“Are you ready?” He asked as he took her hand.
“As I’ll ever be.” Sue responded with a quick smile.
They both exited the car and Jack went around to the truck to take out their bags. When he closed the truck, he turned to see Sue in the arms of an older man who he recognised as her dad. The love the man had for his daughter was obvious. Behind them stood Mrs Thomas. Sue released her father and moved into the open arms of her mother. From what Jack could see it appeared to be a warm embrace. As the two women entered the house, he walked up the path and was met by Mr Thomas.
“Jack, nice to see you again.” Mr Thomas said and offered his hand to the younger man.
“You too Mr Thomas.” Jack responded, accepting the handshake.
“Oh please, call me Paul. Mr Thomas was my father.”
“Okay Paul, thank you for letting us stay here.”
“It’s nothing. Carla wouldn’t have it any other way. Let’s get inside with those bags, we can’t stand out here forever.”
Paul Thomas took one of the bags off Jack and the two men entered the house to see the women in the kitchen making drinks. Mrs Thomas spotted Jack enter and walked over to him.
“Jack, it’s so good to see you again.” She pulled him into a quick hug. “How have you been?”
“I’ve been good thank you Mrs Thomas.” Jack said, slightly surprised by the hug he received from the Thomas matriarch.
“Please, call me Carla. Now Sue says that you haven’t eaten yet. Do you like lasagne? I’ve just put some in for Paul and I but I am sure there will be enough to you and Sue too.”
“Lasagne is good. Thank you.”
Sue smiled at Jack’s interaction with her mother and walked over to him, fighting the urge to slide her arm around his waist. She hadn’t told her parents about the change in her relationship with Jack, she wanted to wait for the right time. She knew her mother had always been protective of her when it came to the men in her life, but she had a feeling that she would be happy that she’d chosen Jack. She was giving every indication that she liked him, which she knew was half the battle.
“Mom’s lasagne is legendary around these parts. We are in for a treat.”
“Then I can’t wait.” Jack said as he looked at her, hoping that his eyes were conveying what his lips couldn’t.“Why don’t you two take a seat in the living room and I’ll take these bags upstairs.” Paul said as he grabbed the bags and was half way up the stairs before Jack could object.
oOo
As Carla worked her magic in the kitchen, she stole glances at her husband and their guests who were seated in the living area. She noticed that her daughter and Jack seemed a lot closer than they had been when she last met him. Is it possible that they are more than friends? She smiled to herself as she considered that thought.
She knew that her imagination had a tendency to go into overdrive when it came to Sue’s relationships with men. She knew that it was possible that, since she’d last met Jack at Christmas, Sue had gotten to know him better and was just more comfortable around him, but part of her hoped that it was more.
She liked Jack. He was good for her daughter and she could tell as she watched them that he adored her. The look in his eyes gave him away every time. She was pleased that her daughter appeared to have found someone who wanted to be with her for whom she was and didn’t seem to be bothered by her deafness. That had always been her one worry for her when she was growing up.
A mother wants nothing more for her daughter than for her to meet a man who loves her and for them to settle down and have her own family. She had always worried that Sue would never have that. That the men in her life would realise that she was deaf and back away. She had brought her daughter up to wait until she was married before giving herself to a man and she knew that Sue believed in that to this day. She just hoped that if Jack and Sue were now together, that Jack respected that, for his sake as well as her daughters.
oOo
“So Sue, what brings you two out to Ohio? Your mom mentioned that you had called and asked about Ms Casey?” Paul asked.
“I can’t go into too much detail at the moment dad but it’s for a case we are working on. We need to speak to Ms Casey about it. She may have information that can help us.” Sue told him, well aware of how much information she was able to divulge.
“I see.” Sue watched her dad looked between her and Jack. She began to think that sitting at opposite ends of the couch was a bad idea? Was it just making her dad take more notice of them?
“Can I assume that something has happened between you two?” Paul asked, causing his daughter to blush as she looked at the man next to her.
“Is it that obvious dad?” Sue said as she looked back at her father.
“Sweetheart, when you have been around as long as I have you tend to pick up on these things.” He answered with a smile. “Mr Thomas……Paul, I care deeply for your daughter and I want you to know that I would never do anything to hurt her. She is the most important thing in my life.”
Sue looked at Jack with tears in her eyes. It was one thing saying something like that to her in private but to say them to her father was something else. She shifted over to his side and took his hand, suddenly not caring that they were sitting in her parent’s living room with her dad sitting opposite them.
Sue kept her eyes on Jack and out of the corner of her eye, she saw her dad stand and walk towards the kitchen. When she was sure he had gone, she allowed a small tear to slide down her cheek. Jack immediately moved closer and brushed it away with his thumb.
“I meant it Sue. You mean the world to me. I don’t care who knows it.”
“Jack, in my heart I wanted so badly to believe that a man like you could want to be with someone like me but I never let myself believe it fully. Not until now. You have said it to me so many times over the last few days but to say it to my dad means so much to me, you will never know how much.”As the tears she had fought to contain spilled down her cheeks, Jack took her in his arms and held her, knowing that they were tears of happiness.
oOo
Paul Thomas walked into the kitchen, leaving his daughter and Jack alone to talk. He saw his wife standing by the counter and she turned to look at him.
“I think our little girl has found the one.” Paul said as he smiled at his wife of almost thirty-five years.
He was pleased when he saw his wife smile. Carla had always been protective of Sue. They had a very up and down relationship. One week they would be as close as mother and daughter should be and the next you could slice the tension with a knife.
“You think so too? I watched them for about five minutes when you were talking to them. There is something different between them now. I can’t put my finger on it. They seem so much more comfortable with each other.”
“I asked them straight out if something had happened and they didn’t deny it. Jack said that she was the most important thing in his life. I don’t think he has told her that he is in love with her though, even though it is obvious to anyone, including me, that he is smitten.”Carla leaned forward slightly and looked into the living room. She saw Sue in Jack’s arms. He was holding her tightly and gently stroking her back. She could hear the soothing words coming out of his mouth and could tell by the way Sue’s shoulders were shaking that she was crying. She immediately went into protective mother mode.
“She is crying. What has that man done to her to make her cry? I have to get in there before he upsets her even more.”
Carla went to remove the apron she was wearing and stopped when she felt her husband’s hand on her arm.
“I am willing to bet that those are happy tears.” He smiled when he saw the confused look on her face. “Jack just told me how much he cares for her. I don’t think he has done that before, at least not to anyone but her. She was almost in tears then. That is why I came in here, to give them a bit of space to talk.” Paul explained.
“Paul, you know as well as I do that she has never had a proper boyfriend. How do we know that Jack isn’t just taking advantage of her? You know what their generation is like. I’ve seen in happen to her before. I don’t want to believe that Jack would do that, I think he is a lovely young man, but I have to think about my daughter.”
“I don’t believe Jack is like that Carla. Just look at them together. The look in his eyes when he looks at her tells you everything. He loves our little girl. We couldn’t ask for anything more.”Taking another look, Jack had now released Sue and she could see that they were talking. He lifted his hand and brushed away a stray tear with his thumb. Occasionally he would smile at her and break into small laughs. She could see their entwined hands and the look in his eyes was just as Paul had said it was.
“He is definitely smitten.”
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