“Nova Scotia?” Lorraine glanced out the window of the private jet.

“It’s gorgeous there, Lo’,” Griffin said. “Elton John and Billy Joel own summer homes there, at least I think they do. Anyway, it’s one of the most beautiful parts of the world. And I got your dad an invite to spend the day on the set of that show he likes so much.”

“You did, really?”

“Yeah, but don’t tell him, I want it to be a surprise.”

“He’s gonna flip. What time do they fly in?”

“Six-thirty. We’ll get there early, have a little snack while we’re waiting, a limo’ll be waiting to pick us up, take us to the hotel.”

Lorraine cuddled little Kayla. “I hope Jeremy has fun in Jamaica.”

“He’s got as good a chance as anyone.” They chuckled.

“I hope he stays safe. We should have insisted he go to Hawaii instead.”

Griffin chuckled. “I think Jeremy’ll be just fine. He’s not exactly a big risk-taker these days.”

“Yeah … ” She attracted Griffin’s attention, and she explained, “Well, I feel like that’s my fault. He used to be so … so outgoing, y’know? But, after Denver, he’s just kind’a closed up.”

Ashe looked over from his seat next to the window. “He’s sad because he’s not in love with anyone.”

Griffin and Lorraine turned with keen interest, on Griffin’s part especially. “What do you know about it, son? Has he been talking to you about that kind of thing?”

Lorraine asked, “What kind of thing?” Griffin’s silent response was all the answer she needed.

Ashe tilted his head and arched his shoulders. “He didn’t say anything, I can just tell. Remember after Mom died … ” Ashe glanced at Lorraine with a vaguely guilty expression.

But, Lorraine just said, “It’s okay, Ashe, she was your mom, I understand that.”

Ashe couldn’t shake that bad feeling, but he did push through it. “Anyway, Dad, you were kind of the same way. Not like me, I mean, but … you were kinda just sad all the time, y’know?”

Griffin smiled softly. “Yeah, I know.”

“And I was really sad, really really sad … ” The bygone misery seemed to return to Ashe’s face, brows arching, mouth twisting in a tearful frown. Lorraine leaned into Griffin’s loving embrace, a single tear rolling down her own cheek. “But, even though it’s kinda different,” Ashe went on, “it’s also kinda the same, y’know what I mean?”

Griffin wiped away his own tear. “Yes, son, yes I do.”

* * *

The Pictou Lodge Beachfront Resort was rustic and windswept, the early summer already ripening over the Atlantic Ocean. The crisp Canadian air was bracing in Lorraine’s lungs, so different than the air in New York, which she quickly realized was terribly polluted by comparison. That star-starved sky above the Big Apple was bursting with stars over the Canadian wilderness, Halifax’s city lights no match for that celestial masterpiece.

Sally poured herself another martini and glanced around Lorraine and Griffin’s suite, next door to their own. “It’s quite charming, dear, really. I never would have thought of Nova Scotia as a tourist destination — ”

Larry looked up from his chess game with Ashe. “Quick and instantly, the boys shoot nearby,”

Griffin and Lorraine shared a knowing glance before Griffin said, “Coincidentally, Sally, we’ve got a day planned for you at the best spa in town.”

Genuine disappointment registered in Sally’s expression, eyebrows rising, mouth sinking. “I thought I was going to be spending time with the kids?”

“They’ve got five-star childcare for Kayla, and for you; hot stone therapy, mud baths, deep tissue massage, saunas, hot tubs … ”

“Well, that’s very sweet, but — ”

Lorraine added, “Open bar.”

“ — Well, I certainly wouldn’t want to be rude.” Lorraine and Griffin chuckled, turning to Larry. “You and Ashe have something else goin’, we’ll let that be a surprise.”

Larry repeated, “A surprise? Sounds interesting,”

“Tomorrow we’re spending the day together, as a family.”

Sally and Larry both smiled, Ashe nodding with anticipation. He knew what the plan was, and like his parents, he couldn’t wait.

* * *

Griffin hired a fifty-foot yacht for the day, with a full crew to pilot, cook, and serve. They were quiet and polite and stayed out of sight when they weren't serving the delicious seafood banquet, foods prepared specially for the baby, cocktails for the adults.

The Best of Times headed east toward Sable Island, the Atlantic Ocean choppy and energetic around them. Lorraine had to concentrate to keep from becoming aroused, knowing this would be just the time and place Griffin would lure her down to a private room and break yet another taboo. The many times they’d rutted on his own yacht brought back sweet and spicy memories.

Phantom pain returned to Lorraine’s belly, her body lurching forward just a bit. Griffin looked at her with silent concern, but she offered him a reassuring smile and looked out over the amazing view.

There were other things on Lorraine’s mind, nothing lethal, if perhaps still vital. She said, “Grif, back in the jet, on the flight from New York, you said to Ashe, about Jeremy — ”

“No, Lorraine.”

After a tense moment, she said, “I think I have a right to — ”

“I mean, no, Lorraine, I’m not a homophobe.”

“Well, I wouldn’t have thought so, but, the way you talked about it — ”

“It’s not appropriate for Jeremy to share the details of his personal life with Ashe, regardless of the … nature of that personal life. He’s an impressionable kid, Lorraine, and these are important years for him.”

“You’re afraid Jeremy’s going to indoctrinate him in his gay agenda?”

“No, Lorraine, no. I’m the one who hired Jeremy. I knew what his whole scene was, I didn’t care then and I don’t care now. But, I don’t want anybody unloading their personal baggage on my son. He’s got enough of that on his own, and you know that.”

“No, you’re … you’re right about that, Griffin.”

Griffin twitched, turning his head with some quick revelation. “No, actually, I’m not.”

“Griffin?”

“He’s our son, not my son. I misspoke, I apologize.” They shared a tender and nurturing smile. Lorraine couldn’t help notice Ashe looking at them from nearby, head downcast before he looked out over the ocean.

Sally and Larry shared a worried glance, Sally shaking her head, rolling her eyes and taking a sip of her martini.

Something caught Ashe’s eye, and he pointed to the waters just off the starboard side of the yacht. “Look, look at that!”