Page 30 of Season of Gifts

“Thank you, Bonnie.”He matched her whisper before standing to greet his wife, his arms dramatically wide.“In the flesh.No lonely phone lunches today.”

Alice swept into a hug, kissing his cheek and whispering, “Did I miss something?”

“Big reunion,” he murmured.Bonnie had retreated, but keeping his voice low couldn’t hurt.“I think the staff thought we’d had a fight.”

Alice gripped his chin and give him a loudmwahkiss on the lips.“I’d much rather look at your face than my phone, sweetheart.”

He settled her coat around the back of her chair and held it for her before grabbing his own.“Thanks, Alice.Gotta keep my good husband rating.”

Lowering her face to the teacup, she inhaled deeply and let out a rumbly sigh.“Honey and ginger?You get an A-plus rating from me, even if this means I want to curl up and nap under my desk after lunch.Life should be more like kindergarten.”

Peggy had been pregnant with Becky and grouchy as hell when Jay was in kindergarten.He’d fetched more things that year than a golden retriever with an automatic tennis ball machine.“So I was thinking I should go to Maine tonight.Be there to help out.I know you can’t go up yet, but—”

The crease in her eyebrows and the pinch in her lips stopped him.“Jay…”

“He’s all alone, and his mom’s sick.”She’d had a freaking heart attack, for fuck’s sake.And okay, yeah, Henry had said again last night on the phone that he’d be at the hospital all day and they couldn’t do anything for him, so there wasn’t any point in disrupting their lives, but that was just him being all managing dom.Jay could do plenty to help out.“I can keep him supplied with snacks, and make sure he’s showering and sleeping, and take care of the house, and—”

“You are absolutely capable of all of those things.”Hands wrapped around her teacup, Alice stared him straight in the face, her hazel eyes miniature wreaths.“But this…” Her gaze fluttered before landing on him again.“Everybody reacts different to hospital stuff.It’s scary and unpredictable, especially when it’s a parent.And he’s used to…” She tipped her head side to side.“You know, being in control of things.So this is really tough on him.”

“Right, that’s why he needs our help.”

“No, that’s why he needs us to listen to whathesays he needs.”

Frustration sat uncomfortably in his gut.He and Alice didn’t disagree on things.Not important things, anyway.“I just think—”

His phone chirped three times as chimes erupted from Alice’s side of the table.She won the race, holding her phone, shaking her head while he was still unzipping his pocket.“It’s not him.”

At least they were back to thinking alike.“No, he would’ve called without a heads-up text.”

She flashed a smile as he unlocked his screen; her phone had been the one to startle them last night after their walk through the Common to see the lights.They’d sent Henry a selfie to show they’d gone ahead with his calendar activity, and he’d called them ten seconds later.No visiting hours that late.

“Shit.”Alice bumped the edge of her phone against her forehead.“I didn’t know they were so close, and I didn’t want…”

Ollie had messaged in their group chat:

Has anyone heard from Mama Helen?

She’s not answering her texts.

Three frowny faces followed.

“Because of your dad, yeah.”His grumbling frustration smoothed out.Alice was like Henry, used to controlling situations—and the flow of information.Just ’cause she didn’t agree with him didn’t mean she wasn’t worried and anxious too.Him fighting her on when to visit only made more stress for her.“You didn’t want to worry her.”

“I’m just trying to hold things together.”Alice fumbled for his hand, and he curled his palm around her fingers.The teacup had warmed them; good call on that.“I know you’re not ten years old.Either of you.”

“And I know you have extra smarts”—she opened her mouth, and he waved her down—“not because you’re smarter than me”—she was, but this wasn’t that battle—“but because you’ve been through this.I just hate not being there.I wanna be doing something.Helping.”Serving, he didn’t say, but she’d understand.

A new reply bubbled into the chat.

No joy here either,Nat wrote.I could drive out to check on her, but it’ll take a few hours.Pretty sure my boss would be cool with that.

“Huh.”Alice lifted an eyebrow at him.“Did your sister get a new job?”

Not that she’d told him about.But Nat had never been one to stay too long at something; she went where she wanted and talked her way into what she wanted.He shrugged, his hands full with phone and Alice.“Seasonal, maybe?Becky would’ve said if Nat was helping out at home.At the farm, I mean.”

His niece updated him almost daily since Alice had fired off those photos from the local place.Her excitement about his dad finally taking her seriously and starting new sidelines and actually paying her little brothers to help out instead of making the work mandatory family chores like Peggy had done to him—well, she’d quieted his guilt some about not going for the busy season.

Tap-tap-tapping, Alice sent a reply in the chat.Henry’s already on it.We’ll fill you both in after lunch.

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