(Complete) When Tim Burke meets Julie at a party, she isn't impressed. When they see each other again, Julie decides to give him a chance. As Julie faces burdens and sorrow in her own life, Tim and his family provide the support and love she needs...
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They left early on Saturday morning to visit Tim's family. Tim was driving his new-to-him car to Maine for the long Memorial Day weekend. When he decided to buy a car, she told him if he planned to meet her father it had better be an American car. He played it safe and chose a nineteen-eighty-three Chevy Chevette. Having the car made it much easier for him to visit for a few hours after work.
Tim told her they might hit traffic once they reached New Hampshire and Maine. Similar to the Massachusetts Turnpike, which was the most direct route between Boston and Julie's hometown, the Maine Turnpike had tolls. Tim reached out and grabbed a ticket and handed it to Julie to hold.
"We'll get off at exit 8. See how it shows you the miles between the exits. You can track our progress. Nicky likes to do that."
"Are you telling me I am as impatient as a nine-year-old?"
"Not normally, but you have been fidgeting. Are you excited or anxious?"
How could he read her so well? She was excited about seeing Nick and Clare again but nervous to meet his parents.
"This whole trip is new to me. We've never spent this much time together and meeting your parents."
"Don't worry about my parents and as for me, if you get tired of my face, you can take some time on your own to read. No one would think you were being rude. A weekend away is meant for relaxing."
Tim knew Julie liked to read. They traveled for a while before Tim pointed to a road sign showing the next exit, number three, was for Kennebunk. "President Bush's summer home is off that exit."
Julie knew from the news the summer White House was in Maine. "Can you see his house?"
"I've never tried, but I think it's private. It's on a point, so it's surrounded by water on three sides. I don't go to the ocean often, but if you want, I can take you."
"No, but we're going to the lake, right?"
"Definitely."
Tim had told her so much about the time his family spent at their camp on the lake. She still wasn't sure what to expect. They passed an exit for a beach. "Thirteen more miles."
Tim turned to her for a quick smile before putting his eyes back on the road.
"They are all excited you're coming. It will be fine."
"What about your father? What's he like?"
"Everyone says I'm like him, so I guess he's like me."
Julie couldn't believe a man of their parents' generation could be anything like Tim. In her mind, he was one of a kind. She would trust him to help make her feel comfortable throughout the weekend.
The thirteen miles disappeared behind them and once off the highway they drove for almost twenty minutes before Tim turned into a side street off the main road. She was surprised to see the small houses. They were bigger than the ranch slab she grew up in, but not any different from some of the capes in her neighborhood.
