Jim waved to his brothers as he stepped through the sliding glass door. "Hey, guys." They were sitting on the patio, drinking beers. He noted with dismay the number of empties in front of Pete. Great, he thought contemptuously. Sober, he was a borderline asshole on a good day. Drunk, he was sure to cross the line sooner than later. He cleared his throat. "This is my girlfriend, Pam. Pam, these are my brothers Tom and Pete."

"Nice to meet you," said Tom, rising to shake her hand.

"Nice to meet you, Tom," she said graciously. He was light-haired, and even taller than Jim.

Pete waved from across the table. "How ya doin'?"

She waved back awkwardly. He had dark hair and an even darker look on his face. He stared at the table, eyes unfocused. "I'm good, Pete. How are you?"

"Been worse." Chugging the remainder of his bottle, he rose to grab another from a nearby cooler. She noted apprehensively that he was more than a little unsteady on his feet. Jim rolled his eyes at her, looking embarrassed. With a sympathetic expression, she nodded imperceptibly, understanding implicit between them. Steer clear.

"Hey man," said Tom. "Why don't you grab a beer and chill with us? Been awhile since we caught up."

He glanced at Pam. She repeated the nod. "Yeah, sounds good," he replied easily. "You guys seen 'Riss?"

Tom pointed a thumb across the backyard. "She went for a walk about half an hour ago."

Pam's eyes roved in the direction he pointed. She'd have to take a walk herself at some point, she reflected. The yard was enormous, dense with bushes and trees. She could just make out a brilliant lilac bush blooming here, a patch of rosebushes there. What a wonderful place this would be to grow up, she thought warmly.

"Alright, thanks," Jim replied. Pam followed him around the corner of the house. "Hey, dad!" said Jim.

"Jim!" He set down the grill brush in his hand. They exchanged a manly hug. "Happy Memorial Day. Really good to see you, it's been too long."

"It has," he admitted with an embarrassed chuckle. "Sorry."

"Nah, just givin' you a hard time." He laughed heartily before turning to Pam. "And this is…?"

She held her hand out and cleared her throat. "I'm Pam Beesly. It's great to meet you, Mister Halpert."

"Just Gerald," he introduced himself to her. He looked impressed when she shook his hand firmly.

"It's great to meet you, Gerald," she corrected smoothly. Unlike Betsy, he didn't have an accent. And, like everyone else in the family, he was incredibly tall. She was starting to feel like a dwarf. "We brought a dozen corn for the grill."

"Thank you!" Gerald resumed scrubbing the grill with gusto.

"I just need to wrap it in tinfoil first. How many ears would you like?"

"Seven will be enough. We're not expecting anyone else to show up."

She nodded. "I'll bring it right out. And thanks for cooking. We really appreciate it."

Jim smiled proudly at her. He had no idea what she'd been so worried about. She was an absolute pro. "You need any help over here, Dad?"

"Do I ever?" he asked with a laugh. "This is a one-man operation. Go have fun."

"Thanks," he said. "See you later." He walked with Pam around the corner of the house. "You sure you'll be okay in the kitchen with my mom?"

"Definitely, she's great. You should catch up with your brothers," she told him sincerely. Although she was planning to avoid spending any more time around Pete than absolutely necessary.

He understood. "Alright," he said gratefully. "If you need anything, let me know. I'm gonna talk to my dad real quick, see if they won't cut Pete off." He rolled his eyes, uncomfortably shifting his weight from foot to foot. "If his wife and kids were here, he'd keep it to a reasonable level. But they're not, so…"

She nodded, giving his hand a quick, reassuring squeeze. "You can always come hang out with us girls if he gets to be too much."

He chuckled. "Not really my scene."

"Yeah, yeah." She rolled her eyes fondly at him. "Your sister's name is Larissa, right? Just in case I run into her without you."

"Yeah, but everyone calls her ‘Riss."

"Thanks. See ya ‘round." With a twinkle in her eye, she headed back to the kitchen.

He grinned at her retreating back. She was absolutely perfect.

After expressing his concerns to his father, Jim returned to the patio, grabbing a beer from the cooler along the way. He didn't particularly feel like drinking, but it would be one less for Pete. Pulling up a chair facing the house, he started talking basketball with his brothers. Well, mostly with Tom. Pete was nearly silent, focusing on drinking. The few times he did speak, he slurred his words noticeably. "Hey Pete, you want something to eat?" he offered. He glanced significantly at Tom. Tom looked away, saying nothing.

"Not unless lunch is ready," Pete fired back belligerently. Jim rolled his eyes. Not that he hadn't expected it, but hey. Worth a try.

Soon, Pam stepped out of the house carrying a serving platter of foil-wrapped corn. Jim gave her an easy smile as she passed the table on her way to the grill. She smiled back at him.

At that moment, Larissa began stealing around the shed with an impish grin on her face, one hand behind her back. On the way back from her walk, she had crossed the yard at an angle that, as she was well-aware, would prevent her from being observed. She was close enough now that she could hear the conversation on the patio, while still remaining hidden.

"Hey, what's that?" Tom called out. Larissa froze. He couldn't possibly have seen her approach. No way! Could he?

"Corn for the grill," Pam said with a smile. Larissa breathed a sigh of relief.

"Awesome," Tom replied. To Jim, he said, "You guys brought it?"

He nodded. "Pam's idea."

"Grilled corn," he said appreciatively. "It's been ages."

Pete continued imbibing silently.

With a sincere smile, Gerald thanked Pam for the delivery. As she left, he turned up the radio and rolled the ears onto the grill. She looks Irish to me, he mused approvingly.