“Azure?” Paw Paw said. “That’s a pretty name.”

“Melissa married a man named Shawn Cates.”

“Do they have children?” G said.

“I’m not sure. I guess I’ll find out if we meet.”

“If?” G said.

“I’m still thinking about it. All the ramifications. It didn’t seem like Brian was ready to talk.”

“Hmm,” G said.

“Melissa said she and her husband, Shawn, actually don’t live that far from Brian and Azure.”

“Did Brian give a reason for not being ready to talk?” Susan said.

“No, he didn’t. I guess it’s just a lot for him to process.”

“Who spends a lot to play chess?” Paw Paw said.

G repeated what David had said to Paw Paw a little louder and David saw his mother smile at the way she cared for him.

“How is Melissa?” G said.

“She’s nice,” David said. “She’s a little paranoid of social media.”

“I can understand that,” his dad said. “I don’t really like it either.”

“We’ve written back and forth several times,” David said. “And she still wants to meet.”

“Do you know what you’d say to her?” his mom said.

David thought for a moment, warmed by the fire. He looked at his mother and said, “Thank you.”

“I’d thank her too,” Paw Paw said. “She gave us our grandson.”

They ate the rest of the s’mores and talked until late in the night. Before Paw Paw went to his tent, he took David aside.

“Have you used those train tickets you got for your birthday?”

“No, I haven’t decided where I want to go.”

Paw Paw nodded and it looked like he had an idea.

“What?” David said. “Where do you think I ought to go?”

“Oh, that’s tee-totally up to you. I was just thinking it would be nice for you to have a place you want to go instead of have to.”

He patted David on the back. “Good night.”

As David zipped up his tent, he looked through the net at the stars and the glowing remnants of campfires reflected on the lake. He appreciated Nate, but he was glad his friend hadn’t come with them or the fishing and campfire would have turned into a Cecil B. DeMille production.

He lay back in his sleeping bag and wondered about Melissa and Brian. Was there conflict between them? Was he walking into something he might regret?

And then he recalled the story his mother often told about why Melissa had chosen her. She wanted someone who could bait a hook for herself, someone who could raise David well and teach him to fish. And his mother had done just that.