This was all new to her, but it was also new to them. They needed to learn about society and the excitement of city life, but they were also sadly entering a time in their lives when their parents were no longer together. That would be much easier for her to accept since she couldn't remember ever being with Matt. It was ridiculous really. She'd had a crush on him for a long time, and they'd never even kissed, not in this lifetime anyway. And yet chances were that her three sons were also his three sons. Whatever stupid little crush she'd had on Matt was that of a little girl. She was a mom now.
Amy put her arm up on the door and twirled her bangs in her fingertips. She absent-mindedly watched the beautiful scenery go by. She laughed to herself that she must have been on a tropical island for the past twelve years to not be taking in the beautiful view each moment, but there were too many thoughts in her mind to contend with. She hadn't allowed the boys to go on the Internet yet, but she knew she would soon. She couldn’t take three naive boys to New York City.
The Jeep stopped and Benji climbed over the seat and sat in the back between his brothers. "Uncle Bill," Steven cried, "I want a turn."
Bill laughed with all of the easiness of a gorgeous movie star who was truly enjoying life to the fullest. "You're too big to sit on my lap, Steven. How about I give you some driving lessons on the driveway tomorrow and you can sit here on your own."
"Yes!" Steven yelled behind Amy. She looked at Bill, and he was already looking over to her for permission since she was the mom, but she simply smiled and shrugged.
"Well, we are on Ruby Island."
Bill laughed and reached over to grab Amy's hand, but then he thought better of it and put his hand on the stick shift. Amy had noticed the move, and it bothered her a little. Bill Ruby always did what he wanted, and now he was altering his behavior to please her children. William was sometimes sarcastic when telling certain stories from the island when Bill's name had been brought up, and Amy could hear Matt's influence in his voice. She could see that Bill noticed the change in William too, and it wasn’t just her affection he wanted.
She had stayed up for a few hours with William after the other boys had gone to bed on the first night after Matt had left. William had told her and Bill, and Donnelly who was on hand to serve, but really wanted to hear the story first hand, about their adventure. After years of being stranded on the island, they had fixed the airplane as best as they could and chanced trying to find their way back to civilization. Matt and Amy had decided that since William was going to be a teenager soon, this life was not going to be enough for the boys. They would get back to civilization if they could.
The bouncing Jeep jerked Amy back to reality when Bill turned off the dirt road. She turned around and looked at the boys, trying to feign a smile. "Where are you taking me?" she asked as though she was a bit afraid. That made the boys smile back at her.
"You'll have to wait and see, Mom!" Benji called, giggling with the secret. They drove under the tree cover into a small rainforest area on the island. Amy had never been back here before, and when she commented to Bill, he laughed.
"I've been this far in," he said, pointing at the tire tracks that flattened the underbrush, "but I'm not even as adventurous as your boys." She knew what he meant when he came to a stop where the trees thickened and the car track stopped. He turned off the engine and the boys jumped out.
"Come on, Mom!" William called, leading the boys. Amy threw her pack over her shoulder and was glad that she had opted for the hiking boots.
"William, we came out over here yesterday," Bill said.
"I know," William told him. They were the same height, Amy realized as they talked it out. "It's quicker this way though."
"How do you know? You've only been here once," Bill asked.
"I can just tell. Trust me. I understand the terrain."
"Lead on, William." Bill put his hand out and the boys moved into the trees, with Bill and Amy close behind. Bill turned back to Amy and smiled with respect and with a small amount of regret, she thought. "They are really smart, Amy. You must be proud."
And she was.
They had followed William up to a bluff and rested for a moment before descending the other side and navigating around rock formations in the forest. Amy could hear the hiss of water, and at that moment, the boys darted ahead. She watched them scamper easily where she and Bill faltered over fallen branches and around massive tree roots. They looked back a few times, but Bill waved them ahead.
"Don't jump until we get there!" he called.
"Don't jump?" Amy asked.
"You'll see."
The waterfall was along a drop in the forest that was surrounded by trees. Bill had brought Amy around the bottom, and her camera was out of her bag before she had time to take in the whole view. She lifted it to her face for an overview of the shots she would want to take, and then she noticed the boys standing at the top, their shirts already shed.
"Mom, watch!" William called, and before Amy could react, he pulled his arms back and leapt into the air. Amy's heart stopped as she watched him plunge down into the pool at the bottom. She ran forward and a second later William's head popped out of the water.
"Hurry up, William," Steven called from the top.
"Wait a minute," Amy protested, looking into the pool and noticing how shallow the stream coming out of it was. William pulled himself up on the rock and before his feet were out of the water, Steven jumped.
"Cannonball!" he yelled, although he kept his body straight and rocketed into the water as stiff as a board.
"It's okay, Mom. We did this like a thousand times yesterday." William ran past Amy and made for the top while Benji looked over the edge for a minute. Amy pulled her camera up to her eye to zoom in and try to see Benji's face. His hesitation made her assume that he was afraid, but when she looked closely, she could tell that he wasn’t scared. He was being meticulous about his jump. After spending two weeks with him, she knew that he was just being Benji. He was more methodical than the other two boys. She clicked a shot of him, and then another, and before she knew it, Benji had jumped over the edge and Amy was capturing it all on film.
"Take a picture of me too, Mom," Steven called as he ran past her to climb to the top.
Bill offered to take Amy to the top, but she said that she'd better do that last today, or she might make the boys stop jumping. She tried to guess the height and realized that it was probably the same height as an olympic diving platform, and she knew there was little chance she would try to jump.
Bill joined the boys and jumped many times himself. He told Amy that he had watched the boys for a long time before trying it. She had grinned at that, knowing that Bill was a daredevil and would typically jump right in. This was a very vertical jump into a small pool opening, and she could understand his hesitation. Amy took several shots of Bill, watching him with the boys through her long photo lens. He was natural with them, and she felt a pang knowing he would be a great father someday.
They ate a lunch of sandwiches and fruit and then the boys played, climbing trees one higher than the next. Amy relaxed on the blanket and breathed in the island air. She had always loved Ruby Island, and she loved Bill Ruby too, but she knew it wasn't romantic love anymore. She wondered if he had read her mind because at that moment Bill returned to the blanket and sat down very close to her. He squeezed Amy's shoulders which always sent shivers over her body. She enjoyed the moment until she could feel Bill's hands soften their pull on her muscles. She knew him so well, and she wished she could say yes to whatever he was about to say, but she wouldn't.
"I can take care of you and the boys, Amy." He moved to face her, but Amy kept her gaze high up in the trees on her three sons. "It's not just the means, Amy. I can really take care of you. You know I love you, and I can't help but love those boys. They were made for an island like this."
Amy smiled and swallowed fast. She didn't expect a declaration like that, and although they had parted ways in the past, she k
new that Bill was sincere.
"I thank you for that, Bill, but I need to take the boys back to New York with me." She saw the immediate regret on his face.
"How is it that you can turn me down so easily?" he asked with a gentle smile. Amy knew that not many people ever turned Bill Ruby down in business or pleasure.
"It's not easy, Bill. I'm just too confused to think straight. You’re the only friend in the world who could have gotten me through this, and I promise we will come back if things get too weird in New York." Bill smiled and wiggled his eyebrows and Amy shook her head. "We’ll come back to visit, Bill."
"I know," he said, obviously hurt by Amy's rejection. He smiled at her and shrugged. "What can I say? I've missed our time together. You're about the only person who talks to me and not movie star Bill Ruby."
"You can call me any time, you know!" Amy said and tossed a napkin in his face. They both laughed and Bill returned to the trees with the boys to enjoy their last afternoon together.
Chapter 8
The boys had truly loved the boat ride to Eleuthera island, and it had taken an hour longer than usual because Bill insisted on teaching each of them how to drive the boat and then gave them turns at the wheel. He wasn't showing off for them, Amy knew. He was truly enjoying their company as much as they were enjoying his. Amy sometimes forgot that everything was new to the boys, and each leg of the trip seemed to take extra time because they asked hundreds of questions about what things were and how they worked. She could tell that they'd had some education on the island because they could all read words and numbers, and she felt some pride knowing that it was she or Matt who had taken the time to teach them to read. She wondered how they had done it while stranded on the island with no books.
Bill tried to accompany them back to New York, but Amy insisted that she go back without him, although she didn't say no when he offered his private jet to her. Benji had sat next to Amy the entire flight, and she held his hand and stroked his hair. He had flown once in his life, and that time the plane had almost crashed. Amy could see that Benji was not going to forget that any time soon.
The older boys had spent some of the flight sleeping, and she woke them when they were approaching New York City. They looked out the window at the sprawl of houses and were excited to see the skyline. Amy tried to warn them how crowded the city would feel after the solitude of the island, but that just excited them more. They had been watching movies and television shows on the island and had seen Hollywood's version of the real world. The glitter and glamour had excited them, and they were ready to plunge in.
There was a limousine waiting on the tarmac when they landed, and Amy was grateful because she wasn't sure she could handle the boys and their luggage on her own. The boys were arriving in New York City for the first time, and in some ways so was Amy. She typically traveled light and unfettered, and that time in her life had come to a sudden stop. As the limo made it's way from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey to her mother's Upper West Side brownstone, the boys’ faces were glued to the windows as they took in the traffic, the buildings, and people of New York City. Amy felt a pang of panic rising in her stomach, and she wasn't sure if it was concern for her sons in the city, or the fact that in thirty minutes, she and the boys would come face to face with Mabel.
When the limousine stopped in front of the house, the front door of the brownstone was flung open and Amy saw Mabel waiting at the top of the stairs dressed up in a full powder blue skirt and jacket with cap and half veil pulled down. She remembered her mom doing that the first time Amy brought Bill Ruby to meet her, but that was the only other time Mabel bothered to come out and greet Amy or a guest.
Amy left the limousine and felt tears welling in her eyes, but she didn't know why. She knew that the reality of being home was hitting her, and she slowly took the stairs one by one and hugged Mabel. She was crying now, and she didn't know how this feeling of missing her mom had manifested because she had only been gone for two weeks.
"Bring the bags inside," Mabel called to the limo driver who nodded. "Come in," Mabel said to Amy and the boys. She turned and swept into the house leaving Amy to wipe her tears. Amy didn't want the boys to see her crying again. They had caught her a few times on the island when she was afraid she was having a mental breakdown. If it weren't for the DNA test, she might have checked herself into a mental health facility. Amy wiped the tears on her sleeve and turned sideways in the entrance, showing the boys to the front room of the house.
Amy was going to introduce the boys, but the driver entered with the first round of bags and looked at Mabel who nodded. He left them in the large foyer and turned to get the rest. "Young man," Mabel said to the forty-something driver. "I will need your services in thirty minutes. Mr. Ruby won't mind keeping you on for the day." Mabel smiled, and the man agreed with a nod and a smile before going out.
"Mabel," Amy muttered. She knew that Bill wouldn't mind paying for the limo for the day, and she also knew her mom's penchant for enjoying Bill's wealth from the sidelines. She shook her head but didn't argue the point.
"Mabel, I would like to introduce you to your grandsons." Amy watched her mom step in next to her and click her heels. She had a warm smile on her face, and Amy thought she saw the crack of emotion from the way her mom's lips were quivering, so she looked away or they might both be crying in a minute. "Boys, this is your grandmother."
"Grandmother," they said tentatively, but Benji moved in and gave Mabel a hug.
"Call me Mabel," she said. "I'm too young to be a grandmother." Mabel winked at Amy who rolled her eyes.
"That’s Benjamin, but we call him Benji," Amy said.
"Hello, Benji," Mabel said as she hugged Benji and scruffed his hair.
"This is William," Amy said as the eldest stepped forward. He too hugged Mabel, which surprised Amy, but her mom gently returned the hug and put her hand on top of William's head to scruff his hair too. She pushed him away and took a good, long look. "You are very handsome, William."
"Thank you," he said, and stepped aside.
"I understand you go by Bill for short," Mabel said slyly, and Amy bit her lip. "Your mother tells me you were named for Bill Ruby. Isn't that ironic?" Mabel looked at Amy who began to sweat. She didn't like telling her mom that little tidbit on the phone, and she knew this wasn't the last she'd hear of it.
"Bill Ruby is a great guy, but I go by William now." He tried to sound grown up when he said this. "I was Bill on the island where I grew up, but I'm older now, and I would like to be called William." Amy could hear Bill Ruby's fortitude in William's tone, and she knew he had made a great impression on all of the boys.
"Well, it’s nice to meet you, William," Mabel said graciously.
"And this is Steven, who must be named after Dad," Amy said with a flicker of regret in her voice. She missed her father immensely, and the way Mabel nodded without a word told Amy that her mother missed him too.
He was a steady husband and father, a reasonable and well-respected man, and he loved Mabel and Amy to a fault. In a world of people searching for purpose, he knew that his purpose was to love 'his girls' and to take care of them. He'd told Amy that her whole life, and she wondered how he'd managed to figure that out when others struggled. She looked at her own boys and could for the first time see what he'd meant. Amy had aspirations in photography, but her lens was shifting. Her purpose was to get to know her boys and to figure out a way for them to grow up in a world they knew nothing about.
Steven waved at Mabel and smiled with a hint of suspicion. Amy had seen his reserve at times on Ruby Island, and she knew he would warm up to Mabel in time.
Mabel was flamboyant but typically reserved with affection, and she winked at Steven, and then leaned forward and mussed his hair with her fingers as she had done to the other boys. “No hugs for now,” Mabel said.
The chauffeur had the last load of luggage in the foyer, and he tipped his cap at Mabel. "We will be out shortly," she told him. Amy looked around th
e room and then at the pile of bags they had acquired from Bill who had ended up furnishing a wardrobe for each of the boys.
Amy said, "Don't worry, Mabel. We’ll find somewhere to go. It's too small here, and I know you wanted me to move out and find my way." Amy tried to keep any sarcasm from her voice. Her mom had nudged Amy to date and tried to convince her to move out, but Amy didn't like to live alone. She was lonely and allowed herself too many hours of television when she lived alone. She didn't like to use the word depressed, but she knew what it meant.
"Nonsense. You will stay here! I need to get to know these young men." Mabel leaned down and took Benji's hands in hers. "Now, you have grown up on an island, is that right?"
"Yes."
"Have you had ice cream yet?"
"We had some called 'Skinny Cream' on the island with Uncle Bill," Steven said.
"Oh, no! That won't do!" Mabel said with enthusiasm. She took Benji's hand and led him through the high archway at the back of the room. "Come in the kitchen and let me introduce you to Haagen-Dazs," she said over her shoulder with a wink to Amy.
Amy sat on the couch and put her face in her hands. She was grateful to her mother for distracting the boys. She didn’t think the trip from Ruby Island would take such a toll on her, never mind the easy travel on a private jet followed by door to door limousine service. Amy had been questioning her entire future for two weeks, and returning home brought everything to the surface.
She needed to talk to Matt, but she hesitated trying to call him again. He hadn't answered the phone for two weeks, and he didn't want to talk to the boys. He was in denial, Amy thought. She had accepted the boys before the DNA test proved that she was their mother, and she hoped that Matt might see the light if his test proved the same.
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