Keeley was still trying to formulate an appropriate reply when Violet spoke again, her words coming out in a rush like before.

"I don't even know why he would like me like that! We grew up together; we're practically siblings! How could anyone ever see their childhood friend in a romantic light? n.o.body actually marries people they've known since they were little kids!"

She frowned. Did her dad really never tell Violet about how he met his wife? They had been childhood friends too, though they met when they were a little older than Violet and Noah. And he had missed her until the day he died.

"My parents did," Keeley said simply.

This completely derailed Violet. "What? Grandpa never said anything about that!"

"It's true! They were pretty much the only kids somewhat close in age living in their apartment building so they played together all the time. My mom was his best friend for most of his life; it's why he was never able to move on after her death," Keeley informed her.

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a full minute before Violet thanked her and hung up, telling her to have fun on the last day of her cruise and to say hi to Dad for her. Keeley was pretty sure she knew what that silence meant. She was thinking it over.

Her husband looked up from scrolling through his phone on the bed. "What did Violet need?"

"She broke up with Jeremy because Noah told her he was in love with her and made her choose between them. She needed some motherly advice."

Aaron sighed. "I should have known something like this would happen sooner or later. Did Vi seem upset about the breakup?"

"Not as much as I would have thought considering she supposedly really liked him. I think she was more upset about the thought of losing Noah," Keeley admitted as she sat down next to him.

He shook his head with a small smile on his face. "Well, it's about time Noah said something. It's been what…twelve, thirteen years?"

Honestly, she thought it was longer. That boy had been glued to Violet's said since they were toddlers. Even before he knew what love was it was obvious that he loved their daughter more than anything.

"I hope everything works out okay," she worried. "Losing Noah would crush her. You know he's basically her only real friend."

Aaron patted her hand. "You're worrying for nothing. If she already chose him over her boyfriend she'll realize she's actually in love with him sooner or later. You and I both know that he's the only person she's 100% comfortable around. Kind of like I am with you."

He was right. Violet's personality had always been quite similar to her father's. Both of them were 'one person only' kind of people. She wouldn't risk losing her person for anything.

Everything would work itself out…probably. There was no point worrying about it when they were on a different continent. Violet was an a.d.u.l.t capable of making her own choices.

Keeley smiled at her husband and leaned down to kiss him. "You might be right. Come on. The hot tub beckons."

===

Violet couldn't believe it. Her grandparents had been childhood friends?! How could that be when Grandpa was so deeply in love with his wife that he never got over her? She had always thought they must have had the love story of the century.

Robert didn't talk about his wife much except in pa.s.sing because it had been too painful for him to talk about. Most of what she knew about her grandma came from her mom. But when he did talk about her he had the same kind of soft expression Aaron did when he looked at Keeley.

She had read a lot of romance novels and watched a lot of chick flicks over the years. Most of the characters met and fell in love as a.d.u.l.ts. Even high school sweethearts were rare.

Her dad had fallen in love with her mom as a senior in high school but didn't actively pursue her until he was done with college and she was working on her PhD. The majority of the happily married couples she knew of had met as a.d.u.l.ts as well.

Technically the Quinns had met in high school as well but hadn't started online dating until after graduating. No one she ever met had fallen in love with a friend from early childhood. Except her grandpa, apparently.

Since Robert was gone now, there was only one way to investigate this properly. She needed photo alb.u.ms and home videos her mother had brought over from her dad's apartment after he pa.s.sed away.

"KALEB I NEED YOU!" Violet yelled. She still couldn't get up.

He appeared less than a minute later. "You rang?"

"Could you find Mom's old photo alb.u.ms and home videos for me, pretty please? Make sure you find the ones from when Grandpa and Grandma were kids too. I've never seen those ones before."

Kaleb raised an eyebrow. "Kind of a random request but I guess if you're really bored…they're probably in the top of a closet somewhere. Wish me luck not getting buried in falling things from the top shelf."

"Good luck, soldier."

He shook his head and laughed at how seriously she took his words before walking out the door. Ten minutes later he came back with a stack of alb.u.ms and DVDs in clear plastic cases. He eyed the ancient tech in distaste.

"Mom really needs to transfer these over to digital files. It's lucky we even still have a DVD-compatible player lying around. Anyway, have fun looking at old stuff. What do you want for dinner later?"

Violet thought about it for a moment. "Something with red meat. It's been ages."

Kaleb nodded before heading back out of the entertainment room. "Shout for me when you need someone to put those DVDs in."

"I will, thanks Kal. You're the best." Violet blew him a kiss and he blushed slightly before muttering under his breath about how she was too mushy.

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