Page 21 of The Glass Dolphin

They’d both simply opened their arms, opened their homes, and welcomed her back to the cove. She’d had friends in Vermont, but none as close as the women she’d met and knew here. And she and Scott had only been here for the past several months.

Again, Clara felt like she should know her life. She should be able to sweep out every nook and cranny and recognize the crumbs. But she barely recognized herself—or Scott and Lena—now that they’d settled in the cove.

“Why not?” Reuben asked. “She’s talked to me about it.”

“She thinks half the people in the cove should be evicted,” Clara muttered as Lena joined them at the island in the kitchen. She smiled at her daughter and smoothed down her hair. “Hey, Lena-Lou. Do you want to tell everyone what we made for supper?”

“Yes,” she said bluntly, the way Lena said everything. “Grandma, come on. The corn is getting cold.”

“I’m coming,” Mom said, her smile made of gold for Lena as she approached the counter. “What did you guys make?”

Clara didn’t love cooking for her mother, because she wasn’t nearly as good at it. Jean had a way with baking, so Clara had asked her to do the dessert. She’d shown up with a Marlborough pie and a cheddar cheese apple pie. Clara had added a maple cream pie to the mix, because she had enjoyed her time in Vermont, and Christmas wasn’t Christmas without something maple on the table.

“Candied ham,” Lena said. “I did the glaze. Mom made the potatoes, and they have so much cheese on them.”

Clara smiled at her adult daughter, feeling more grateful in this moment than she ever had. She and Lena had had their struggles. The woman would never be able to live on her own, as her mental disability wouldn’t allow it. But she had a good job she liked, and she functioned well enough for Clara and Scott to lead a somewhat independent life.

She was loved, and Clara had sometimes let the negativity in her life overcome the many blessings she’d been given.

“Then Aunt Jean made the pies,” Lena said, and Clara had missed the introduction of the garlic-rubbed corn, the rolls they’d bought at the bakery, and the honey butter Lena had whipped together herself.

“And you brought the cookies.” Lena smiled at her grandmother, who positively beamed back at her. Clara’s spirits lifted, because her mother loved so completely. She had for hundreds of girls growing up in the cove as she led the Seafaring Girls program. She’d been instrumental in reinstating it in the cove, and Jean now taught the young women who lived in Five Island Cove all the things they needed to know to be seaworthy.

Clara had always known her mother loved her, but she hadn’t felt it as keenly as she did now. “All right,” she said. “That’s the spread. If something isn’t good, don’t eat it.” She picked up a plate and handed it to Lena. “You go first, Bean.”

Lena loved candied ham and rolls with honey butter, so it was no surprise that she loaded her plate with those three things. Oh, and the corn. She’d always loved corn, and Clara moved around her mom and Theo to take Jean’s little girl from her. “I’ll hold her while you get food.”

“I got the highchair ready,” Scott said, dropping his unused plate back into the stack. “I completely forgot.” He bustled off to get it from the garage.

Jean watched him go, then turned to Clara with big eyes. “You bought a highchair for her?”

“Yes,” Clara said simply. It was something Jean would’ve done for someone else. Clara knew she’d had a highchair in the tiny apartment on the bottom level of the lighthouse, simply because she babysat for AJ Hymas sometimes. She’d sewn the boy the most adorable clothes over the past year or so, and Clara had never seen Heidi—the little girl Jean and Reuben had adopted in September—wear anything store-bought.

No, Jean made all of the baby’s clothes. She’d once taught sewing lessons out of a room on the second floor of the lighthouse, but she’d given that up when Heidi had come to her home. She did still run the Seafaring Girls classes three days a week, and Reuben came down from his work in the lighthouse to tend to their daughter.

From Clara’s perspective, their life was simple, but good. They were kind, hardworking, and deserving people. Whenever she looked at someone’s life from the outside, the way she was now, she wondered what people thought of her life.

What did they see when they looked at her, Scott, and Lena? Did they see a woman who worked hard for a friend at a busy inn on another island? Did they see someone who loved her family, tried to forgive herself and others, and just wanted to find a few moments to enjoy her life each day? Did they see a couple who loved one another?

“Here we go,” Scott said as he came bustling back into the kitchen. “You can sit right here, baby girl.” He took Heidi from Clara and got her buckled into the highchair. When he returned to her side, he looped one arm around her waist and pulled her close. “This all looks amazing, sweetheart. Thank you.”

Clara warmed under his praise, as she always had. She’d loved Scott for as long as she could remember, but they’d nearly broken apart last year. She stood out of the way as Theo went down the counter, Mom right behind him. They laughed and chatted about something, but Clara made no move to follow them.

She looked at Scott. “We’ve come a long way this year.”

His expression changed from jovial to burning in only a moment. “We sure have.” He kissed her quickly, then pressed his cheek to hers. “I love you, Clara. I so appreciate you not giving up on me. On us. On our family.”

Clara didn’t need the acknowledgement, but at the same time, she sure did. It was nice to be recognized for the hard work she’d done, whether it was seen or unseen. So much of what she did seemed to go unseen by those around her, by the world in general, but Scott had always been good to see it, see her, and tell her.

He moved away from her then, and they filled their plates with holiday wares too. Once everyone sat at the table, Clara glanced around at her core family. She hadn’t been blessed with a lot of siblings or children. Neither had Reuben. Without Theo, there would be seven of them total. The last of the Shields in Five Island Cove.

Growing up, she’d found her small family to be boring. Lacking. Now, she simply wanted them to know how much she loved and appreciated them. She cleared her throat, and since no one had really started talking yet, the spotlight fell on her.

Heat filled her face, because Clara wasn’t particularly good at expressing how she felt. “I just wanted to say how grateful I am to be here with all of you today.” A wobbly smile landed on her face, and she glanced down at her food, hoping it would distract her. “I sure do love my family.”

“Thanks for having us,” Reuben said, ever the rock in their family. “Jean and I have loved falling in love with the cove since we moved here.” He smiled over to her, and Clara only caught the end of it. “And with each other again. And we love Heidi, and of course, we’re thrilled to be close to all of you too.”

Jean nodded, her face bright and full of hope. Clara knew the misery, the nights spent crying and desperately hoping for a particular outcome, and the resiliency that Jean possessed. It was one of those unseen things that not many people got to know or understand.

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