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“I don’t mean to be disrespectful, sir, but I could never share a woman with anyone. Brother or no brother.”
“Which brings me to the main reason I set up this meeting. Sylas has told me how you feel. All of these men in this ro
om would like to tell you how happy their lives are—sharing one woman. All I ask is that you hear them out. If you still want to go after that, no one will try to stop you.”
Nic still couldn’t understand how families like these men had worked, how it was even possible. Curious to find out, he said, “Fine. That’s fair enough.”
Sam turned to Patrick. “Since you’re the oldest here, you’re up first, brother.”
“Sam, do you always have to bring up my age?”
All the men laughed.
Patrick grinned. “I’m not that much older than he is, Nic. But with age does come some wisdom. Sam, it’s your story to tell, too.”
“But you tell it so much better.”
Patrick grinned and then turned to Nic. “ When Sam was sixteen and I was seventeen, we immigrated to the United States. We had no reason to stay in Ireland. Our father had died in World War II and our mother had passed away with a broken heart a year later. We needed a new beginning.”
“I can relate,” Nic said, thinking about Pop Jim and Mama Gayle. “My parents died when I was young.”
“So you understand why we wanted new surroundings, a whole new place to start over.”
Nic nodded.
“Sam and I settled in Springfield, Missouri. We went to work for the local newspaper.” Patrick brought out his pipe, and though he didn’t light it, brought it up to his lips. It was obvious this man was a wonderful storyteller. “On our very first day at the paper we saw the most beautiful girl we’d ever laid eyes on. She was the editor’s daughter, Ethel Mae Young. She had deep blue eyes, like the sparkling Irish Sea, and long blonde hair, like golden flax. I knew immediately that I wanted to get to know her better, despite our difference in class. Sam felt the same way, and told me so. At first, we thought going after the same girl would be a lark. One of us would end up with her. The other would step aside. That had been the plan. Or so we thought.
“But Sam and I fell hard for our sweet Ethel. We both wanted her. Like you and Sylas, we each dated her separately. She was the light of our life. As the weeks turned to months, my brother and I began to resent each other. I felt like the time Sam spent with her was time I should be with her. He felt the same way. On Sam’s twentieth birthday, he told me that he was going to ask Ethel to marry him. I informed him that I had already bought her a ring and was going to propose as well. Sam smugly told me, ‘May the best man win.’ I was so arrogant at that age that I laughed. ‘I am the best man and I will win.’ At that point, we knew what we had to do. We had to ask her together. Then the loser would know the truth and back away.
“We hadn’t realized that Ethel wanted both of us, but we each learned she did when we popped the question. You should have seen Sam and me. There we were on our knees before the love of our life demanding she choose between us. With tears streaming down her face, she refused. ‘I can’t choose. It’s an impossible choice. Please. You’re breaking my heart. I love you both. That may be wrong, but it’s true. I can’t see either of you anymore. It’s just too hard.’ The three of us were devastated. Ethel ran upstairs to her bedroom. Sam and I left and went to a pub. We were heartbroken. We didn’t know what to do. After several pints and letting go of the jealousy that had torn us apart, we came to the same conclusion. It wasn’t fair to ask her to choose. The very next morning we joined the army.
“After basic, we were sent to Korea, where the war had broken out. I was captured by the enemy. The entire time I was their prisoner—seven long months—the only two people I could think about were Ethel and Sam. That’s when I met my first dragon.”
“Dragon?” Nic smiled.
“Stay on track, brother. That story is for another time.”
“True. I still had no clue how Sam and I could work things out with Ethel. I woke up in a military hospital, next to Colonel Franklin McDavish. Sam was there, too, and came to visit me every day.
“McDavish had taken a bullet and had a high fever. He rambled on and on about needing to get back to his brother and their wife. He was constantly saying ‘their wife.’ I believed his words were brought on by his fever but it did get me to wondering what it might be like if Sam and I could marry Ethel together. I didn’t believe it was possible, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it, especially with McDavish next to me. When Frank’s fever broke, I asked him about what he’d said. At first, he held back. You have to realize that was 1952, Nic. But when I told him about our story—mine, Sam, and Ethel’s—he brightened up and told me about his hometown, Destiny, Colorado.
“When Sam arrived that night, I told him that everything Frank had been saying during his fever was true. Frank and Sam shook hands. We asked so many questions. Every answer Frank gave filled us with hope.
“Once I was back on my feet, Sam and I returned to Missouri to find Ethel, the woman of our dreams. Having heard about my capture, she greeted us with tears.”
Sam snorted. “She was crying for me, too, brother. You might mention I took a couple of bullets in Korea.”
Patrick laughed. “Anyway, Nic. Ethel was happy to see us both alive. When we told her about what we’d learned from Frank, she was elated. Sam and I had bought a ring for her together. Once again, we knelt in front of her, but that time, unlike before, we didn’t ask her to choose between us. She said ‘yes,’ and the rest is history. We’ve been happily married ever since.”
“Thanks, Patrick,” Sam said, turning back to Nic. “So you see, son, if it hadn’t been for Frank, God rest his soul, my brother and I wouldn’t have the wonderful life we have with our beautiful bride. That’s why I set up this meeting for you. I wanted to give you the same chance to hear what life can be like here that Patrick and I heard from Frank.”
Nic stood and clapped. The other men joined him. His cell rang. He looked at the screen. It was his travel agent. “Excuse me, fellas. I need to take this.”
He stepped out into the hallway. The agent told him about a seat that opened up on an earlier flight, but he declined. No way was he leaving early. He needed to hear everything these men had to say. “I’m still in Destiny. I’ve decided to take the original flight I was booked on. Thank you for your help.”
When he returned to the Rocky Mountain Room, he said, “Thank you for sharing your story with me, but Sylas and I aren’t related. We may call each other brother but we don’t share the same blood.”
“Which brings us to our next speakers, Nic.” Sam smiled. “Matt Dixon and Sean MacCabe.”
