Dreams Adrift (A River Dream Novel) (22 page)

I thought she looked even prettier than she
did in high school, and then felt oddly guilty for thinking
that.

“
Hi, Michael,” she called out.
“It’s about time you came home. Your mom’s been keeping a pan of
lasagna warm for you since Veteran’s Day.”

“
Did you two work that joke out or
what?” I retorted.

“
Who’s joking?” Rhiannon asked as
she reached the top of the stairs. “It’s good to see you, Mike,”
she said, pulling me to her for a big hug.

“
It’s good to see you too,
Rhiannon.” I said, and found that I meant it. “I’m glad Mom invited
you over.”

“
Me, too. I love your Mom’s
lasagna,” Rhiannon said with a grin.

“
Let’s get inside,” I said,
shaking my head and chuckling.

My dad and Malori came up the stairs after
Rhiannon. Dad followed her inside. Malori stopped next to me on the
deck.

“
I told you she’d be glad to see
you,” Malori said in a conspiratorial whisper.

“
Who woulda thunk it,” I replied.
“I figured she’d have a boyfriend by now.”

“
It’s not like guys haven’t tried,
Michael,” Malori said. “But Rhiannon wouldn’t give them the time of
day.”

Feeling a sudden need to change the subject, I
asked “What about you, Mal?”

Malori answered by sticking her tongue out and
dashing into the house. Left alone on the deck for a moment, I
looked out over the sound. A stiff breeze was kicking up little
whitecaps on the water.

The wind was blowing out of the northwest.
That meant a cold night coming on, cold and clear. Shivering just a
bit at the thought, I joined the others inside.

My mom put me at the foot of the table
opposite my father. That was usually her place. Instead she sat on
the corner near my father and next to Rhiannon. Malori sat on the
corner near me across from Rhiannon. That put Rhiannon at my other
corner.

I thought to myself that there should be some
young man of Malori’s acquaintance sitting in the empty chair. Once
the lasagna had been served and we’d begun eating, I broached that
subject again.

“
Malori,” I began in a teasing
tone, “I may regret asking this as it may mean I have to beat
someone up, but are you seeing anyone?”

“
No one will go out with me,”
Malori said, laughing. “They’re all afraid of you.”

“
That’s good - just as it should
be,” I said.

“
Michael, you’re incorrigible.
There are lots of nice young men at school that Malori could go out
with,” Rhiannon said. “It’s just that she has very high
standards.”

“
That’s right, I do,” agreed
Malori. “There aren’t many guys who can measure up. I mean look at
who they’re being measured against.”

“
I think that’s a good thing,” my
father said. “There’s no reason to hurry in that
department.”

“
Actually, Michael, your sister
does date now and then but has wisely chosen not to start a serious
relationship,” my mother said.

“
I’ve been too busy with my class
load at Notre Dame. Nothing against UNCW, but Notre Dame is one
tough school,” Malori said.

“
So who is it you’re measuring
these guys against, Malori, that makes it so hard for them to make
the grade?” I asked, sounding a bit facetious.

A serious look came over Malori’s face as she
replied, “You and Dad, Mike, that’s who.”

That hit me like a ton of bricks. I never
imagined that Malori would use me as a yardstick. Maybe our father,
but not me. My dad looked a bit uncomfortable. I know I felt a
little awkward.

“
Thank you, Mal, that means a
lot,” I said.

It took our father a second longer to find his
voice. “Yes, Malori, it means a whole lot.”

“
It may mean I never get a
boyfriend. You guys set the bar so doggone high,” Malori said with
a smile.

“
Just don’t lower your sights,
Malori. And when the right one does come along, don’t let him get
away,” Rhiannon said, looking at me.

My mother broke the tension by asking if
anyone was ready for dessert. She’d baked a maple-caramel
cheesecake, her own recipe. As full as I was, I wasn’t about to
turn that down. Neither did anyone else.

“
Boy, I’m stuffed,” my father
said, after we’d finished dessert. “I think I need to take a walk.
Anyone want to join me?”

It sounded like a good idea to me, so I said,
“I think I will. I hope there’s a jacket around here that will fit
me. I’m not used to these temperatures.”

“
We went up to River Dream and
brought down some of your winter clothes and jackets,” my mother
told me. “They’re in Malori’s old room. I guess it’ll be your room
now when you’re home.”

That surprised me. It used to be my mother’s
music room. When I walked in, I saw that it still was. They’d put a
twin bed along one wall for me. Malori had set my bag on the foot
of the bed.

As I came back out to the kitchen, Malori
chimed in, “I’d like to go, too.”

“
Just let me get my jacket from
the car, and I’ll come too,” said Rhiannon, deciding she didn’t
want to be left out.

My mother, who is more sensible than the rest
of us, opted to stay home out of the cold. The rest of us suited up
and headed to the beach. It was dark with a new moon, but it was
clear and cold.

Thirty-four

On the beach, we turned north and headed
towards Crystal Pier. As we passed the Angevine’s house, my father
suggested we pay a visit to Rhiannon’s folks.

Mrs. Angevine answered the door and smiled
when she saw me. “Well, look who’s here. Michael, how are
you?”

Giving her a quick hug, I replied, “I’m well,
Aunt Cassie. How are you?”

“
Come on in, all of you. Goodness,
what are you doing out on a cold night like this?” Mrs. Angevine
asked as she ushered us into the house.

“
We filled up so much on Mrs. L’s
lasagna,” Rhiannon explained, “we decided to go for a walk. Is Dad
working tonight?”

Mrs. Angevine nodded her head. “Every night
these days he’s working. He says there isn’t enough business to pay
someone to mind the pier, so he and your uncle take
turns.”

I looked at Rhiannon. “Maybe tomorrow night we
can give the two of them a night off; what do you say?”

“
Are you serious, Michael?”
Rhiannon asked, eyes wide with surprise.

“
Sure,” I said. “Why not? It would
be fun. It’s not like we haven’t minded the store over there
before.”

“
No, but it’s been a while, for
you anyway,” Rhiannon responded. For a minute I didn’t think she
was going to go along. Then a smile crossed her face and she said,
“If you really want to, let’s do it.”

Mrs. Angevine looked pleased at the prospect.
“That would be so nice, you two. I know your daddy will appreciate
it, Rhiannon.”

That decided, we bid Rhiannon’s mother
good-bye and headed back towards Lumina Pier. We told Mrs. Angevine
we would stop by and let Mr. Angevine know.

Mr. Angevine was more surprised than Rhiannon
had been at the suggestion. “You two would do that? But Michael,
it’s your holiday,” he argued.

“
I feel like I’ve been on holiday
since summer, Uncle Lind. Doing some honest work will do me some
good.”

Putting his arms around the two of us, he
said, “Well, I certainly won’t turn down your offer. I’m sure my
brother will be glad of it, too.”

While my father stayed back to talk to Mr.
Angevine, Rhiannon, Malori, and I took a walk out onto the pier.
The wind was cold and bit right through our coats.

I shouldn’t have been, but I was surprised to
see Hans’ mom fishing. “Mrs. Schultz, what a pleasant
surprise.”

Putting down her rod, she walked over and gave
me a hug. “Michael, is that you? I heard you were off pretending to
be a Caribbean pirate.”

“
The Royal Navy was on to me, so I
decided to come home and lay low for a while,” I said, going along
with the joke.

Holding me at arms’ length, she looked me up
and down. “Well, it’s good to see you. Have you been doing
okay?”

“
I’ve been doing a little better
every day, Mrs. Schultz, thank you.”

She nodded as she considered that. “Hans is
looking forward to rejoining your crew next month. I think it will
do him a world of good.”

“
It will be great to have him
along,” I said. “I need someone to swab the deck and mizzen the jib
once in a while.” Behind me, Rhiannon and Malori
laughed.

“
I’m sure you two young men will
enjoy yourselves out there with all those Island ladies to keep
your minds off your troubles,” Mrs. Shultz commented.

Hans and April had separated just after New
Year’s Day. I suppose it was what you would call an amicable
divorce. She got the kids, and he got the bills. Hans had told me
he thought sailing around the Caribbean with me for a couple of
weeks would be just what he needed to take his mind off
it.

“
I’ll try to be a bad influence on
him, Mrs. Schultz,” I promised lightheartedly.

“
You do that, Michael,” she said.
“It may be just what he needs.”

Leaving her to her fishing, we walked on to
the end of the pier. The wind felt stronger out there, and no
fisherman were bold enough to challenge it that night. I looked up
and scanned the clear skies, almost unconsciously picking out Star
Jillian. I smiled a melancholy smile at that memory.

“
What was that smile, son?” my
father asked.

I hadn’t realized he’d come out onto the pier.
He and I were out there alone. Rhiannon and Malori had headed back
inside. I’d been stargazing longer than I realized.

“
I was just remembering something
from a long time ago, Dad,” I said. “Do you remember Jill? She and
I dated for a while in high school before Rhiannon and I got
together.”

My father pursed his lips and I could tell he
was stretching his memory. “Yes, Michael, I remember Jill. She was
that pretty blond girl who swept you off your feet when you first
started at Laney. What made you think of her?”

I pointed to the stars. “See that faint star
there, about forty degrees above the horizon? That’s the star I
bought for her. That’s Star Jillian.”

Laughter shook my father’s shoulders. “I’d
forgotten all about you buying Jill a star for Valentine’s that
year,” he said. “Whatever happened to her?”

“
The last I heard she was living
in Asheville with that artist fella she married,” I said. “I
haven’t spoken to her since high school.”

A cold gust reminded me I wasn’t in the
Caribbean anymore. “Let’s follow the girls inside before we
freeze,” I suggested.

Bidding Mrs. Schultz good fishing as we went
by, we returned to the pier house. Malori and Rhiannon had taken
seats at one of the tables and were sipping hot chocolate. Uncle
Lind brought my father and me some fresh coffee. To my surprise
there was a dollop of maple syrup flavoring it.

“
Your dad comes for coffee just
about every morning now after his walk,” explained Mr. Angevine,
“so I started keeping a bottle of the syrup in the cooler for
him.”

Turning a concerned eye on my father, I asked,
“Are you walking every morning too, Dad?”

My father made a dismissive gesture. “My
doctor said it would be good for my heart. Your mother rather
insisted that I begin a routine. She walks with me in the
evening.”

“
Is there something wrong with
your heart?” I asked, worried.

“
No, no, there’s nothing wrong
yet. The walking is a preventative measure,” my father assured
me.

Malori finished her hot chocolate. “We should
probably be getting home,” she suggested. “Mom’s probably starting
to wonder if we washed out with the tide.”

“
I think we can finish our
coffee,” my father said. “Then we’ll go.”

Something about the look on Rhiannon’s face
caused me to say, “If you don’t think Mom will be upset, I’d like
to stay for a second cup.”

Rhiannon smiled and said, “I could use another
hot chocolate, too.”

My father smiled a knowing smile. “Your mother
is a very understanding woman, Michael. I’m sure she won’t
mind.”

“
Then I’ll stay too,” Malori said,
starting to sit back down.

“
Mal, you better see that Dad
makes it home okay,” I suggested to her.

“
Oh, I can do that,” Malori said
with a smirk.

“
Thanks, sis, you’re my best
sister,” I said. Malori hugged me before she left with our
father.

Rhiannon was giving me a funny look. “You are
full of odd things to say tonight, Michael. You need Hans to mizzen
the jib. Malori is your best sister. Does that make me your best
friend?”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Watch out or I’ll
mizzen your jib. When I was leaving home to join the Navy, Malori
told me I was her best brother. She was only seven at the time.
Since then it’s been kind of our code for saying ‘I love you’
without being all mushy about it.”