The drive into the city took forty minutes. It was possible to live at the lake and work in the city. She had commuted every day in Toronto, so the difference would be the lack of bumper-to-bumper traffic.
She stopped at a coffeehouse and enjoyed an espresso and biscotti as a treat rather than an everyday necessity like it had been in her former life. Life could be simple. It was up to her to make it that way.
On her way home, she heard the news of more Canadian soldiers killed and injured in Afghanistan. Tears for the families flooded her eyes. She didn’t know if she could bear having a loved one on the front line. Anna pulled over onto an approach and looked out over the field. Someone loved these men and women who served as Canada’s peacemakers. Her heart went out to them.
As she watched ravens fly between evergreen trees, she thought about Nick, straight and tall like the trees on this land. She wondered what his reaction had been to his father’s unexpected return last night. He would have acted with integrity. A man with his obvious experience wouldn’t want to be stuck in a small town.
Anna pulled her car back onto the highway and heard the rustle of her new purchases. She had lost a lover and Nick had lost a leg and a mother from the information Herman had given her yesterday. The losses seemed to help them understand each other.
Dreams of their futures had changed in an instant. They could grow to be friends, then build on that foundation and achieve more. It said in all of the books she’d read over the years how friendship was the foundation of love. And what was a foundation made of but rocks? She had plenty of those and so did Nick.
Nick had awoken to rain against the window. What was on his agenda today? Wait for the health reports, check the trench, and do up the time sheets. Not much. Oh yeah, there was the filtration plant that needed checking. He wondered who had applied for the town foreman position.
The mayor and the council didn’t realize the vastness of his water systems knowledge. Ever since Walkerton, the governing bodies had been trying to hire educated personnel. He had opportunities; if he couldn’t return to his troop, he could educate staff of small communities around Saskatchewan.
When he was at the service station, he saw Anna’s car accelerate onto the highway. Here was a woman around his age who was starting a new life. He guessed by the occasional sadness that passed across her face, she’d had her fair share of pain. If she could do it, anything was possible for him, too. He just had to find the right moment to ask her about her relationship to John Good.
At the freshly packed trench, he found some unique shaped rocks. He threw them in the truck box. Anna might like them for her garden. He still wondered where she was finding her rocks. Herman, the sly old guy, was keeping secrets. His dad’s was the biggest, but then again, not telling his father about his leg was pretty significant, too.
Maybe people didn’t talk about the important things. They gossiped about who was new in town and speculated about why they might have come. They wondered if the old gramophone they had sold at the garage sale might have been their ticket to financial freedom. But who talked about their loneliness or their loss of the loved one or, for that matter, the mechanic’s son who was in jail?
When he went into the coffee shop, Hank called out, “New stepmom, I hear.”
“You heard wrong. Dad has a new wife. After she adopts me, she’ll be my mom,” Nick replied.
“Be a whole new experience for you, won’t it?” Fred nudged Hank.
“You bet. As long as she doesn’t tell me to clean up my room, we’ll be in good shape.” Nick grabbed a seat at the counter.
“I heard he had to meet her on the Internet, even though she’s from Moose Jaw,” Cliff interjected.
“Strange world.” Nick sipped his coffee. “Makes it a lot easier to visit her family, though.”
“I heard she has farmer sons. Maybe he won’t rent the land to the colony anymore,” Red suggested.
“I’ve learned not to second-guess my dad. Land is important, whether it’s here or Afghanistan.” The guys nodded in agreement as he spoke.
“When are we going to know about the water situation, hot shot water-boy?” Hank dipped a donut into his coffee.
Nick drained his cup before answering. “You’ll know when I know. We’ll put up signs on Center Street and around town. I’ll ask you to call your friends. Has anyone else been sick since they’ve been boiling water?”
“Nah, and I don’t know if what most of them had was from the water. Could have been from the potluck supper.” Chuck jerked a chin toward a fellow crony. “Joe brought his cowboy beans again,” he chuckled.
The guys who hung at the coffee shop were like the stereotype of grumpy old men.
“Too bad old Jack didn’t come down here every day. We would have known something was up when he started driving to the city to have his hair styled.” Hank lifted his cup toward the server.
Fred pointed his cane at Nick’s left foot. “Hey, soldier, now the old man’s home, you can have a holiday for the rest of your leave. How’s the leg? I see you still have a bit of a limp.”
“It’s coming along, thanks. The council’s hiring your new foreman soon, and you can pull someone else’s leg. I have a feeling this year’s going to be good for you all, watching the comings and goings.” Nick had grown up while these men were still running their own operations.
“Sure will. Two new women in town and it ain’t even school holidays when all the other cottage renters and day trippers come.” Hank grinned.
“See you all around.” Nick placed his cup on the counter along with a couple of dollar bills.
“Not if we see you first,” someone in the back hollered.
Nick smiled as he consciously centered his body, picked up his left foot, and placed it. He hadn’t realized his limp had been noticed. These guys had no idea. They thought it was a healing wound. They didn’t know about the phantom leg pains he had at night, when the perspiration bubbled across his chest and he grabbed onto the headboard to stop from reaching down and trying to rub away the pain where there wasn’t a leg to touch.
The office was quiet, except for the phone which rang every few minutes with yet another inquiry about boiling the water. Perhaps he should plan an information session about boiling water. No, he would suggest the new town foreman hold an information session. Boiling water wasn’t a hardship on modern kitchen ranges. Everyone was used to a safe water supply. When it became unsafe, they didn’t know what to do, and if they did, they certainly didn’t want to do it for very long.
He drove around before heading home. At the stop sign before crossing the highway, he saw Anna, turning into town. With her back in his area, he felt grounded again.
They had something in common, and he would bet she lost something or someone that changed her future, too.
He wondered if she ever canoed or drove an ATV or even fished. Maybe he could show her where the fish swam over the road heading back to their spawning ground. Maybe they could hang out together.
The rocks rolled when he accelerated. He could take them over right now. If she didn’t want them, he could just dump them on the pile on his way home.
That was what he’d do. He really wasn’t too interested in going home to the newlyweds and his fickle dog.
When he arrived at Anna’s, she was struggling up the walk with bags, the hatchback open and revealing more filled shopping bags.
“Need a hand?”
She turned. “I need more than one, but I’ll take it if you’re offering.”
“Something sure smells good.”
“Must be my roasted chicken. Margaret told me about them and I had to have one. Want to join me for dinner? I’m starved.”
“How big is the chicken?” he asked.
“I have buns and salad, too. There will be enough.”
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“All right. I figure you owe me anyway, letting me walk in on my dad and his new bride without even a hint, and a fickle dog who looks at me with a sneer because Dad doesn’t make her wear the collar.”
“I checked her yesterday. The wounds looked healthy, so I’m sure she’ll be fine without the collar. But I know what you mean. Molly has a personality all of her own.” Anna started up the steps, keys in hand. Nick followed and waited while she opened the door.
The muscles in Nick’s arms rippled as he placed the remaining grocery bags on to the floor. For an instant, Anna longed to be a hottie, someone Nick would look at with half-closed eyes, someone he’d wrap his steel-band arms around and crush to his chest. There must have been more caffeine in her espresso than she’d been used to in a very long time.
When he smiled at her, she wanted to dart to the bathroom and freshen her lipstick; her fingers itched to crawl up and undo a button or two on her blouse.
He cleared his throat. “Anything else?”
She sprang into action. “No, of course not. Come in. Dinner will be on the table in no time.”
“You’re sure it’s no trouble? You’ve had a busy day.”
“No, I’d love it.” Heat bloomed across her cheeks in a flush.
She looked up to see him considering her. “You’ve done something different with your hair,” he observed. “I like it.”
Her hand fluttered up and tugged at her relaxed curls, which felt more like herself than before. “Thanks.”
“I’ll wash up as payment for my supper.”
No dog, no neighbors, no family. Just the two of them. How did adults become friends? It seemed like a long time since she consciously thought about being one.
He came into the kitchen in his work socks, opening the cupboard and drawers for dishes and flatware. “You put things away. I’ll set the table.”
Unexplained tears misted her eyes. The small things were where you began.
“Did you ever find out more about the photographs?” His hip bumped into her while he moved the glasses to the table.
“No. I Googled John’s name.” She paused.
He looked at her. “And?”
She chewed the inside of her lip. “His obituary stated he didn’t have any living relatives.”
She reached for a bottle of white wine and held it up. He nodded to the wine and spoke in a hushed breath. “So you’re not a living relative?”
She turned her back. “No, I’m not.”
She heard his breath whoosh out.
“Even though I’m adopted, I know he’s not my biological father. Margaret says he was a ladies’ man. And Herman suggests he has living children.” She turned around, the wine clutched in her fist. “I’m not ready to tell you how I came to be here. Can you accept that?”
He would accept anything because now he knew for certain she wasn’t his half-sister. But when she handed him the wine and the corkscrew, he smacked his forehead. “I just realized I shouldn’t drink, I haven’t heard from the health department, and I want to be ready for any and all occurrences. But don’t let me stop you.”
She brought out a bottle of sparkling water. “Would you pour this into our glasses, please?”
The radio station played some country rock. She did a little two step when she put the salad on the table.
“You’ve been practicing,” he said with a smile.
“It’s fun. I went to the dance last night. I’m getting better. I didn’t even step on Margi’s toes too often.” She took a seat across from him.
“Margi, the postmistress?”
“She asked.” Anna giggled.
“I think Margi makes up her own steps. I have to be careful with this false foot. I can do some damage to her old bones in her good dance shoes.” It felt good to talk about some of his challenges. “Watch your toes under the table. I wouldn’t want to crush them.”
She didn’t shift away. Their knees continued tapping together every few minutes as she said, “When I picked up my mail, she promised to teach me some of the fancier steps.”
“Good luck. I think the only person who ever danced with her without stepping on her toes is her husband.”
They briefly talked about the weather.
“That was a great dinner. Thanks.” Nick tipped his chair back. “You won’t recognize this town after July first. You’ll have to line up for groceries and your gas. The restaurants will be bulging at dinner hour.”
“Then I’ll stock up. You’ll have to drop over for more dinners.” She pushed her chair back and started picking up plates.
“You stay where you are,” he said. “Tea or coffee?”
“Tea, please. The pot is on the shelf above the glasses.”
“And the tea bags are on the counter. I’ve found them,” he said.
She practiced a few steps under the table while he moved back and forth with the plates and leftovers.
“What do you usually do in the evenings,” she asked, “when you’re not out dancing with the women in town?”
“I exercise. I swim. I read. I help Magdalena with her reading.”
She tilted her head. “Tell me.”
“When I was learning to walk again, I took a literacy course. Magdalena is one of the women on the Hutterite Colony. She helps Dad at the B and B. One night she told me she wished she could read so when she has children, she would be able to read stories to them. I think it’s easier for some people to tell their secret to someone who has challenges, too.” He sipped his tea. “She’d probably be over tonight, except for the rain, and of course now that Dad’s home, she’ll come when he’s there.”
“So you were completely surprised about his marriage?”
“Totally!” He paused before he spoke. “If you knew my dad, you would never suspect he was the type of man to experiment with cyberspace dating.”
“He must have been lonely. Herman said your dad was alone for a long time. Did your mom die?” Anna played with the placemat.
“No. She didn’t like being a farmer’s wife.”
“Nick, I’m so sorry.” She reached for his hand on the table and he felt its warmth against his skin. In the army men chucked each other on the shoulder or nudged them with an elbow to show sympathy and support.
“It was a long time ago.” As he poured himself another mug of tea he thought how long it’d been since a woman held his hand. “Even though Sharon seems very nice, I still don’t get it, though. You’ve met the widows here. There are a number of women who would have gladly moved into his house.”
“There’s a difference between love and making do.”
“I guess. What about you?”
When she didn’t answer, Nick decided to drop it for now. He walked toward her work bench. “What do we have here?”
“I’m building a miniature house for a client. It’s what I do now.” She jumped up and moved toward the kitchen with her empty mug. “Let’s take our tea onto the deck. The rain stopped.”
“Are you prepared for Herman and Margaret joining us?”
“We’ll be quiet and I’ll light some candles,” she whispered.
“Ha! They’ve already noticed my truck and so has half the town. There won’t be any secrets here.”
“Do we want the fact we’ve had dinner together to be a secret?”
“No. I just meant it was nice being alone with you.”
“Thanks,” she replied, putting the tea things on a tray, while he pulled on his boots. He was so adept, she forgot he didn’t have two feet. She’d read about the advances made in prosthetics.
While they sat on the deck, the birds chirped their ‘getting ready for bed’ song.
He said, “I’d like to show you the lake by canoe sometime. Would you come?”<
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“I don’t know how to paddle.”
“I can teach you.”
“I’d like that.” Anna smiled.
“Because Last Mountain Lake is long and narrow, we have to be cautious about the winds. The best time is just after sunrise or just before sunset.”
“Give me a call and I’ll meet you whenever.”
“Your garden is really growing,” he noted. “I see you’ve found a secret supply of rocks.”
She shrugged nonchalantly.
“I’ve never been so excluded from so many things as this last little while. But when I have a secret of my own, I guess it’s to be expected.” He stretched his legs straight out.
“Why haven’t you told people?”
“It took me a while to believe it myself. With the prosthesis on, most people just knew I had hurt my leg. They assume it’s on the mend. And in many ways, it is.” The air was filled with sudden tension. “Like you, it’s somewhere I don’t want to go right now.”
The breeze rippled the new poplar leaves and the scent of lilacs wafted around the yard. The crunch of gravel under tires indicated a vehicle driving down the street.
“Are many fish caught off the pier?” she asked.
“We catch the best perch in June. Do you fish?” He’d been staring out at the garden but brought his attention back to her.
“I love dangling one little piece of bait on the end of a line and waiting, hoping some fish will decide it can’t resist the morsel.” She pretended to hold a fishing rod and slowly turn the reel.
“Do you clean them, too?”
“I learned last year, but I didn’t perfect it.” She shuddered. “Yuck. The guts.”
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