stubborn. That one,” she said, pointing towards Audrey's bedroom, “she's got nothing on me. At least she's got the brains early enough. I took a few years to find myself. Anyway... I was fourteen when we met. Duncan was almost thirty.”

I noted silently that that was still a generation of age difference less than that between Audrey and me. I said nothing, though.

“Met him at party I shouldn't have been at. One weekend or something. Youngest one there, I was. Everybody thought I was older. Duncan was there, but he saw right through me. Made me go outside. We sat and talked a while, and he got me to admit I was fourteen and not twenty-one like my fake ID said. He wasn't mad or a jerk. Kind, really. He seemed to get me, and the more we talked, the more I liked him. He got me to talk about parts of my life I never shared. Neither of us went back to the party.”

Her eyes flicked up to see if I was watching her, then back to her hands. “I managed to get his number so we could talk more. Saw him again the next day. Little different this time. He wasn't protecting me from myself, like at the party, but just a fun friend. He took me to skate and out to a movie. I don't think he thought we were on a date, but I did. I think Duncan was just trying to steer a misguided teen back in a different direction. But it backfired on him,” Theresa said, laughing, “oh, did it ever. I fell in love.”

Theresa sat forward and let out a breath. “Fourteen. Hell, I didn't really know what it meant to love someone. It was just something I felt for him. I wanted to be with him. To talk to him. I really wanted to kiss him. I suppose it could have been anyone, at that age, but I'd like to think it was because he was so kind to me, that he listened to me, that I felt like I could tell him things no one else would understand. All it took was two days for me to fall in love.”

I nodded, slowly understanding her point.

“He took a bit longer. Couple of months of me building up to saying it. We kinda dated. I think he even knew we were dating by then. We held hands a couple of times, but in some ways, Duncan was kinda shy. I really liked that about him. And then, one night, I told him I loved him. And he said it back.”

I smiled when she did.

“And here we are, decades later, him dying, me feeling overwhelmed. And our daughter is doing something much like I did at her age. Falling in love with someone much too old for her. Darren... do you really love her? Is this just about fucking a fifteen-year old? Tell me truth.”

I looked into Theresa's eyes, and summoned up my most genuine sincerity. “I love Audrey. I truly do. For many years, Theresa, since my wife died, I'd pretty much forgotten about love. This sort of love, anyway. I love my daughters fiercely, but... romantic love. Maybe I got drawn in too quickly, because of that absence. It felt so good to see the interest in Audrey's eyes, the way she talked to me. The way I started to feel close to her. Maybe it's just circumstance. All I know is that I love your daughter, as much as any man can truly know this soon in. I'd do anything for her, Theresa.”

I took a breath, then said, “I know the score... I know her age is... not appropriate,” I couldn't bring myself to say 'illegal.' “But... I think you understand what is like when two people, who society thinks shouldn't be together, somehow manage to draw together in a way in which they fall in love. I only want her to be happy.”

Theresa nodded, then said quietly, “okay.” Her eyes drew up to mine again, and she had a serious look on her face. “You two must be very... very careful.”

“I know.”

“Both of you. When Duncan was with me... my first time, I never really understood what would happen if anyone found out. I'd have lost him. We got lucky. My parents never found out. One of Aury's did... you can't risk it again.” She took a breath. “So... what is your plan? Surely you will wish to see Aury after you go home. What will you do? What will you tell your daughters?”

I was at a loss for words.

“Find the answers, Darren. You two can't go off doing this thing without risk, but you can prevent a lot of problems if you figure out some things before jumping in further.”

I nodded, “I'll talk to Audrey.”

She tilted her head towards her daughter's room. “Go to her. I'll make sure Duncan doesn't ask too many questions.”

I stood then knelt in front of her. I offered a hug and she accepted it, holding me tightly. “Thank you,” I told her.

“Just be good to my daughter.”

“I will be.”

- - -

I spooned with Audrey while she slept for half-an-hour before she stirred. I planted soft kisses on her bare shoulder and threaded my fingers into hers. “Hey...” Audrey said sleepily, her weary voice cracking and dry.

“I love you, Audrey.” I could say nothing else. “I love you...”

“I love you.”

We held together a few moments in silence.

“Is Dad up yet?”

“Don't know. He wasn't when I came in and laid down with you.”

Audrey started to rise, “You're in my bed...”

“Shhh,” I soothed her, “your mom and I had a heart-to-heart... she gave me permission to come in.”

“She did?”

“I'll tell you later about it. Just feels nice to hold you right now.” I stroked her hand and up her arms. “I went for a walk, but by the time I got to the theater, I missed you too much and came back.”

“Awww...” Audrey rolled over and faced me, bringing her lips to mine and letting one leg drape over my hip. “That's sweet.”

“It's true.”

“I missed you too...”

“Get any sleep?” I asked.

“Yeah... Guess I feel a little better... still sad, though...”

“Let yourself be sad. It's okay, and normal.”

“I know,” she replied, “but I don't like feeling this way. It all sucks. All of it. Not you. Definitely not you.”

I kissed her lips again and cradled her head to mine. “Want to get out of this room?”

She thought a moment then nodded. “Yeah... I suppose I should eat something.”

“What do you think your dad might like? Something nice for him, maybe.”

Audrey tapped her fingers on my chest, then said, “Sushi. He loves sushi.”

“Let's go get him some sushi. Know a place?”

“I do.”

“Come on.”

- - -

It gave us a mission. Busy work. Something to distract us with goals and checkpoints and gratification. Even something so simple as going to get food could be rewarding when you are depressed and emotionally in shock. Duncan was just rousing when we left, and Theresa said that while he probably wouldn't eat too much, she thought sushi would be an excellent choice.

Audrey guided me to the Japanese steak and sushi place a mile down the road from the community gate. She knew what to order, and since I would eat most anything on the menu, I let her decide what we got. It took some time, but we left with a tray of a dozen rolls and several pieces of sashimi, along with a cup of wasabi and another of ginger.

Duncan had rolled out of the room and was sitting on the couch with Theresa when we returned. I expected they'd probably both been crying. I took the food into the kitchen and started to get the table set while Audrey went in to talk to her parents. They came in together a few moments later.

We sat quickly. “Well,” Duncan said, his voice a bit stronger than before, “this is quite the treat.”

Theresa's face tried to form a smile but it was a tortured one. Audrey glanced my way with a forced smile, as well.

We ate in silence a while before Duncan pushed his plate away. He'd eaten only two or three pieces. “So,” he said, looking at me, “I expect you understand the concerns we have...”

“Sir?”

“He knows,” Theresa said quietly, “no need to hide it...”

Duncan's eyes were fixed on me. He didn't look angry. Perhaps resolved. “No hiding that sort of thing for long. My wife tells me she talked to you already. Care to ease my mind?”

“How... uh, how did you know?” I asked, stalling.

Duncan chuckled, phlegm caught in his throat. “Didn't take much genius to see. You two look at each other in a way that says everything. Even in my state, in the hospital, couldn't miss it.” He turned to his wife and took her hand gently. “You thought we wouldn't see. But I was in your position once, Darren. I saw the way my daughter looked at you... even briefly. I'd seen that look before, in my love's eyes, when she was a teenager. I know that look. Told me everything I needed to know. And that look on your face, when you glanced at her... I expect that's the same as I had when I was falling in love with this one.” He grasped Theresa's hand tightly. “Not going to hide it from someone looking. Someone who knows.”

“I see...” I said, trying to maintain my composure. “Well, uh... It's true.”

“I know,” he said. “Theresa told me what you said to her. Want to believe it, Darren. I do. But I also want to protect my daughter. What makes you different than some pervert just looking for some innocent young woman for a few kicks before you break her heart?”

I shook my head. “Hard to explain.” I looked at Audrey and felt myself grow warm in her gaze. Those light-greens really drew me in. “I wasn't looking for anyone... young or otherwise. I was okay being alone with my daughters. It happened so quickly... so unexpectedly... I found myself drawn into her eyes...”

Duncan chuckled again, “Yeah, Aury's eyes are something...”

“And the way she talked to me, even at first when we were largely strangers. I felt like she understood me, somehow. And perhaps more surprisingly... I thought I understood her. Throw in all the emotional things going on this week, and... it just fell into place.”

“And what keeps you from getting tired of this dance? You go home, she stays here. You drift off and break her heart and then she's got to deal with getting her hopes dashed on the rocks.”

I shook my head. “I don't want that, Duncan. I'm in. Fully. I can't explain myself well, but,” I turned to Audrey, “I love you. Truly. There is nothing in this world I wouldn't do to see you happy. You, and my daughters... that's more than any man can wish for. More than I deserve, for sure. It might be difficult... the times to come, but if we work at it, and believe me... I will work hard at it... we won't be crushed by the distance or the time or the thousands of ways the world will try to break us apart.”

Audrey smiled, “I feel the same way.”

Duncan looked from me to his daughter. “You trust this man?”

She nodded, “Completely.”

“And you wish to be with him?”

“Always.”

“It's only been a few days, Aury.”

Audrey didn't respond, and for a moment, there was an awful silence.

“I understand,” Theresa said quietly. “I was young and in love, after only two days, with you Duncan... I would have fought bears to be with you.”

“And I would have taken a bullet to be with you, my love,” the man responded, “but the risks... we were very lucky.”

“I know,” Theresa admitted. “These two... they don't understand what happens if someone... someone besides the two of us... finds out...”

“I do.” I could feel the knot in my stomach again. “I'd go to jail. I'd lose Audrey. I'd lose my daughters.”

“You'd risk that for your daughters? You'd risk them losing you so you could be with your crush?”

“Not a crush... not a crush,” I said, too weakly. “But... My daughters...” I couldn't finish the thought. I could offer nothing further. I felt selfish, to put Gwen and Vic in that position, that I might be arrested and their world would be torn apart, all because I'd fallen in love with someone too young for me to be with legally. How could I do that to them?

“Not an easy thing to think about, is it...” Duncan wasn't asking a question. “Don't your daughters deserve you to prioritize them?”

“Yes,” I replied quietly.

“And yet, you risk hurting them to be with Aury...”

“Yes.”

“Too soon, I think, for you to understand. Too soon to know for sure about this thing. Hell, two weeks from now, maybe it fades. Maybe you see how this could affect you and you do what a sane person would do: break it off and break my Aury's heart.”

“I don't want that...”

Duncan let out a long sigh. “People in love aren't sane, Darren. They do things that seem right at the time, but they risk harming others without knowing it.”

I couldn't look up, not even to meet Audrey's concerned glance.

“While you stay here, under our roof, we will bless this. Only because I can see what you feel for my daughter is true and honest. And because she feels the same about you. Then, you'll go home. You'll remember your daughters. You'll remember how much they depend on you. And then... we'll see if you two can survive what comes next. Whatever you do... understand the risks, Darren, Aury. This isn't a game.”

“I know,” I said, the man's words sinking me further.

More silence settled in.

“I hope you two make it,” Duncan said quietly. “Not just because I'm not long for this world, but... I want to see my Aury happy, and even with this horrid week in our family, I've seen happiness in her eyes... and I know that's because of you. If you can do that for her, in the middle of all this... you've got a chance...”

“Thanks, Dad...” Audrey rose and wrapped her arms around her father. He kissed her forehead.

“Now,” Duncan said more firmly, “I am in need of a nap, it seems. Dear... will you join me?”

“Always,” Theresa replied.

She grabbed the handles on the wheelchair and the two went down the hall without another word, leaving Audrey and I to ponder the conversation in silence.

I stood and stretched, feeling weary again. “I could use a nap, too, I think.”

Audrey nodded and took my hand. We went back to her bedroom, undressed, and slid under the covers.

We lay quietly a while, her body the little spoon to my larger one. I held her tight against me, not wanting miss the chance to feel her warmth. Duncan's words made me realize that, when I left for home, things might change. I'd tried not to think too much on that before, but I knew I was being forced to do so at that moment.

“Will you forget about me?” Audrey asked softly. “When you go home?”

“Not a chance...”

“I won't forget about you either. I want to talk to you every day, okay?”

“Deal. Two times a day.”

“Okay,” I felt her hand weave into mine. “What will you tell Gwen and Vic?”

“I don't know.”

“You'll tell them, though... right?”

“I think I have to. I don't want to hide it from them. They deserve to know.”

“Yeah... I'd want to know... if it was me...”

I kissed Audrey's shoulder. “How would you react to something like this?”

She was silent in thought, then said, “I think I'd be happy for you.”

“Beyond that... the idea of your father with someone your age... someone you were friends with...”

Audrey shrugged, “Kinda weird, I guess.”

“Kinda weird...”

“But... I'd want you to be happy, you know?”

“I know,” I replied. “I have no idea how to talk to them about this...”

Audrey thought a moment, then said, “If it was me... I'd want you to be honest. Tell me everything... maybe not about what we did last night...”

I chuckled.

She continued, “But how we fell in love. I'd want you to tell me your fears, I think. Why you worried about telling me. Be honest, I think. That's what I'd want.”

“Okay.” I resolved to do so as soon as the girls were home. “And for the record... I'm not just in this for the sex, Audrey. I hope you know that. I love you. If we never had sex again—”

“Like that's going to happen...” she laughed.

“Regardless... When I go home, I'm not going to forget about you or change my mind. I'm sure of that. I want you in my life, and even if that means we have to work through the challenges ahead... if we have to be very, very careful until you are of legal age... I'm willing to do it... for you.”

“I love you, Darren.”

“Love you.”