As soon as the pair stepped inside, Marion’s son, Darren, and his wife, Jeannine, introduced themselves, offering to hang their coats and carry Caitlin’s bowl and Shane’s platter to the kitchen. Caitlin instantly felt at ease among them, and the conversation flowed freely as the adults put the finishing touches on the meal and the children set the table. When there was nothing left to do except wait for the turkey to finish roasting, the children took Pepper for a walk, while the adults indulged in drinks and appetizers.
The crabcakes were as delicious as Shane had indicated they’d be, and Caitlin found it difficult to exercise self-restraint and limit herself to two. In between bites of the tender seafood, she nibbled on the crudités that Jeannine had prepared.
Shortly after the adults finished snacking, the children returned, bright-cheeked and smelling of salty air. “Are yougoing to put lights on your windmill?” Finn, the youngest, asked Caitlin. “You could get the most votes.”
“The most votes?” she repeated.
Jordan, the middle child chimed in, “Yeah, for the Shine-Your-Light contest.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a contest to see who has the best lights. And people come to your house and sing and you give them candy and cookies, or rugelach and hot chocolate.”
“You’ve got the details mostly right, but I’m not sure you’re quite capturing the spirit of the contest,” Marion told her grandson with a chuckle. She explained to Caitlin that the event was an opportunity for community members to socialize with fellow Dune Islanders during the busy holiday season, without the pressure of hosting people in their homes. “Serving treats is optional and it’s a contest in name only. There’s no prize, just bragging rights, and all the participants’ displays are photographed for the online newspaper,The Dune Islander.”
“What a wonderful way to celebrate with each other,” Caitlin acknowledged.
“So are you gonna do it?” Finn asked, his voice hopeful. “It would look so cool if you put a bazillion lights on those big twirly parts.”
His enthusiasm about decorating the windmill’s arms reminded Caitlin so much of her niece and nephews that she hated letting him down. But she couldn’t imagine allowing the local media to publish a photo of the windmill, especially now that its windows made it appear so different.The last thing I want to do is advertise to the entire island that I’ve remodeled the windmill in preparation of selling it. That would be like extending an open invitation for everyone on the island to comment about my plans—and about my past.
At a loss to explain, she stammered, “Well, I… I would, but…”
Shane piped up, “Shine-Your-Light isn’t held until December 22 and 23. You won’t be on the island then, will you, Caitlin?”
“No. I’m flying back to New Mexico on December 21. Sadly, that means I can’t enter the contest,” she said, even though she was relieved she had a valid excuse not to participate.
“That’s too bad,” Finn said. “Cause you’d totally win.”
“Maybe next year,” his mother innocently remarked. Clearly, Marion hadn’t told her son or daughter-in-law about Caitlin’s plans to sell the property, which Caitlin appreciated.
As everyone else debated who they thought would put on the most impressive light display this season, Caitlin turned to give Shane a grateful smile for coming to her rescue. Apparently, he recognized her relief because he nodded and winked, and she was sure Marion noticed, but Caitlin was too happy to care.
An hour later, when everyone was gathered around the table, Marion asked them to hold hands while she said grace. Darren’s daughter, Natalie, was sitting to Caitlin’s left, and Shane was to her right, and when she slid her palm against his, she was so aware of the softness of his touch that she could hardly concentrate on what her hostess was saying until Marion ended, “Amen.”
When everyone lifted their heads, the hospitable matriarch announced, “Shane and Caitlin, we have a family tradition. In lieu of making a toast, before eating we each say one thing we’re especially thankful for this year. We’ll start on this side of the table and go counter-clockwise, so you’ll have a chance to think about it before your turn.”
Jordan began by expressing thanks that his arm, which he’d broken, had healed well enough for him to play basketball this season. Next, Jeannine said she was grateful that Darren had found a full-time position again after being laid off, and he, inturn, kissed her cheek and said how fortunate he felt that she’d been so supportive of him.
Finn announced, “I’m really super glad that on Thanksgiving Mom doesn’t make me eat any vegetables.”
“You’re going to eat corn,” his brother pointed out. “Corn’s a vegetable and you love it.”
“Yeah, but it’s yellow. I mean I don’t have to eat thegreenkind,” he clarified, and everyone laughed.
“I’m thankful I have a nice tutor to help me with my math homework,” Natalie sweetly stated.
Caitlin was the next person to offer thanks. It had been such a difficult autumn, but in the warmth of the moment, her answer came easily. “I’m very thankful that I get to spend Thanksgiving with all of you, instead of all alone.”
Then it was Shane’s turn. As he squared his shoulders and sat up straighter, Caitlin realized he was wearing the forest green Aran sweater he’d had on the day she’d run into him in the pub. She shifted slightly to see him better but tried not to stare. “It’s difficult to choose just one thing I’m especially grateful for this year, but I’d say I’m most thankful that business is picking up and I’m able to spend my time doing work that’s meaningful to me and to my clients,” he said, and Caitlin couldn’t help but feel he was including her and the windmill remodel in his comment.
“Caitlin sort of stole my answer,” Marion teased. “I was going to say I especially appreciate being able to spend Thanksgiving with all of you. But now I guess I should come up with something else…” She bit her bottom lip, contemplating.
“Duplication’s okay, Mom,” Darren prompted.
“Especially when it’s heartfelt,” Jeanine agreed.
“What you really mean is especially when the food is getting cold—I can take a hint.” Marion laughed good-naturedly. “All right, enough said. Let’s eat!”
