AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“But it’s cold out!”
I stepped back, watching the two bicker in the way only twins could. I happened to be an expert on the subject myself, having just had a small spat with my own twin. The pair loved one another like crazy, though Hattie was the one keener on showing it.
I glanced up to see Mac across the room.
“Heard you were planning on washing Henry up before dinner. Mind getting them both at the same time?”
“Sure, might as well wash the pair of them if I’m going to fill up the tub. You ready, Hat?”
“Yep!” She beamed, clearly happy to be part of the process. Hattie was the shier of the two, less rambunctious, less eager to get into trouble. When it was just family, however, she was always sunshine and smiles, blessed with the same optimism and positive attitude that her mother had had.
We headed upstairs, Hattie getting all the details of Henry’s adventure out of him as we made our way to the bathroom near the kids’ room. I filled the tub and got the kids out of their dirty clothes, making sure the bath was nice and bubbly before I plopped them both into the water.
I loved giving the kids their daily bath. The two of them were growing up right before my eyes, and it seemed like just yesterday that they were talking in babbles and crawling everywhere. When they were in the tub, splashing around and laughing their little heads off, they were kids through and through.
By the time we were finished with baths, the scents from the kitchen downstairs had become impossible to ignore. Marcus and I had handled most of the cooking while Henry and Mac and Adam had gone on their errand-running trip, but now that they were back, they’d taken over to put the finishing touches on the meal.
I helped the kids get dressed, Henry and Hattie putting on their best collared shirt and dress respectively while chatting eagerly about all the different dishes of food they were going to eat. The conversation focused mainly on pie and ice cream, of course, both homemade.
By the time the kids were cleaned up and dressed, I was so ready to eat that I couldn’t think straight. I carried the twins down, bringing them into the kitchen where the rest of the boys were busy at work getting the meal ready to serve. The kitchen was all rustic, huge and spacious with copper pots hanging over the island, the wooden farmer’s table off to the side big enough for ten.
“’Bout damn time!” Adam said.
Mac reached over and gave him a swat to the shoulder.
“Language!”
“Shi—, I mean,shoot,” he said, screwing up his face a bit in embarrassment.
Marcus chuckled as he set plates on the table, shaking his head. We’d had the kids for almost a full year, but all the same we were still working on getting out of the habits we’d established over our years of bachelor-dom.
“I see you took the time to trim that beard of yours,” Mac said to me with a small smirk.
I laughed, pretending to fluff my beard.
“You wish you could grow a beard like this, old man,” I goaded.
He let out a barking laugh.
“Alright, Grizzly Adams,” Adam said. “Get your butt over here and help us set the table. Faster we get that done, the faster we eat.”
“Sounds da—,darngood to me.”
We got to it, loading the table with turkey, gravy, stuffing, biscuits and all the other traditional dishes. Henry and Hattie helped, setting the silverware and napkins. By the time we were done setting up the table, I was so ready to eat that it took all the restraint I had not to grab the nearest turkey leg and bite into it like a damn caveman.
We finally sat, Mac pouring wine for us and milk for the kids. The lights of the kitchen were low, a few candles providing ambience with their flickering flames. The snow still came down outside, and the sun had dipped down enough to bring on a bit of darkness. Between the food and the company and the snowy weather, it was just about the perfect Thanksgiving.
Mac cleared his throat, signaling that he had something to say. The table silenced, all of us turning our attention to our eldest brother.
“Now, I’m not one for speeches. But I think I’d be remiss if I didn’t say a few words, considering how different this Thanksgiving is compared to our last one.”
A serious expression took hold of all of our faces. He didn’t need to mention what he was referring to.
“It’s been almost a year since we lost Kristen,” he said.
He was referring to our sister, Henry and Hattie’s mother. Henry was sitting next to me, and I put my hand on his tiny shoulder.
“And I don’t know about you all, but not a day goes by that I don’t think about her, think about how much we’re all missing without her in our lives.”
