“But you’ve been married an awfully long time,” Amber noted, her eyebrows knitting slightly. “How long does it take to go from newlywed, to just… wed?”
“I’d say it ebbs and flows,” Samantha responded thoughtfully, as she and Rob glanced at each other. “It comes, and goes… and then it comes back, again.”
“It helps to realize that early on, otherwise an ebb can feel like a permanent condition,” her mom, Deborah, added.
“And it isn’t. It doesn’t have to be, anyway,” Rob said.
“No, it doesn’t,” Gramma Davison agreed.
“I can’t imagine having an ebb,” Amber frowned a little, as she looked at Erik.
“Neither can I. But I’m going to remember this, if it happens,” Erik replied.
“The good news is, the condition is curable,” Gramma Davison assured them. “It happens to every couple, but that’s not how it has to end.”
“When the ebb ends, it’s wonderful. It’s better than before,” Samantha added, and all of those married for more than six months, nodded in agreement.
“There are a lot of demands in this life, and it’s easier to get out of sync than you think,” her dad, Jay, pitched in. “Just don’t let that become the norm.”
“We won’t,” Erik vowed.
“We won’t,” Amber agreed.
“Keep your relationship with each other, second only to your relationship with God,” Rob advised. “If anything gets in the way of that, then… get it out of the way. Stay aware, and know that a strong marriage is worth any sacrifice you have to make.”
“Never take each other for granted,” her mom, Deborah, cautioned.
“I wanted to be with Erik for five years, even though I thought I never could be,” Amber remembered. “I can’t imagine taking him for granted.”
“If you wake up one morning and realize you do, then change that. It is possible,” Samantha advised.
“And, if you’re the one couple out of all those who ever lived, that doesn’t experience this, then be very thankful,” Grampa Davison added.
“I am, I’m very thankful,” Amber replied, squeezing Erik’s hand.
“So am I, regardless of how effortless or otherwise, the future may be,” Erik agreed. “I’m thankful to be with you. For better, or for worse. And, if it gets worse some times, I’m glad to know it’ll get better again, as long as we love each other enough to put in the effort. And we do.”
“We do,” Amber smiled back at him, and felt reassured.
“Hear, hear,” Grampa Davison said, lifting his glass of iced tea. The rest of the family did the same, and all clinked glasses lightly.
“Ordinarily, our Thanksgiving tradition is to go around the table, and share what we’re most thankful for during the past year,” Jay said. “But, I don’t think we’ll do that this time.”
“Why not?” Samantha asked in surprise, and everyone else gave him a puzzled look.
“Because I can’t think of a year in which we’ve had more to be thankful for,” he replied. “So this time, I won’t insist you pick just one.”
“Good,” Samantha said, and they all laughed a little, as she looked from Rob, to their daughter Abigail. “Because I couldn’t possibly!”
“Neither could I,” Rob agreed, with a glance at his wife and children.
“That stands for all of us, I imagine,” his grandfather acknowledged.
“Then let’s begin,” Jay said. “I’m most thankful for relationships, both new, and restored. I’m thankful my daughters are married to believing husbands who put God first in their lives, and their wives second. I’m thankful that I can honestly say, I have the utmost respect for both of my sons-in-law.”
Rob brushed his hand across his eyes.
“I hope I deserve that,” he said, his voice rough.
“You do,” Samantha swiftly replied, giving him a one-armed hug.
“Hear, hear,” Erik said, and they all clinked glasses again.
“You do,” Jay continued. “A year ago, I never would’ve believed we’d be sitting here like this, or that I’d be able to say that, and mean it. But I can, and do. You turned yourself around. That’s something to be proud of.”
“I’m proud of the work God’s doing in me,” Rob replied. “I proved how incapable I was of doing any better than I ever did. God’s love, Jesus’ sacrifice, and the Holy Spirit empowering me from within, deserve all the credit.”
“Your humility is one of the qualities that I admire. Both you, and your brother, encourage me to do better myself, in every area,” Jay admitted.
Caleb tugged on his dad’s shirt sleeve. Rob glanced down, and saw concern in his eyes.
“How come everybody’s crying?” he wondered, and everyone laughed a little.
“Not everyone, son,” his Great-Grandfather Davison answered. “Just the women in the family. Aside from your little sister.”
Abigail squealed with excitement over absolutely nothing at all, and laughed, proving his point. The emotion that gripped everyone, including the men, was eased as they laughed along.
“Sometimes, when you have so much to be thankful for, It’s a little overwhelming,” Deborah, Caleb’s Gramma Fields, explained.
Caleb gave that some thought, as he turned his attention back to the dinner on his plate.
“I’m thankful for the same things,” Deborah continued. “I’m also thankful for our newest little blessing, Abigail.”
“So are we,” Erik said, and his grandfather chuckled.
“Newlyweds, for sure. You’ve got the same list,” he teased.
“It’s a good list,” Erik kidded back. “Maybe it goes without saying, but I’m saying it anyway. I’m very thankful for Amber. I’m thankful she saved my life twice in the past year, and wasn’t hurt in the process. I’m thankful she loves me, and that she’s my wife.”
“I’m thankful you finally got over thinking I was still thirteen,” she smiled.
“So am I,” Erik smiled back. “I’m thankful you didn’t hurt me, when I gave you the necklace displaying a prominent letter A.”
Amber laughed at that, and so did everyone else.
“You feign ignorance well. And, I was in love with you. I was wracking my brain trying to find a way to convince Samantha to play along, and let me keep pretending to be Caleb’s mom, so you’d step up and be a father-figure, so that I’d be able to keep seeing you.”
“Lucky for you, things turned out the way they did,” Samantha retorted. “I would not have been okay with that!”
“Lucky for all of us,” Rob said. “Or, blessed, is more like it. Luck had nothing to do with it.”
“You’re right, it didn’t,” Samantha agreed.
“I’m thankful I was almost shot a year ago,” Erik surprised everyone by saying. “I’m referring to the second time. It served several purposes. It resulted in the permanent incapacitation of someone truly evil, and, Amber no longer ducks when I try to kiss her.”
She burst out laughing at that. Not everyone understood, but those who did, laughed along. She proved his point, by kissing him briefly.
“Speaking of almost being shot, what’s the latest on Sheila, Conner Stevens’ administrative assistant?” Jay wondered.
“She pled guilty, by reason of insanity,” Erik answered.
“So… what happened, after that?” Deborah asked.
“She’s being treated at a mental health facility,” Amber replied. “She’ll stay there, as long as they believe she poses a threat to society.”
“Conner doesn’t feel responsible, but he does feel he has a responsibility,” Erik added. “He’s visited a few times. So have we. She expresses sorrow, but I’m afraid if she found herself in a similar situation, she’d do the same thing.”
“Speaking of the development, how is it coming along?” Jay asked.
“The roads were put in, and the ski resort and cabins, were in business soon after,” Rob answered. “Mr. Henry began showing the models early las
t summer.”
“He waited for the threat of snow to end?” Jay wondered.
“That, and he knew people needed some time to forget about the perpetual blizzard that camped out on Pine Mountain for more than a week,” Erik replied. “The lots went fast. We completed several houses, all with emergency generators, before fall arrived.”
“Tell us about the other projects you’ve got going on,” Grampa Davison encouraged, and Erik obliged.
“Thanks to a couple of our friends, we were put in touch with a woman named Susanna Wright Ashe. She ran an animal rescue out of her home for years, and wanted to expand. She’s contracted Davison Construction to build the new facilities.”
“You built Justin and Laney’s house, too,” Amber reminded him.
“Right, we finished that in mid-August,” Erik said.
“What did she think of your plans for developing the foothills of the Diente de Sierras?” Grampa Davison asked.
“We’re ironing out the details, but she’s happy with it. We’ve got the contract,” Rob replied.
“That’s great,” Jay approved.
“Thanks,” Rob smiled. “It’s a huge project. It’ll keep us busy for a long time.”
“And off Pine Mountain,” Samantha shuddered a little.
“That brings me to one of the items on my list of things that I’m thankful for,” Rob said, and everyone listened expectantly. “I’m thankful for the storm, because it was through it, that I received everything I’m most thankful for.”
“That’s right,” Grampa Davison said thoughtfully. “It’s often through, and in spite of the storms of life, that we find our greatest blessings.”
“That’s where I found mine,” Rob continued. “It’s where I found God. It’s where I found peace. I still battle the sinful nature every day, but I don’t do battle alone.”
“Amen to that,” Erik said, and there were murmurs of agreement around the table.
“Through that storm, everything I needed, and everything I thought I lost forever, was returned to me. So I’m thankful for the storm,” Rob finished.
“So am I,” Samantha said, wiping away a few tears. “But it’ll take several teams of wild horses to ever get me up that mountain again!”
“I still can’t talk you into that vacation home?” Rob teased.
“No!” she said emphatically, and everyone laughed.
“Well, I reckon we can all agree we’re thankful for that storm,” Grampa Davison said, as Abigail hollered and squealed in agreement.
“How about you, Caleb?” Rob asked. “What are you most thankful for, this year?”
The little boy looked around the table at the smiling faces of his Mom and Dad, baby sister Abigail, Great-Gramma and Great-Grampa Davison, Grampa Jay and Gramma Deborah, and Uncle Erik and Aunt Amber.
Caleb looked up at his Dad, and smiled.
“My family.”
“Amen,” Erik said, as Rob hugged his son, and his Mom, grandmothers, and aunt, wiped away fresh tears.
His Great-Grampa Davison raised his glass.
“I’ll drink to that,” he said, and they all clinked glasses, and did.
“I like pie, too,” Caleb added, eyeing his empty plate, and the heavily laden dessert table.
“Then let’s get that boy some pie,” his Great-Gramma Davison said, blotting the last of her tears with her napkin.
“Who ever said you can’t have it all?” Erik smiled at his nephew.
“Not me,” Caleb declared, as his Gramma Deborah filled a plate for him, with a generous slice of pumpkin pie, and piled it with whipped cream.
“And not me,” Rob said softly, as Samantha pressed her cheek against his shoulder, and he kissed the side of her face. Abigail shrieked, and laughed as she clapped her hands.
“That makes four of us,” Samantha smiled.
About the Author
Melissa R. L. Simonin writes the books she wants to read: good clean rated G romance, mystery, suspense, fantasy, paranormal, supernatural, historical, and Christian fiction, with main characters that inspire, who have senses of humor and are good at heart, and which leave one feeling encouraged and better for having read the book. Her characters have stories to tell, so she gets up early and stays up late, because she doesn’t want to miss a thing. Unless she feels like writing two or more novels simultaneously and giving up sleep entirely, she’s learned not to name characters until she’s ready to write, because once they have their names their stories begin, and there is no “pause” option.
In addition to racing to keep up with her characters, Melissa currently resides in Katy, Texas with Brad, her husband of twenty-five years; thirteen-year-old daughter Emily; cats Pandora and Star; Golden retriever and retired Diabetic Alert Dog, Independence; and Snowball the Robo dwarf hamster.
While famous for burning cheese sandwiches when her characters are in the middle of a conversation, due to popular demand she usually serves the rest of the household un-burnt offerings, grocery shops on occasion, cleans when absolutely necessary, studies the Bible daily, relies on Jesus completely, listens to Citizen Way and Hawk Nelson frequently, and carries her laptop and immersive headphones with her wherever she goes.
Melissa’s current and ongoing series include The House of Bannerman, Mystery Lane, The Investigations of Jack Ryland, and Terms of Engagement.
Get the latest news on upcoming books and behind the scenes info you won’t find anywhere else, by visiting http://melissasimonin.com .
also by Melissa R. L. Simonin…
Miles, House of Bannerman book 1
House of Shadows, House of Bannerman book 2
Darkness Falls, House of Bannerman book 3
The Lodge at Whispering Pines, House of Bannerman book 4
Depart the Darkness, House of Bannerman book 5
Camp Emmaus
Stonecastle Inn
715 Mystery Lane, Mystery Lane book 1
601 Suspense Street, Mystery Lane book 2
Isle of the Crescent Moon
Hiding Treasure
Last Chance Inn, The Investigations of Jack Ryland book 1
Cottonwood Hotel, The Investigations of Jack Ryland book 2
Terms of Engagement, Terms of Engagement book 1
Failure to Engage, Terms of Engagement book 2
Lochlan Museum
Coming soon…
423 Apprehensive Avenue, Mystery Lane book 3
Ashes of Roses, House of Bannerman book 6
Disengaged (Terms of Engagement Book 3) Page 53