It was Friday morning. Five days had passed since they'd met with McAllister, five slow days as far as Jigsaw was concerned. He went to work every day in the shop with Toolie, unless Dax needed him at the construction site and then he went there...but even when he was working, he couldn't keep his mind off what was going to happen on Monday morning. He also couldn't stop the memories from flooding his brain now that he'd opened the dam. He was reaching way back...little bits and pieces of what life was like before his parents died seeped in. He had a vague memory of his mother's face, a pretty dark-haired lady with big brown eyes and a sweet smile. The memories he had of his father were even vaguer. He just remembered him as a giant, and that could just be because the last time he saw him he was only four years old.

He had a lot of memories of Mamaw now though, and she was really something. She loved to dance. She told the boys that she could have been a famous dancer if she hadn't met and fallen in love with their grandfather before getting her big break. She danced while she cooked, while she cleaned and sometimes even while she watched TV. Sometimes one of the boys would dance with her, but mostly they just giggled at how silly it was for an old woman to use a vacuum or a broom as a dance partner. She was super smart. Jigsaw remembered that she read everything she could get her hands on and there wasn't ever a question either boy asked her that she didn't know the answer to...or at least where to find it in a jiffy. She went to church every Sunday and she wanted the boys to go too...but, she told them their relationship to God was up to them and when they got old enough to stay home alone, she left the choice of whether to stay or go, up to them. Being pre-adolescent boys, they chose to stay home and sleep for the most part. Every now and then Beau would go with her, just so she didn't feel bad. Nick had a thicker skin than his brother and he had no problem sleeping in until noon on Sunday and skipping the whole thing. She was strict and she demanded respect, but when one of them were hurt or sick, she could be the softest, most nurturing woman on the planet. He missed her and he'd give anything to go back in time and dance with her or get up more Sunday mornings and go to church with her. He learned at a young age that life is short and you should spend as much time with the people you love as you can. That had worked to his detriment in Natalie's case...or maybe it hadn't. Most of the memories he had of his relationship with Natalie were wrought with angst. He thought he was in love with her then, but when he thought back on it now he wondered if he had confused love with the feelings of protectiveness he had toward her. Something about her had made him want to be her guardian angel right from the second he met her. Eventually however, she got tired of him being around all the time and her pushing him away only made him think he needed to try harder. He couldn't see it then, but in hindsight he could see that it had been a miserable relationship between two lonely people that had no idea what they were looking for. He knew she was with Vince now, and he hoped that she was happy. But, he also knew that he couldn't get closure on the past without talking to her face to face at some point...and that he was dreading.

All of these thoughts were running through his head as he took one of the bike engines apart. He could take an engine apart in his sleep, so at least his work wasn't affected by the chaos in his head. But apparently, it was affecting his senses since he didn't see or hear Callie come into the shop. “Hey! Jig!” She was right next to his face before he finally saw her. His body jerked in surprise and he almost dropped the heavy wrench he was holding.

“Damn Callie! You could give a guy a heart attack, sneaking up on him like that.”

She shook her head. “I've been calling your name since I walked in. Where were you, in outer space?”

He chuckled. “Something like that, I've got a lot on my mind.” What can I do for you?”

She raised an eyebrow and put her hands on her hips. “Hopefully one of those things on your mind is your old lady's birthday?”

“Birthday? Oh fuck! What's the date today?”

“February ninth.”

“Shit! Damn it!”

Callie stood there with her arms folded while he cursed himself and when he seemed to be finished she said, “So apparently it wasn't one of the things on your mind. That's too bad because I was going to tell you that the veterinarian I work for had to cancel his dinner reservations tonight and he asked me if I wanted them. Handsome is busy tonight so I thought I'd pass them on to you...but, if you don't want them...”

“I want them!” Damn it! This was going to be her first birthday they were together. He'd planned what he wanted to do in his head a thousand times at least. He couldn't believe he forgot!

Callie smiled. “Good. Go tell her right now so she has time to decide what to wear.”

“Don't tell her I forgot?”

“Not as long as you do her right,” Callie said. “I'll text you the information about the restaurant.”

Jigsaw started to leave but came back and grabbed Callie up in a hug that almost crushed her. “Thank you. She'll have the best birthday ever if it kills me.” Callie was still trying to get her breath when he left to find Kimber. He had a lot to do, and not much time to do it.