Hunter ran out of the kitchen and hugged Gage in the front hall.
Camp started barking for no apparent reason.
Jase picked up the suitcases and looked at the antique grandfather clock in the entry hall. He lifted his head toward the stairs and shouted, “We’re going to miss the plane, sweetie!” He always referred to Luis as sweetie when he was slightly annoyed.
A second later, Luis jogged down the stairs, carrying a small briefcase that contained his laptop. He hugged Gage and told Jase, “I just wanted to make sure I have everything so I can work on the blog. I’m ready now.”
Jase and Luis had already explained everything to Gage with regard to taking care of Hunter, from what he ate for breakfast to what time he went to bed at night. Gage had come to dinner the night before with Daksha and they’d gone over Hunter’s entire routine. Jase felt comfortable leaving Hunter with Gage, and he trusted his instincts. Besides, he’d already seen how competent Gage could be with Hunter from his weekend at Cider Mill Farm. But Luis hadn’t been there that weekend, and he always worried about what might happen, so he started reciting a long list of things Hunter could and couldn’t do all over again.
Jase hugged and kissed Hunter goodbye. He hugged Gage and said they’d call as soon as they landed in San Francisco. Then he grabbed Luis by the arm and led him out to the cab while Luis was still rambling something about not giving Hunter any sugary drinks while they were gone.
Midway to the curb, Luis yanked his arm out of Jase’s hand and said, “You didn’t give me a chance to kiss him goodbye.” Then he ran back to the front steps and threw his arms around Hunter. He hugged him so hard and kissed him with such force, the poor kid’s eyes popped open. “You do whatever your Uncle Gage says. Okay? And no scary movies.”
“I’ll be fine, Daddy,” Hunter said, rolling his eyes.
“It’s all good, Luis,” Gage said. “Stop worrying and have fun this weekend, buddy. We’ll talk on the phone.”
Luis released his son and hugged his twin brother. Then he jogged to the taxi, where Jase was holding the back door open, staring down at his watch. As the taxi pulled away from the curb, Luis lowered the back window and shouted, “And no candy this weekend. You can call me if you need me. I’ll have my cell phone with me all the time.”
Gage shouted, “Have fun.”
Jase glanced through the rear window and watched Hunter and Gage wave from the front steps. He smiled and said, “Yeah, right. You know Gage is going to give him whatever he wants. I’ll bet Hunter is asking him what scary movies he brought with him right now.” Jase didn’t mind it when Hunter indulged in a few treats; the kid loved scary movies. He was a normal, healthy kid. He wasn’t fat, and he ate good food most of the time. An occasional candy bar or a soda wasn’t going to kill him. And as long as he didn’t have nightmares, what harm could a scary movie do?
“Of course I know that,” Luis said. “I’m not an idiot, Jase. Gage is probably slipping him a chocolate bar right now. I just wanted to say it again, to instill a little guilt. If Hunter is going to eat bad food, at least it won’t taste as good if I make him feel a little guilty about it.”
“Oh, that’s just wrong,” Jase said.
“A little guilt never hurt anyone,” Luis said. “Your grandmother taught me that, and I trust Isabelle’s wisdom. It will help prepare us for when he’s a teenager and he’s exposed to drugs, alcohol, and God knows what else kids will be doing by then.”
“You’re preparing way too far in advance,” Jase said. The kid was only four years old.
“If more parents prepared in advance, they wouldn’t have as many problems when the kids become teenagers,” Luis said. “Isabelle told me that, too. You have to start when they are young. I know exactly what I’m doing. I’m going to drum certain things into his head from now until the day he turns twenty-one.”
Jase couldn’t argue with him. His grandmother had pounded no drugs and no alcohol into his head all his life, and he’d never had any problems as a teenager. He’d had a strict upbringing, but one filled with love. And he’d turned out okay.
Of course the plane was delayed for three hours because of bad weather in the South, and they had to land in Chicago because of severe turbulence and wound up spending six hours there, sitting on hard plastic chairs, listening to a rude young woman with pink and blue hair talk to her boyfriend on a cell phone. Too bad her parents hadn’t been stricter with her. By the time they finally did arrive in San Francisco, it was almost dawn and neither one of them had slept much at all. They slogged off the plane to baggage claim, then shuffled out of the airport and met a man carrying a sign with Jase’s name written with large black letters. He was the guy from the motor home company. He helped them into a black SUV and drove them to the factory outside San Francisco where they were building the electric motor homes.
On the way, Jase yawned and said, “I’m sorry. I should have taken the company jet this time. We would have been here and settled by now.”
Luis was doing something on his iPhone. He’d just called Gage to tell him they’d arrived in San Francisco safely. He didn’t look up. But he said, “It’s okay. We’ll live.”
Jase smiled and placed his palm on Luis’s knee. This was one of the most amazing things about Luis. Though he’d been panic-stricken during the turbulent flight, though he’d been up all night clenching the arms of the seat, he had the ability to turn things around as if nothing had ever happened.
The man from the motor home company set them up in a long, beige motor home with elegant black stripes. The interior had beige leather seats, granite counters, hardwood floors, and a marble shower stall. It reminded Jase of a luxury hotel room. It even had three flat-screen TVs and a built-in computer. Jase had driven motor homes before, so it didn’t take that long for the man to explain the basics. The most important part was how to charge the battery and how to switch over to gasoline if anything happened to the electric power supply. By the time they were ready to leave the factory parking lot and head to the Russian River campground, Jase was experiencing a second wind and he couldn’t wait to get out on the open road.
They drove north for the next two hours, paying attention to the navigation system so they wouldn’t get lost. Jase wasn’t familiar with this part of the country and he’d been watching the way Luis’s eyelids had been dropping. Thankfully, they found the gay campground without any problems at all. So far, Jase was impressed with the way the electric motor home handled. It lost power on inclines, and he didn’t feel comfortable going over sixty miles per hour. But it wasn’t all that different from driving any other motor home.