she finally tied the knot and I wasn’t here,” Becky says. “This is really good, by the way. Your mom told me you’ve turned into a whiz in the kitchen.”
“She did?” I’m surprised and flattered, but I can’t let an unexpected compliment derail me. “But I still don’t know what you’re doing here. No offense.”
“None taken, lamb chop. I had to deliver the goods.”
Becky unzips her faux–army issue backpack and hands a jewelry box to my dad.
“Is that . . . ?”
“The ring I bought for your mom before you were born, just in case she ever said yes.” He hands me the box and I lift the lid. There’s one big round diamond surrounded by a bunch of smaller ones in a platinum setting.
“Whoa.”
“Do you think she’ll like it?” Dad asks.
“Hasn’t she seen it before?”
Dad shakes his head, and there’s a sparkle in his eye I haven’t seen since I can’t remember when. “When she said yes, I wanted it to be because of me, and not for a new, shiny ring.”
“That’s such a shrink thing to say.” I take the ring out of the box and slip it on my finger. I hope that’s not bad luck, but I figure our luck can’t get any worse. “She’s going to love it. So how are you going to give it to her?”
“I haven’t figured that part out yet.”
“It might be cool if you let Alexis propose this time,” Becky says.
“Interesting,” Dad says.
“The trick is going to be getting her to do it,” Becky thinks out loud, resting a finger thoughtfully on her chin. They look at each other, their expressions changing like they’re communicating with their eyes. Then they both turn to look at me. “You guys were thinking they’d just start the ceremony right away?”
I shrug. “I think so.”
“Maybe you suggest it to her,” Dad says.
“Suggest what?” I ask. “Proposing?”
“Why not?” he asks.
“Because.” But I can’t think of a good reason. I give a little harrumph and stand up. I think better when I’m pacing. I grab the blue yoyo off the coffee table, mindlessly doing the tricks Dad taught me as I walk back and forth at the foot of his bed. How can I pull this off?
“It’s like looking at a clone,” Becky says. I stop pacing and yank the yoyo back into my palm before shooting her a dirty look. I can’t help it if my mom paces, too. “Don’t stop on my account,” she says.
“I could text her with the idea,” I say, walking back and forth again, letting the yoyo drop before flicking my wrist to pull it back up. “Jack’s probably still doing her hair.”
“Jack’s here?” Dad sounds surprised.
“Great, I spoiled the one secret that’s left.” I stop pacing and sit back down on the bed.
“If I go over there, she’ll be worried about you being here alone.”
“Say that Dolly got here early,” Dad suggests.
“Who’s Dolly?” Becky asks.
“One of the hospice nurses,” I tell her. “She’s really nice.”
“When she gets here, can I sing ‘Hello, Dolly, well, hello, Dolly!’?” Becky starts doing jazz hands as she sings.
“I’m sure she’s never heard that one before,” Dad says.
Becky shrugs. “It’s better than a Dolly Parton joke.”
“Can we get back on track, people?” Sometimes it seems like I’m the only grown-up around here.
“I think this could work,” Becky says, back to business. “You can go over early and tell her you realized she missed a step—she can’t have a wedding without a proposal, so she needs to propose first.”
“But how? And when?”
“Right after your dad gets there, when it’s just the two of them.”
“But she’ll be in her dress—he’ll see her.”
“That doesn’t matter, none of this is traditional.” Becky looks at my dad. “No offense.”
He smiles. “None taken.”
“When she asks you if you’ll marry her, you can take the ring out and surprise her right back,” Becky says.
Dad runs his hand over his head the way he always does when he’s trying to process something. “It could work.”
“You think?” I ask him.
Dad shrugs. “It hasn’t worked the other seventy-two times I’ve asked, but what’s one more try?” He laughs but stops himself before it turns into a coughing fit.
“It’s a good thing they say the seventy-third time is the charm,” Becky says.
I shake my head. “No one says that.”
“Well, maybe they’ll start now.” Dad smiles and I realize this is the happiest I’ve seen him since before he got sick. Or at least since he taught me how to drive—he did seem pretty happy that