“A man after my own heart!” Larry said, and then winked at Karen. “Sugar, why don’t you and Ava bring us something cold to drink while I finish up these steaks.”

Ava gave Hunt a questioning look.

“You know what I like. I’ll take anything you bring me,” he said.

She smiled and followed her mother into the house.

Karen opened the refrigerator. “I’m taking your daddy a beer because you know he thinks he has to have beer when he grills. What do you think Hunt wants?”

Ava didn’t even hesitate. “He wants me, Mama. And I want him. When he leaves Blessings, I’m going with him. Be happy for us, because I have never been so happy in my life.”

Karen squealed, then hugged Ava over and over, laughing and crying.

Unaware of the revelation, Larry was moving steaks around to make sure they didn’t overcook, when Hunt walked up beside him.

“Sir…I’m gonna marry your daughter.”

Larry blinked again, and then grinned. “Okay, then you need to drop the ‘sir’ and call me Larry. I have to say, that’s an interesting conversation opening, but I was beginning to think I’d never hear those words come out of any man’s mouth. Welcome to the family, Hunt! Proud to have you!”

Hunt exhaled softly. He’d done the hard part. Loving Ava for the rest of his life was going to be easy.

Karen came bouncing out of the house carrying a longneck bottle of beer, and Ava had one for Hunt.

The smiles on their faces said it all.

Larry elbowed Hunt. “It appears that Ava might have just told her mama what you told me. As you can tell, we’re very happy for the both of you,” Larry said. “Now, out of curiosity, where the hell have you been all these years, and what do you do for a living?”

It wasn’t something Hunt wanted to repeat, but they deserved to know why he’d disappeared from Blessings.

“I flew choppers for the army for seven years. Now I fly choppers for an oil company out of Houston, mostly ferrying roughnecks back and forth to offshore drilling rigs up and down the Texas and Louisiana coast.”

Karen gasped, and the smile slid from Larry’s face. “Holy shit, son. You went to war, didn’t you?”

Hunt nodded.

Larry swallowed past a sudden lump in his throat.

“Then, thank you for your service.”

Hunt pointed at the steaks. “Looks like your steaks are about done.”

And just like that, Larry knew talking about that was off-limits.

“Whoops, you’re right! If you’ll grab that platter, I’ll get them off the grill.”

A couple of minutes later, they all went inside with the steaks. Ava and Karen already had everything else on the table, and when the men came in, Karen turned around and gave Hunt a big hug.