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After she’d poured everyone a glass of water, Mack finally sat down, joining the two obviously hungry men.
“So, you folks always lived in Boston?” Thomas asked around a mouth full of pizza.
“Yes. Born and bred there, Roslindale specifically.”
Lucas turned and grinned at his Auntie Mack before he turned back to Thomas. “She’s a schoolteacher and frightens all the kids in the class,” he blurted out.
“Lucas, don’t talk with your mouth full, please.”
“You and Mr. Degan just did,” Lucas replied indignantly.
“Well, Mr. Degan and I are very naughty then, so you behave.”
“Is she always this bossy?” Thomas grinned at Mack.
Lucas shoveled more food into his mouth and said around a mouthful full, “You really have no idea. You should be thankful she isn’t your auntie.”
“Hey, I can always take you back to Boston. You can stay with your grandparents,” Mack replied sternly, while trying not to laugh.
“No way. They are old and no fun. All they want to do all day is play cards.” When he noticed the frown on his Auntie Mack’s face, he added, “And strip poker.”
Mack choked on her drink. “They do no such thing, young man. Well, maybe cards.” She glanced across to Thomas, who was trying to eat without laughing.
Lucas was so funny with the things he came out with sometimes. She could see why Daniel always watched what he said around Lucas. Melinda probably wasn’t as careful, and their mother, obviously, wasn’t careful at all. Good grief, strip poker!
The rest of the meal was eaten in comfortable silence, and before she knew it, Thomas had cleared the table and started to fill the sink with water and dishwash
ing liquid.
“Thomas, you don’t need to do that.” Mack stood to help him.
“I know I don’t need to do this, but I want to. Why don’t you get some coffee going?” He winked at her.
With a laugh, she turned to do his bidding. While Mack waited for the coffee to brew, she followed Lucas into the living room and switched the Wii on for him. He was allowed thirty minutes each evening before bed.
With the dishes all washed and dried, she joined Thomas at the kitchen table to drink coffee. She felt comfortable with him, as though she’d known him for a long time. She hoped he would tell her about his past. She really enjoyed hearing about people’s lives, especially before and after the Second World War. It was why she’d chosen to teach history.
“Would you mind telling me something about your parents? What were they like? What did they do?” She grinned at Thomas, who looked as though he’d never been asked that before. “Sorry, I find family history rather interesting.”
He frowned and gazed into his mug of coffee. “My parents, hmm. Well, my mother was named Josephine, and my father was named Thomas. They were both born in Delgany in County Wicklow in 1899 and sailed for America in the early 1920’s on the RMS Mauretania from Southampton to New York.”
“I’ve always wanted to visit Ireland, but it would mean a rather long flight, and I don’t like to fly. Have you ever been, Thomas? You must still have family over there?”
“I think there is family over there, but I wouldn’t know them. I’ve never had any contact with them. I don’t think my father or mother stayed in touch with any family when they moved here.”
“What did your parents do for work?” Mack inquired.
“When they arrived, my father was offered a good position with a law firm in Portland. The firm paid well and, in 1927, they moved here. They rented this cottage first, and then bought it a few years later. My mother never worked, even during the Depression, and just enjoyed visiting friends and drinking tea. My father worked all the time. He had one hell of a temper. He used to scare the crap out of me.”
They took a sip of their drinks.
“Were you their only child?” Mack asked, completely fascinated.
Thomas appeared lost in thought. “No. I had an older brother named Charlie. He died toward the end of the Second World War, and a sister . . . she died a few years later. My mother died of a heart condition in 1951, and my father in 1964. I hadn’t spoken to my father for years when he died. He left everything to me. That’s when I changed the name of the cottage.” He sighed heavily, and Mack could tell that he’d had enough for one night.
“Thank you for telling me about your family. You have a very good memory for dates.”
“I've always been good with figures,” he replied.
