They turned right toward the river.
“That’s the bridge ahead,” Danny said. “It was built in the late eighteen hundreds. When I was a kid, you could still drive on it. Now it’s only for pedestrians.” They slowed to a walk as they came to the historic site.
“It’s gorgeous,” she said. “Like out ofThe Notebook.” The stream ran into a lake and all the trees were budding with new spring leaves in light green. A few families with young children were there with fishing poles and picnic baskets.
“Here, let me take your picture for you,” Danny offered. “Something you can send to your friends back home.”
“Oh, okay. Sure.” Dot stood in front of the bridge, hands on her hips, feeling a little awkward.
Danny snapped a few photos from different angles, like he knew how to be a good Instagram boyfriend.
“All for the ’gram,” Dot joked, taking back her phone and texting the shot to the family chat.
“I wouldn’t know. I don’t have any social media.”
“You don’t?” she asked, surprised and impressed.
“Nah. I tried it for a while. I just never got anything out of it. And I just really don’t like comparing myself to others. I’ve got enough pressure without trying to keep up.”
Dot took that in. She thought about what Jeanie told her. How Danny had suffered such heartbreak when his fiancé and unborn baby girl were killed in that accident.
“You’re right. That’s the awful part. ‘Compare and despair,’ my grandmother would say. But I use it for work a lot. And I send my sister tons of funny dog videos.”
“I’ve seen some of those. If there was only dog content on the Internet, we’d all be better off.”
“Agree.” They smiled at each other and held each other’s gaze, lingering past the point of casual.
“Thanks for bringing me here. It’s beautiful,” Dot said, forcing her eyes to look around.
“You bet. I figured if you’re only going to be here a short while, you should see the sights.”
Dot did the math quickly in her head. She only had six months left in Cedar Falls. Suddenly, that didn’t feel like enough time.
Chapter 29
In late May, Dot and Fletcher headed to Milwaukee for the annual Wisconsin Democrats state convention. As the election neared, it was clear that Wisconsin was the must-win state for both sides. Its ten electoral votes could literally be the difference maker for the presidency. There was a lot on the line, and Kitty Bell wanted For the Win to be up front and center at this meeting.
Since the convention started early on the Saturday morning, Fletcher suggested they go the Friday night before and visit one of the restaurants his parents had told him about. Dot had never spent time in Milwaukee, so she agreed. In an instant, she envisioned them together at their table sharing a bottle of wine, her head thrown back in laughter, him looking sharp in open collar and blazer. “Snap out of it!” she told herself. This is a work dinner, not a date dinner. But still, the image stuck in her mind.
“You’re going to spend the night withFletcherinMilwaukee?” Mary teased. “You should do something I would do... have some fun. He’s gorgeous!”
“I’m not spending thenightwith him, Mary. We’re going to a work function and leaving the night before because it starts early. That’s all,” she said.
“Oh, okay. Keep telling yourself that.” She threw a piece of popcorn Dot’s way.
Exasperated and blushing, Dot took her beige Madewell trench out of the closet.
“Tell her she’s crazy, Pippi,” Dot said to the dog sitting in Harper’s lap. No owner had ever come forward to claim the little dog, so Harper had kept her. She named her after her favorite character from her childhood bookshelf.
“Pippi,” she said, whenever a passerby asked her name. “As in Longstocking.” Harper had become very attached to the little dog, despite being allergic. She told Mary and Dot that she was getting used to it, but she’d succumbed to taking a heavy dose of Zyrtec every day.
“Mary’s definitely crazy, Dot. How can you leave me here alone with her for two days? We’ll probably end up in jail.”
“That’s the spirit, Harper. It’s about time you got into trouble,” Mary said, raising her Stanley to toast the moment.
“Well, Mary wants to get into trouble so she can have a reason to call Hot Cop Jake,” Dot said.
“Sometimes you have to break the law,” Mary said, looking out the big kitchen window and thinking about it.