Free Remembering You by Tricia Goyer Page A

have to sort through one of these days. Better not.”
    Ava wanted to argue, but she decided to just pick out something nice and give it to him later.
    “Okay, I’ll be back in five minutes.” She checked her purse to find her wallet and then hurried outside.
    She’d just finished paying for a few postcards and a watercolor print of the Seine that would look nice in her grandfather’s dining room when someone approached from behind and grabbed her elbow. Ava froze and sucked in a breath. She clutched her purse tighter and took two quick steps away, turning to eye her perpetrator. Her heartbeat stilled and then began pounding again when she saw that it was Dennis.
    “What are you doing? Are you crazy?” Ava spouted. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack? I should have figured it was you— Dennis the Menace .”
    “Sorry, Ava-tude . I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to let you know we were back.”

    “Back?”
    “Yeah, Grand-Paul wasn’t happy with breakfast. He said he needed protein, so we headed to an American café a few blocks away and had ham and eggs.”
    Ava nodded, trying not to be upset that they had not been invited. She now understood that just because they were going to travel together didn’t mean they’d be doing everything together.
    “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to load up. How about I run and get the car and you get the guys to the sidewalk.”
    “Sure.”
    Twenty minutes later, Ava sat in the front next to Dennis. He’d scowled when he saw her luggage, so she’d pushed him aside to load it herself. She didn’t understand why Dennis was making a big deal about it. It was as if he was trying to stir up trouble.
    Their grandfathers sat in the backseat, with Grand-Paul behind Ava. Before he started the engine, Dennis bowed his head.
    “Dear God, You guided the Israelites across the desert. If You could get us to Bastogne today, it would be greatly appreciated. So glad You know the path and the journey, Lord. Amen.” Dennis finished praying, and then he glanced over at Ava. “My mom always prayed the Israelite prayer whenever we headed out on a long trip. It never fit as well as it did today. Strange people in a new land.”
    “And, Lord, in fewer than forty years would be great,” Grandpa Jack quipped.
    “Amen,” Grand-Paul chimed in.
    Dennis smiled, giving Ava hope for the trip ahead. She liked it better when he smiled.
    Dennis started the engine, glancing into the rearview mirror at Grandpa Jack. “Is my navigator ready?”

    Her grandfather unfolded a roadmap on his lap. She’d heard long ago that her grandfather had been put into the recon unit because of his sense of direction. Maybe it was Paul who’d said it. She only hoped Paul wasn’t being sarcastic.
    “Go out of the parking garage and make a right and then your first left,” Grandpa Jack ordered. She glanced into the backseat, noticing her grandfather’s eyes were bright.
    Dennis left the parking garage and did as he was told. As they merged into traffic, Ava let out a sigh, relinquishing all the things she’d hoped to see in Paris: Notre Dame Cathedral, the Catacombs, the Louvre, especially the top of the Eiffel Tower. There were still plenty of years for her to return. Grandpa Jack and Grand-Paul, she knew, didn’t have that luxury.
    From the corner of her eye, she saw Grandpa Jack marking out the route with his finger. “If we follow this road, it will take us by the Arc de Triomphe, and then we can get a better view of the Eiffel Tower on our way out of town.”
    “That sounds like a good plan. Are you sure you don’t want to go to the top?” Ava asked.
    “No.” Grandpa Jack sighed. “Just like last time, we have a greater calling. We need to head to Belgium.”
    “Amen!” Grand-Paul called out again. Laughter filled the car.
    Dennis drove around a roundabout. When they paused for a traffic light, Ava spotted the Eiffel Tower in the distance, and she wished the old guys would