JENNIE
"Hey, girl!" Jihyo greets me with a hug when Lisa, Lily and I arrive at Lisa's father's farm.
"Hi, it's so nice to see you again." I hug her back and turn to the boy at her side. "And you must be Cameron."
Cameron nods and stares up at me while he sucks on his Popsicle, then spots Lily going into the kitchen and follows her.
"Sorry, he's a bit shy sometimes. He'll be talking your head off in an hour, just warning you." Jihyo looks me over and shakes her head with a smile, as if she can't quite believe I'm here. "I'm so glad you could come today. And so are Jackie and Frank."
"Did I hear my name?" An older woman comes out of the kitchen with a tray of marinated steaks that she places next to the grill. She's dressed casually in a T-shirt and shorts, and her gray hair is pulled into a messy topknot. When she spots me, her face breaks into a huge smile and she rushes toward me. "Here she is," she says, pulling me into a hug. "Jennie. Finally, I get to meet you." She rubs my arm and looks me up and down. "I'm Jackie."
"It's so nice to meet you too, and thank you so much for having me over."
"The pleasure is all ours," she says, then yells over her shoulder: "Hey, Frank! Come on out here, Lisa and Jennie have arrived."
"I know, give me a moment I've got a little devil back here hampering my vision." Lisa's father laughs as he comes out. He's got Lily on his shoulders and she's covering his eyes with her hands. "Jennie?" He says, trying to see through the gaps. "Let me put this troublemaker down, so I can say hi properly." He lifts Lily off his shoulders and tickles her until she screeches and runs off. Still laughing, he shakes my hand. "Frank. Lisa's father. Welcome to my humble abode."
"Thank you, I'm so glad to be here." We take each other in; Frank undoubtedly trying to work out what kind of person I am and whether he deems me good enough for his daughter, and me slightly nervous as he's one of the most important people in her life. I don't see a resemblance; he's much more rugged in his features and his eyes are gray. Then he smiles widely, and I know we're going to get along.
"You must be in need of a drink," he says, gesturing to the table. "Why don't you sit down and let Jackie pour you a glass of punch? I'm just finishing something in the kitchen."
"Are you seriously cooking, Dad?" Lisa asks, hugging him.
"I'm trying. Under the strict tutelage of Jackie," he adds with a grin. "What?" Frank raises a brow when Lisa shoots him a confused look. "It's not just a special occasion, it's a monumental one. Not only are we celebrating the Fourth of July but this is also the first time you've brought a girlfriend home."
"Okay…" Lisa blushes, which makes him laugh out loud before he disappears back into the kitchen.
"Never mind your father. He's just a tease," Jackie says, pouring us both a glass of rum punch. She tops up her own and Jihyo's glass, then joins us at the table.
"Should I go help him?" I ask.
Jackie shakes her head. "No, honey. You just relax and enjoy yourself. He genuinely wanted to do everything himself and he wasn't joking when he said he was under strict orders. I wrote everything down for him word for word and helped him chop, but other than that, it's all him."
We sit and chat and enjoy the weather while we get to know each other, and after a while Frank joins us with a whiskey and a cigar. He's a lovely man; funny and warm for someone who has not had an easy life, but then so is Lisa. His home is genuinely one of the sweetest farms I've seen in the Hamptons. Although the house is old and small and needs a lot of work, it's got a lot of charm and the yard is simply idyllic, with sheep and chickens roaming around freely, grazing from the field that is awash with wildflowers. The wooden barn in the back is painted yellow, the color matching the windowsills and the door of the white house that has ivy growing up the walls. Behind the stone wall that surrounds the land is another field and, in the distance, I can see the dunes. We're sitting at a long, wooden table that is laid out in the backyard, just in front of the kitchen door and the grill is lit, the fumes of grilled corn filling the air with the scent of the Fourth.
"Are you okay? Is everyone being nice to you?" Lisa asks when we get a moment to ourselves. Jackie and Jihyo have taken the kids to the barn while her father focuses on the steaks behind the grill further down the terrace. She's relaxed a little herself now and has draped an arm over the backrest of my chair.
"Yes, they're lovely. I feel really at ease with them."
"Good." She winks at me and I go all gooey inside. "They clearly like you too. I've rarely seen my father so excited."
I glance at her father who is whistling a tune while he throws more charcoal onto the grill. "And your father and Jackie are not together, you said? They seem like a couple to me."
"No, they're just best friends, but having them both in my life meant that we were almost like a normal family when I grew up and that was nice."
"I can see how that must have made all the difference after your mom passed away. My parents weren't around very much when I was younger. My father desperately wanted a son as an heir but after complications during my birth, my mother couldn't have any more kids and he was simply never that interested in me." I let out a sarcastic chuckle. "My mother was sweet and even a little maternal, but I was raised by nannies and even now, she's more invested in her cats than in me."
"Ouch. Was it hard, growing up like that?"
"Not really," I say after a moment's hesitation. "I didn't have a bad childhood; I was just very independent and when I had a family of my own, I poured all my energy into my children and husband because I wanted my children to have what I never had. A loving, wholesome home, you know? But in the process, I failed to acknowledge what it was that I needed."
"There's plenty of time to make up for that now." Lisa strokes my shoulder and plays with a lock of my hair. "Do you miss your father?"
"Sometimes. But as I said, he was never a big part of my life. I was actually surprised he left me so much money in his will. It was split fifty-fifty with my mother." I smile and steal a quick kiss, then move my chair closer and lean into her. "If you'd asked me a year ago, this is far from what I thought my Fourth of July would look like." The sun is lowering behind the barn and the fields look so peaceful, the golden light giving our surroundings a vintage sepia glow. "Thank you. This is really nice."
"I agree. Best Fourth of July ever, and all because you're here." Lisa locks her eyes with mine. "Lily just asked me if she could stay with Jackie tonight. Do you want to come home with me?"
