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“I’m glad Hannah is staying with Til tonight,” Elijah told Sean as they walked through the front door of the cabin. “Does that make me a bad brother?”
“Of course not.” Sean gave him a sympathetic look. “Everyone was understandably tense tonight, but tomorrow will be a better day.”
“I hope you're right. I didn't expect Hannah to say anything insulting to you or Til, but it would have been nice if she'd been a little friendlier toward you.”
Sean didn’t appear to be worried. “Everyone made it through dinner unscathed, and I think that's a good sign." He added a log to the fireplace, building up the dying fire so it once again blazed and crackled in the hearth. Turning around to face Elijah he said, "It really feels like winter. I wouldn't be surprised if we get our first snow soon." When Elijah didn't respond, Sean said, "Elijah, you need to relax. There’s no quick fix for this. I know how much you want Hannah to like me. I want that, too, but this isn’t something you can rush. She has to come around in her own time.”
“What if she doesn’t come around?” Elijah ran his fingers through his dark hair, making the ends of his already unruly locks stick up even more. “I know I shouldn’t care so much about what Hannah thinks, but...”
“Calm down, love,” Sean tried. “There's nothing wrong with wanting your sister's approval. She's important to you, but you’re getting ahead of yourself. Hannah hasn’t even been here for one day. You can’t know how she’s going to feel by the time she’s ready to go home.”
“Hannah was pretty quiet when she and Til came back downstairs,” Elijah noted. “What do you think they were talking about when they were alone?”
“Knowing Til, she probably tried to smooth the way for me,” said Sean. “I’m hoping she’ll be able to get through to Hannah. She is a very wise woman.” He winked. “Plus she loves to meddle.”
That made Elijah giggle. “At least she does her meddling for good. It must be nice having family that cares.”
“You do have family that cares,” Sean reminded him. “Hannah came here to make sure I was good enough for you. She wouldn’t have done that if she didn’t care.”
“I know,” Elijah sighed. “Maybe it would be better if she didn’t care so much.”
“You know you wouldn’t want that.”
“No, I wouldn’t," Elijah admitted. "I just hate the way she’s treating you.”
“It’s all right. I understand. She’s only looking out for you. That’s what family does.”
All the talk about family made Elijah remember that Sean had wanted to call his parents tonight so he could wish them a happy Thanksgiving. “Do you want me to boot up my laptop so you can use the webcam to talk to your folks?” he asked.
Sean shook his head. “I’m not sure my parents are ready for web chatting. I think I’ll just use the phone.”
“Do they know about me?” Elijah wanted to know. “I mean about us? I sure hope they're going to like me.”
“Not to worry. They’re going to love you because I do.”
Elijah wasn’t so sure. As far as he knew, Sean hadn’t told his parents as much about him as he’d told Hannah about Sean. Their son had been in a relationship with the same man for ten years. Only months ago he’d been living alone in this cabin, hidden away from the world. What if they felt the same way Hannah did, that things between them were moving too fast?
Even worse, what if they decided he wasn’t good enough for Sean? It wasn’t as if he was working to pay his share of their living expenses. Sean was supporting him, but to the Astins, it might seem like Sean was keeping him, that he was nothing more than a—
“Hey,” Sean asked with concern in his voice, “where did you go just now?” He put his hands on Elijah's shoulders. "Is everything all right?"
Elijah managed a smile. “Sorry, guess I zoned out for a minute. Yeah, everything's fine.”
******
Clearly, everything wasn’t fine. Sean had hoped not to see that troubled, brooding look again. He took Elijah’s hand and settled on the couch with him. “Yes, I told my mom about us, last time I wrote her. And she wrote right back and said she was glad.” He didn’t say to Elijah that she’d muffled her good wishes with concern. It was hardly a year, she’d said, and the boy was so young, but if he was sure then she was happy for him. “If I made her sound scary, Elijah, don’t worry about it. She’s okay.”
Elijah only nodded a little, not convinced. “Do you want to be alone when you call?”
Sean slid an arm around him. “No way. You can help.” He held the phone so Elijah could press the buttons. Elijah had put the number on speed dial for him when they first got the phone, hinting, but he’d kept putting it off. Not without reason. The moment she heard his voice on the line she was sure something was terribly wrong, and when he explained that they now had a phone, she immediately wanted the number. Fortuitously, she was in a happy mood, had no doubt spent the day cooking and entertaining.
Sean wished her a happy Thanksgiving and she told him all about it. They’d had a house full of family and friends, so he heard the latest news. Then she put Dad on long enough to say hello and tell him they’d had a rainy summer and almost didn’t get the corn in, crazy weather, and she was back on.
“I hope you had a nice dinner, Sean. Did you and Elijah cook a turkey?”
“Not exactly. We went over to Til’s and she fixed a goose with all the trimmings. We’re so stuffed...”
“That’s good. I hated to think of you out there having no one to share the holidays with yet again. I’m glad you aren’t alone, dear.”
“Thanks, Mom. Elijah’s sister is here too. Maybe we’ll take the canoe out tomorrow and show her the lake if the weather’s...”
“I hope it’s a lot warmer there than it is here then. Do be careful, Sean. Remember what happened when your father let you and Mack go ice-fishing the day after Thanksgiving all those years ago.”
Sean suppressed a sigh. “We’ll be careful. Can I talk to Mack? Is he there?”
“No. He left after dinner to go out with his friends and it’s doubtful he’ll be back anytime soon. May I talk to Elijah?”
Sean looked at Elijah, and pressed the phone to his chest. “Mom wants to say hi.” Elijah’s blue eyes went wide. Sean gave him a reassuring smile. “It’ll be all right. She’s in a good mood.” He put the phone to his ear. “Okay, Mom. Be nice.” She laughed. He handed the phone to Elijah.
Elijah held the phone to his ear and softly said, “Hi...Mrs. Astin...happy Thanksgiving.”
Sean couldn’t hear what she was saying, but Elijah’s brow furrowed, then eased some.
“All right...Anna. Thank you.”
Sean watched for any hint of distress from Elijah, but he seemed to relax as he listened, and finally smiled a little, wrinkling his nose.
“Sure. Chocolate chip is my favorite. That’d be great.” He listened again, glancing aside at Sean, chuckling. “I know, but he’s sweet. Okay. Thanks, Anna. Bye.”
Sean took the phone back. “All right, Mom, what did you tell him?”
“Never you mind. I’ll be sending you cookies. I’ll call and let you know when so you can pick them up right away. Is there anything particular you want for Christmas, dear? And what can I get for Elijah? No, you’d better tell me in a letter. You owe me one.”
“I know, Mom, I’ll get right to it.” She said she had to get back to cleaning up, and would talk to him soon, she was so glad he had a phone at last. They hung up and he slid the phone over to the low table.
Elijah looked at him, smiling. “She’s not so scary.”
Sean smiled back at him. “Feeling better?”
Elijah wrapped both arms around him, snuggling close. “Yeah. Hannah’s gonna love you before we’re through.”
Sean tenderly hugged him back. “I’ll settle for sisterly fondness. I’m looking forward to having a sister.”
Elijah looked up at him. “It’ll be great, won’t it?”
“Of course it will.” Sean kissed him, and took him to bed.
******
”I hope I’m not disturbing you.”
Tilda looked up to see Hannah standing in the doorway of her bedroom. Without makeup, and with her boyish figure clad in jeans, a turtleneck sweater and sneakers, she reminded Tilda even more of her brother.
“Of course not, dear,” Tilda assured her. “Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, thanks, but it was weird waking up to the sound of chirping birds instead of blaring car alarms."
“It’s one of the things I love about leaving the city.”
Hannah shook her head. “It's hard to believe Elijah actually likes it here. “
“He didn’t at first,” Tilda said with a smile. “Sean told me the first day Elijah was here, they were sitting out on the porch, and Sean was enjoying the nature sounds. He thought Elijah was enjoying them, too, until Elijah told him he found it creepy.”
“That sounds like my brother.” Hannah looked around, taking in the open suitcases and half-packed boxes in the room. “Are you going somewhere?” she asked.
“I’m going back home,” Tilda replied.
Hannah looked puzzled. “You don’t live here all year?”
“No, I just come out here when I feel the need to escape the city for a while. I’ll be setting off in the next week or so. I usually only spend the summer months here, but I stayed this long because Sean told me you were coming for Thanksgiving.”
“You stayed for me?” Hannah asked.
“I told you, Hannah, Elijah is family now, and knowing how important you are to him, I wanted to meet you.”
Unexpectedly touched, Hannah didn’t know how to respond, so she said, “Can I help you with the packing?”
“That’s very kind of you, but I’m not on a timetable, and I'm still deciding what things I want to take with me and those I'm going to leave here. The boys are coming over this morning. You should go down and meet them. I'll be down shortly to start breakfast."
"All right."
“You and Elijah have been apart for months. I'm sure you have a lot to catch up on.”
Hannah shrugged. “We’ve kept in touch. He wrote to me when he first got here, and he’s called me, but since he got internet access, we’ve been web chatting at least once a week.”
“That’s lovely, but not the same as being with him.”
“I do feel better now that I’ve seen him in person.”
“You didn’t believe he was all right?”
Hannah sighed. “When Pedar first starting hurting him, Elijah hid it from me.”
“And you think Sean is going to hurt him that way?”
“I always felt there was something off about Pedar," Hannah explained, "this hint of menace under all of his polish. I think he could tell I knew he wasn't the man he was pretending to be. It's probably why he tried to keep me away from Elijah, but I don’t sense anything like that in Sean.”
“That’s because it isn’t there, Hannah. Sean is one of the kindest, most gentle men I’ve ever known.”
Hannah bit her bottom lip, something Tilda had seen Elijah do when he felt uneasy about something he was about to say. "We didn't get off to a very good start, and that's mostly my fault. I've been thinking about what you said last night, about loving Elijah enough to give Sean a fair chance."
"And what did you decide?" Tilda wanted to know.
"I haven't seen my brother this happy in a long time," Hannah admitted, "but he was happy with Pedar, too... at first. Look, just because I'm sure Sean won't abuse him the way Pedar did doesn't mean I believe he's the right man for Elijah."
Tilda said, "It sounds as if you haven't made a decision yet."
"No, I have, just not the one you were hoping for." When Tilda didn't respond, Hannah went on. "I've decided not to let my feelings about Pedar color my opinion of Sean. Elijah and I can both be stubborn, and I don't want to lose him over this, but I'm still going to make up my own mind."
"I think that's fair, dear, but I just want to say one more thing. Even if you don't want to credit Sean with Elijah's happiness, I can say with certainty that Elijah is responsible for the change in Sean."
"What do you mean?" Hannah asked.
"Hannah, when Daniel died I thought it would destroy Sean. He moved to the cabin and cut himself off from everything and everyone. I tried to get him to visit me, but he wouldn't even answer my letters. I began to fear he might never recover. The reason I decided to visit now was because I was so worried about him, but when I arrived, I found the Sean I knew was himself again. Your brother gave Sean back his life, and for that I'll always be grateful. I think I knew Sean had fallen in love before he even knew it himself. I had no idea if Elijah felt the same, but now that I know he does, I can return home, happy in the knowledge that Sean is going to be all right."
All Hannah could say was, "You must really love him."
"I do. You and I are alike, Hannah. We both want the young men we love to be happy. I truly believe they can find that happiness together, and I think if you allow yourself to get to know Sean, you'll come to believe it, too."
Hannah smirked. "I don't think I'll have much choice. After breakfast we're going to go back to the cabin, and from what Elijah said, it's pretty close quarters. I can't imagine what we're going to do all day."
"I might be able to help with that." Tilda went to a pile of boxes and chose one. "Take this back to the cabin with you," she said, handing it to Hannah. "I think it's the perfect vehicle to help you and Sean get to know each other."
******
“Don’t tell me you eat like that every morning,” Hannah said from the Jeep's back seat.
Elijah replied, “Not even close, but Til said she wanted your first breakfast here to be special.” And it had been. He’d never seen so much food on a breakfast table at one time before, not even at Pedar’s. There had been scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, fresh fruit, and what Elijah thought were biscuits, but Tilda called scones, which she served with butter and jam. “I wouldn’t mind if we had that kind of spread every morning.”
“My mother’s family back in Ireland would call the breakfast we just enjoyed a Full Irish,” Sean explained as he started the engine, “and if we ate that way every day I’d need a crane to get me out of bed in the morning.” When Elijah giggled, Sean poked him playfully in the belly and told him, “You could eat like that every day and still stay as thin as you are. Now that I’ve met Hannah, I can see it’s in the genes.”
Hannah didn’t answer, but when Elijah glanced at her in the rear-view mirror, he saw that Sean’s remark had made her smile. For the first time since his sister had arrived, he felt in high spirits, and wanting the feeling to last, Elijah told her, “You’re going to love the lake. When Sean and I took the canoe out—“
“You paddled a canoe?” Hannah asked incredulously.
“Yeah, why?” Elijah responded with a touch of insult in his tone.
“Give me a break, Monkey,” Hannah said dramatically.
“It’s true. I’m a witness,” Sean corroborated, “and Elijah did very well for a first timer.”
Hannah grinned. “First nature walks, now canoeing. Wait until I tell Zach about your new love of the great outdoors...” She let her words trail off when one look at Elijah’s face told her bringing up their brother had been a mistake.
“You're still in touch with him?” Elijah wondered.
Frowning now, she nodded. “Every once in a while. He called me last month to let me know he was sending me a copy of his new video game and to brag that the pre-Christmas sales were strong.”
Even though he knew what the answer would be, Elijah couldn’t stop himself. “Did he ask about me?”
“We only talked for a minute,” Hannah said quickly, but her attempt to excuse Zach's omission convinced no one.
Sean reached over with his right hand, and knowing it was out of Hannah’s sight, gently squeezed Elijah’s leg.
Determined to prove that their older brother’s total disinterest in his welfare didn’t bother him in the least, Elijah managed a smile, and nodding in the direction of the packing box lying on the seat beside her, asked, “Why won’t you tell me what’s in the box?”
He’d been curious about the box sealed with packing tape from the moment Hannah had carried it out of Tilda’s house, but she’d refused to tell him what was inside. The box was too large to have been in her luggage, so he assumed it was something she'd gotten from Tilda, making him all the more interested in its contents.
“Because it’s a surprise,” Hannah told him. “I'll open it as soon as we get to the cabin. You can wait that long, can't you?”
“Like I have a choice,” Elijah mumbled under his breath, causing Sean to stifle a laugh.
“I guess you were expecting something a bit more elaborate,” Sean said to Hannah as he pulled up in front of the cabin. “It’s not as fancy as Til’s place, but we do have all the necessities: electricity, indoor plumbing. We have fans, not air conditioning, but the summers aren't usually too bad.”
“Tilda said you live here all year round,” Hannah remarked.
Elijah nodded as he got out of the Jeep. “Yeah, it’s great. Sean has a garden out back with flowers and vegetables. He even grew watermelons this summer.” He opened the back door for his sister, and taking her arm, Elijah led her up the stairs to the porch while she held the packing box against her chest. “You can't tell anything from out here. Come inside."
It was obvious from the look on her face that Hannah didn’t find the interior of the cabin any more appealing than she had the outside, but she made an effort. “It’s...cozy,” she said, using Tilda’s word.
“It is,” Elijah agreed as he opened the front door and ushered her inside. He smiled at her look of shock that the door hadn’t been locked. “We’re really comfortable here.”
Hannah stepped into the part of the room that served as their bedroom. “There's only one bed,” she observed.
“I told you that,” Elijah said.
“Yes,” Sean jumped in. To avoid the possibility of an argument, Elijah assumed. “It’s the reason we thought you’d be more comfortable at Til’s, but you’re still welcome to stay here with us. You can take the bed and Elijah and I will use sleeping bags on the floor.”
As Elijah had believed she would once she’d seen the cabin, Hannah shook her head. “No sense in moving my stuff for a couple of days,” she admitted. “Besides, I don’t want to put you guys out of your bed.”
“Good,” Elijah blurted out, “because I wasn’t looking forward to sleeping on the floor.”
Hannah gave Sean a look Elijah interpreted as How do you put up with him?
Sean only shook his head. “Hannah, if you don't tell him what's in that box soon, Elijah is going to explode. Please put him out of his misery.”
The box had stayed in Hannah’s arms after she entered the cabin, but now she set it down on the table and pulled off the strip of packing tape. “Tilda thought we might enjoy these.”
At the mention of Tilda’s name, Sean stepped closer to get a better look. After Hannah lifted the box flaps and he saw what was inside, he smiled wistfully. “God, I haven’t seen these in years.”
“Seen what?” Elijah wanted to know as he joined them at the table.
“Games,” Sean explained as he reached inside the box. “Three days after I met Daniel, he took me to meet his adored Aunt Til and insisted we become friends. And they were fanatic game players when they got together.” He quietly laughed. “I naturally got sucked right in. Til must have left them at the house the last summer she was here.”
The summer before Daniel died, Elijah realized. Afraid that memory would bring Sean pain, he quickly asked, “What kind of games?”
“Classic board games.” Sean named each as he took it out of the box. “Monopoly. Backgammon.” He took out several packs of playing cards. “We played card games, too. Bridge, Pinochle, Cribbage. Poker and Gin Rummy. Hearts.”
“Did they have a favorite game?” Hannah asked.
“Yes,” Sean replied, as he took the last game out of the box, “Scrabble. They were madly competitive when they played against each other.”
“I bet when you played, you beat both of them,” Elijah said, his voice as proud as if he’d been speaking about his own accomplishment.
Sean looked sheepish. “Actually, I did. A love of reading makes you really good at word games.”
Hannah cocked her head as if considering her next words carefully. “That sounds like a challenge,” she finally stated, and began setting up the Scrabble board.
******
Sean wasn’t sure getting into a contest with Hannah was the best way to win her over, but Elijah seemed to be all for it. Sean pulled his desk chair over to the kitchen table and they settled down to play Scrabble. It was an odd feeling. Though he and Daniel had never played games there at the cabin, or without Til for that matter, he still felt a moment’s twinge at the sound of the tiles as they flipped them over and scrambled them around.
Elijah met his eyes with a little smile, stockinged toes finding his under the table, and slid a randomly chosen tile over to him. “That’s a special one.”
Sean returned his smile, the moment passed. “Thanks.” He flipped it up and set it in the rest. Q, a mixed blessing.
Hannah looked at them both with a fathomless expression, from Elijah to Sean and back. “You can start, Lijah.”
Elijah promptly laid out his first word, and it was a good one, fourteen points.
“Lucky draw, Monkey.” Hannah took the small tablet and pen from the box and kept score. She was trying to be serious and maintain her distance, Sean could see, but she loosened up soon enough and started smiling and joking.
Sean managed to put Elijah’s Q to good use, and ultimately won the round, though Hannah wasn’t too far behind in the point count. They played another round, Hannah wanting a chance to catch up. Sean considered letting her have it, but she would have known. He just hoped she valued honest effort and played to win, which he did. They played one more and that put him too solidly in the lead to beat.
Hannah totaled the final scores and drew a little star under his. “All right, you are good at word games.” Sean smiled and thanked her, and she almost smiled back at him.
“Let’s play Speed.” Elijah seemed to have had enough of word games.
Hannah did smile then, a little too diabolically. “Great idea.”
Sean said, “I’m afraid I don’t know Speed.”
“We’ll teach you. It’s easy.”
Sean was willing. They packed away the Scrabble while he tended the fire and then fixed them all hot chocolate. Elijah got up to help him carry the mugs to the table, and to snatch a kiss and cuddle behind Hannah’s back. She was shuffling a deck of cards when they settled again.
“We divide the deck three ways and start with one card face up. Whoever can play on it goes. Whoever gets all their cards down first wins.” She started dealing out the deck. “Easy.”
Sean was doomed from the start. The game took quick reflexes, and his couldn’t match theirs. Elijah and Hannah ran through their cards, slapping down one after another before he could even register what was being played on, let alone pull a card from his hand to play. It was intense, and fast. They played several rounds before he settled back and mostly just enjoyed the fun they were having. Elijah grinned from ear to ear and Hannah actually laughed, several times. It wasn’t clear who was the winner in the end, but that didn’t seem to matter to them, in spite of the heated battle they’d done. The certain thing was that he hadn’t won.
Elijah gave him a sorry look. “You’re not very good at this, Sean.”
Sean smiled at them both. “That’s all right. It’s fun to watch.”
“We should go canoeing.” Elijah turned a bright eyed look on Hannah. “It’s really cool, Han. You’ll like it.”
It was brisk but sunny, with little wind. “We’ll have to dress warm,” Sean said. “But if you’d like, Hannah, we can make some sandwiches and have lunch out on the lake.”
******
Elijah wasn't surprised to find Hannah just as competitive during the game-playing with Sean as she had been when they were children, and even though they’d mostly played video games in their youth, she had put the same determination into playing the board and card games. He’d been worried that Sean would purposely let Hannah win, but Sean had somehow sensed that his sister would realize he wasn’t playing full out and resent it. She’d been impressed with Sean’s skill at Scrabble (“Abishag. Is that a real word?”), but there had been maniacal glee in her eyes when they changed to Speed and her lightning fast reflexes had left him in the dust.
As much as he’d enjoyed playing Speed against Hannah, Elijah hated that Sean had dropped out of the game. Taking the canoe out was something the three of them could do together, so Elijah hoped his sister would agree. “What do you say, Hannah?” he asked her. “Wanna do lunch on the lake?”
”It sounds like fun.”
“Great,” Elijah said, delighted. “I’ll make the sandwiches.”
Hannah immediately offered to help, and as they worked together at the counter, Elijah realized how much he'd missed the simple pleasure of just hanging out with his sister. Pedar hadn’t cared for Hannah and had done his best to keep them apart, but he had found their bond, forged from the day her parents had brought Hannah home from the hospital, impossible to break. Hannah had proven that by coming here to meet the man Elijah had told her he loved, and to assure herself that her brother was truly happy in his new life. Having her here with him in Sean’s home, now his home, too, filled Elijah’s heart with joy.
“I can’t wait to show you my skill at paddling,” Elijah said as he spread peanut butter on whole grain bread then added a layer of grape jelly.
Hannah looked dubious. “I love you, Elijah, but I’ll feel a lot better about going canoeing if Sean was doing all the driving.”
Elijah started to protest, but hearing that Hannah had faith in Sean pleased him so much that he let her lack of confidence in him pass without comment. “Fine,” he told her, “but if I’m not going to paddle the canoe, I’m going to bring the camera. I don’t have any recent pictures of you.”
“So you’re still interested in photography,” Hannah surmised. “Are you any good with a camera?”
“Sean thinks so,” Elijah replied, “though I think he might be prejudiced.” He turned to beam at Sean. “But Til thinks so, too, and she’s a professional.”
“Okay, then you can take my picture,” Hannah said. She did an imitation of a model doing a walk down the runway. “Just make sure you get my good side.”
“You don’t have a good side,” Elijah retorted, and Hannah punched him in the arm. “Ow! That hurt!”
While he enjoyed Elijah and Hannah’s brother-sister act, Sean occupied himself by gathering up the games and returning them to the packing box. He’d just finished sealing it again when his cell phone rang. “Hi, Til,” Sean answered. “Yes, it was very kind of you to send the games. We had a very enjoyable morning playing Scrabble and a card game Hannah and Elijah taught me.” He listened, then replied, “We’re going to go canoeing and have lunch on the lake.” Again he listened. “I was planning to make something simple for dinner, but I’m sure they’d prefer your cooking to mine. Hold on a second.” Holding the phone away from his mouth, Sean turned to where Elijah and Hannah stood and announced, “Til would like us to have dinner with her tonight. Is that all right with you two?”
“Sure,” Elijah and Hannah answered in unison.
Sean returned to the phone. “We’d be delighted, Til, thank you. I’ll bring the games back when we bring Hannah home. I’d like to see if you’re as good at Scrabble as I remember.” She must have accepted the challenge because Sean chuckled and said, “You’re on,” then ended the call.
As they walked the path down to the lake, the chill in the air had Elijah feeling grateful that he’d put his denim jacket on over the hoodie he wore. Since keeping their food cool wouldn’t be an issue, Elijah had packed their lunch into his canvas shoulder bag, which was slung across his chest. The camera, as always, was in his pocket. Hannah was bundled into a thick cardigan over her turtleneck, and wore a soft-brimmed hat. Like Hannah and Elijah, Sean wore jeans, and had donned a windbreaker over a flannel shirt. As they walked, Sean kept up a running commentary on the types of birds, animals and plant life that were native to the area. Elijah wondered if Sean still felt uncomfortable around Hannah and was keeping up the running monologue in order to avoid normal conversation. Hannah nodded from time to time, even asked a few questions. Even if she was only pretending interest, Elijah had to resist the urge to hug her.
Once they reached the lake, Hannah and Elijah waited on the shore while Sean put the canoe in the water. After they dutifully put on the orange life vests he’d taken from the boat and held out to them expectantly, Sean donned his own. He got into the canoe first, taking his place in the stern and steadying the boat while Hannah stepped in and took the seat in the bow. Once she was seated, Elijah unslung the shoulder bag and handed it to her, then climbed into the canoe, kneeling in the hull facing his sister. With everyone settled in, Sean pushed off from shore.
“I can understand why you like this,” Hannah observed as Sean moved them through the water.
Sean confided, “Taking the canoe out is my favorite way to deal with writer’s block. The peace and tranquility always help me sort out my thoughts and get back on track.”
“Elijah mentioned that you’ve had several novels published,” Hannah said casually, “but I’ve never heard of you.”
“Hannah!” Elijah exclaimed. He glanced back over his shoulder at Sean, sure he would be insulted by her comment, but Sean only chuckled, obviously not offended by her words.
“You’re not alone there, Hannah,” Sean assured her. “My sales were moderate at best. I would be surprised if you’d heard of any of my books.”
“I’m a big reader,” Hannah told him, “so maybe I’ll check them out when I get home.”
“That isn’t necessary,” Sean said kindly. “I appreciate the gesture, but there’s no reason you should be interested in my work.”
“But I’d like to read them,” Hannah insisted, and Elijah had to admit she sounded sincere. Considering how Hannah had been acting toward Sean since she arrived, he couldn’t see her pretending interest if she had none. “If they’re all still in print, I should be able to find them locally or online.” Elijah carefully shifted out of his kneeling position, lowering himself into the bottom of the boat so from where he sat he could see both Sean and Hannah. Sean looked visibly pleased.
“There’s no need for you to buy them,” Sean told Hannah. “You’re welcome to borrow any of my copies.”
“I'd like that,” Hannah replied. "Thank you."
“Start with Dreamer’s Chance,” Elijah suggested. “I really liked that one. It’s a love story.”
"If it was able to keep Elijah's attention," Hannah teased, "you must be quite a storyteller, Sean."
Elijah was so pleased at the interaction between Sean and Hannah that he let the left-handed compliment pass without comment. "Sean's started writing again," he told Hannah, but immediately regretted it.
Sean smiled at him, letting him know it was all right. "I was in such a bad place that I thought I might never write again," he explained, "but Elijah has inspired me to pick up my pen again."
Hannah raised her eyebrows. "Lijah inspired you?"
"Yes," Sean nodded, his face suddenly serious. "To write again, and more importantly, to live again. I'm very grateful that he came into my life."
******
Sean wasn’t sure from one minute to the next if Hannah was showing him honest interest or only pretending. But she surely couldn’t doubt, looking into his eyes, that what he felt for her brother was real and special. “I’m more grateful for Elijah than I can express.” She held his gaze a little longer, then nodded faintly, believing him.
Elijah gave him a heartwarming smile and lifted the camera to snap a picture of him, like he didn’t have a thousand already. Sean made a face and he took that one too, giggling. Then he turned the camera on Hannah. She mugged for him, striking fashion model poses, while Sean paddled around the shoreline looking for interesting backdrops for them.
They had lunch drifting in a small cove that was sheltered all around by evergreens and pin oaks. The midday sun shone down, warming the breeze that softly rustled the dry leaves still clinging in the oaks. Hannah said it was wonderful, and meant it, Sean was sure. Elijah had put together lunch for them, peanut butter sandwiches and green apples with a thermos of hot chocolate, and Tasty Kakes for dessert.
“Butterscotch Krimpets, yum.” Hannah’s favorite, apparently. Sean had wondered why Elijah had wanted them and then never opened the box. They were for Hannah when she came. She was pleased, with reservations. “You know I shouldn’t, Monkey. If I start eating these things, I won’t stop.”
“That’s okay, Han, you’re on vacation. Right?”
Hannah took in a breath of fresh air, and smiled as she tore open her krimpets. “I am. This is nice.”
They leisurely paddled on around the shore in the afternoon, stopping at Tilda’s to invite her out onto the lake. She was tempted, she said, but wanted to get some more packing done. She sent them on again with freshly brewed tea for their thermos, and told them to have fun. It turned out to be a pleasant day. Hannah was more and more at ease, and Elijah was happy. Sean felt at peace, and that was a precious thing.
With the sun beginning to drop over the tree line to the west, they came back to their dock and pulled the canoe out of the water. Hannah said it was almost four, looking at her watch, and couldn’t believe they’d been out on the lake for that long. Sean told her he was glad she’d enjoyed it and Elijah said, smiling, that he’d known she would. They stashed the paddles and life vests, then walked back up to the cabin to pack up and head over to Tilda’s.
Elijah presented Hannah with the rest of the krimpets to take along. “For dessert tonight.”
Hannah took the box, laughing. “If they last that long.”
******
Tilda served them a hearty beef stew and thick slices of homemade bread. As the sun had gone down, so had the temperature, and the hot stew brought Elijah a welcome warmth as he swallowed his first spoonful.
He'd brought the rest of the butterscotch krimpets for dessert, but they were quickly forgotten when Tilda came out of the kitchen carrying a chocolate cake. As she placed it on the table, Sean scolded, "You're not playing fair, Til. You know I can't resist your sour cream chocolate layer cake."
"There's no reason you should," Tilda replied.
Sean lifted his shirt and pinched the skin around his middle. "This is the reason. Unlike Elijah, everything I eat goes right here."
"You're not fat," Elijah protested.
"Not yet," Sean agreed, "but if I had your sweet tooth I'd weigh three hundred pounds."
"Such an exaggeration," was Tilda's opinion. "You're a fine-looking man, Sean. A few extra pounds won't make you any less so. And I did make the cake to celebrate Hannah's visit, hopefully the first of many. I'm sure Elijah and Hannah will want to try the cake. You don't want to hurt my feelings by being the only one doesn't."
"Elijah won't need any encouragement," Hannah told her. "He thinks chocolate is one of the major food groups."
"Then I'll make sure he gets the biggest piece," Tilda said with a smile at Elijah, who was already holding out his plate.
After his first bite, Elijah closed his eyes and murmured, “Mmmmm...this is incredible. It's even better than sex.” When he opened his eyes and saw his younger sister and the woman who was half a century his senior staring at him, his cheeks grew warm with embarrassment.
Sean, who Elijah thought would never mention sex in Tilda's presence, much less Hannah's, raised his eyebrows. “Better than sex, huh?” he asked. “Then I’m definitely having a piece.” The awkward moment dissolved in a flurry of laughter.
After the table had been cleared, Sean brought out the scrabble board and faced off against Tilda, beating her two games out of three. Hannah wanted a rematch, and while she took Sean on again, Elijah sat with Tilda and showed her the photos he’d taken on the lake.
"These are wonderful, Elijah," Tilda told him. "You're developing quite an eye."
"Thanks, Til," Elijah said with obvious pride.
She studied a photo of Hannah in profile and remarked, "Have you ever done any modeling, Hannah?"
Hannah turned from the Scrabble board to look at her. "Modeling?" she asked. "Yeah, right."
"You're very photogenic," Tilda went on. "I know you're studying dance, but working while you're taking classes must be difficult. Modeling would be a way to supplement your income."
"It's hard," Hannah admitted. "Living in New York is expensive, even sharing an apartment with three other girls." She sighed. "I've been working so many double shifts at Starbucks to make ends meet that when I finally get to my classes, I'm almost too tired to dance, but modeling? I don't have any connections, anyone to help me get started."
Tilda pursed her lips. "I might be able to help with that."
"You can?" Elijah asked in surprise. "How?"
Tilda said, "I've pretty much retired, but I still have contacts in the industry. I'm not talking about fashion photography, you understand, but perhaps you could get some print work in magazines and catalogs."
Her attention no longer on the Scrabble game, Hannah got up from the table and said to Tilda, "You're serious?"
"Of course I am, dear," Tilda confirmed.
Elijah exclaimed, "That would be awesome, Til!"
"It would be so cool," Hannah said, "and the extra money would make things a lot easier."
"I can't promise anything will come of it," Tilda wanted to make clear, "but I'll be happy to help in any way I can."
"Thank you, Til," Hannah told her. "I'd really appreciate that."
"I'm only going to provide the contacts, Hannah. The rest will be up to you."
Hannah couldn't disguise her excitement at the idea. "How do I get started?"
"My name will get you in the door," Tilda explained, "but you need to put together a portfolio so you'll have something to show them after you do."
"A portfolio?" Hannah asked.
Tilda nodded. "An album of photographs of yourself. You haven't done any professional work yet, so you need to show them how you photograph. Would-be models normally use a professional photographer for their books."
"That sounds expensive," Elijah remarked.
"I might be able to help with that, too," Tilda offered.
"I think Elijah should take the photos."
At the sound of his voice, all three of them turned to look at Sean. He had remained silent all during the modeling talk, and now Elijah felt guilty for having ignored him.
Tilda nodded. "I think that's a wonderful idea, Sean."
Elijah wasn't so sure. "But I'm not a professional," he protested. "If my pictures suck it will ruin Hannah's chances."
Tilda shook her head. "No, Elijah. Sean suggested you as Hannah's photographer because when he looks at your photos he sees the same thing I do."
"What do you see?" Elijah wanted to know.
"What you feel for your subjects," Tilda answered. "When you photograph someone you care for, it shows in your photos." She scrolled through the photos Elijah had taken on the lake. When she came to one of Hannah laughing, she held up the camera so they could all see it. "Look at this," she told them. "The love just shines through."
Elijah wanted to believe what Tilda said was true, but he wasn't convinced, not yet. Looking at Sean, he asked, "Do you really think I can do it?"
"I do," Sean replied. "I don't think Hannah could do better than you, Elijah. No offense, Til."
"None taken, Sean," Tilda responded. "Especially since I totally agree."
As far as Elijah was concerned, only one opinion really mattered. "What do you say, Han?" he asked his sister.
Hannah studied the photo Tilda still held up then said, "Let's do it!"
Elijah was already planning it in his head, whatever doubts he'd had now gone. "I think we should start out with some outdoor shots," he decided, "on the dock with the lake in the background. Then we can do some indoor shots here, if Til doesn't mind our using her house."
"Not at all, dear."
"We should get an early start in the morning," Elijah suggested, "so maybe Sean and I should head home so Hannah can get a good night's sleep."
"Don't worry, Mr. DeMille," Hannah grinned, "I'll be ready for my close-up."