Chapter 13
“So what do you do, Gray?” Cassie asked as they were sitting in the living room after supper. The two younger kids had gone to the family room to play on the Wii but Jan decided to stay with the grownups.
“I manage a branch of a credit union. I’m in charge of the new location we just opened in Bedford.”
Bonnie said, “And I’m very happy about it. How much did Frank tell you about what happened with Jan?”
“Just that she’d run away from home and you’d started going to his church.”
Gray snorted. “Well, I fell into the ‘he who dies with the most toys wins’ trap. I was the regional manager for one of the big banks and I was angling hard for a promotion to head office. Bonnie and the kids like it here in Halifax and they didn’t want to move to Toronto so we had some fights about it.”
Jan rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t ‘some fights’, Dad. It was yelling and screaming for hours every night when you got home after Sophie was in bed.”
Gray shrugged and looked sheepish. “Okay, it was pretty bad. Well, one Friday afternoon a gang from head office were in town and we knocked off early for a liquid lunch. I forgot that we had a command performance at the in-laws that night and Bonnie was absolutely livid when they poured me out of the cab when I got home. That fight lasted until Sunday when we finally noticed Jan was missing.”
“I took the bus to see Uncle Frank on Saturday but he was out of town.” Jan shrugged. “At least I had Mum’s key to his apartment.”
Frank looked at her. “I’m glad the freezer was full for a change. It was a bit of a surprise to come home to an empty fridge and you watching movies.”
Jan shrugged again. “I saw on your calendar that you were coming home Monday. I knew they would have cooled off by the time you drove me home.”
Bonnie said, “You’re still grounded, Jan.”
“I know, Mom. Except for youth group at church until school starts.” But Jan had a resigned grin rather than a frown on her face.
Cassie sipped her tea. “Was that the reason for the new job?”
Gray said, “It was the trigger. I needed to make some changes and the new job is part of it. The board at the credit union was thrilled that I was willing to work for them at the salary they’d advertised but I told them that I was only working forty hours a week unless they could get Bonnie to agree to any overtime I did.”
Bonnie snickered. “I let them have Gray for a few evenings when the bank inspector came to verify their annual report. But in exchange I got him an extra week of vacation this summer. Anyway, Jan running away was a big wake up call and we sat down with a family counsellor that Frank found for us.”
Frank said, “I’m glad it helped.”
Jan said, “But Grampa Ellis isn’t too happy about it. He wants Dad to work for him.”
Gray shook his head. “Even when I was still chasing the brass ring I couldn’t work for Grant. He doesn’t quite get that the rules that apply to everyone also apply to him. All those shortcuts will come back to bite him someday. Anyway, the credit union is a much better fit for me now that they are allowed to have commercial accounts. It’s been fun teaching the crew about commercial loans.”
“And they’ve been teaching you about residential mortgages.” Bonnie patted Gray’s hand.
Gray smiled at Bonnie and Cassie could see a host of emotions pass over his face as he held Bonnie’s gaze – gratitude, love, respect, commitment, and affection combined with something that seemed like anxiety and fear that he could lose Bonnie’s love. Bonnie’s expression held respect and love but there was a warning there as well that he should not take her for granted. Cassie looked towards Frank and saw only a thoughtful tenderness in his face.
Then Bonnie got a ‘wait a minute’ expression and, in a knowing tone, commented, “You know, Frank, Cassie’s very good.”
Frank asked, with a broad grin and a gentle squeeze of Cassie’s hand, “What do you mean, sis?”
“You guys have been here for almost three hours and she’s asked all the questions and hasn’t really said a thing.” Bonnie leaned forward. “So how did you two meet?”
Cassie looked at Frank and shrugged. “Too many people already know the story, Frank.”
He shrugged in return. “I suppose.” Then he turned to Bonnie and said, “We met outside a bar in Ottawa. She was cold and wet and hungry because she’d run away from a very bad home situation and was living on the street. I offered her some pizza and a dry place to sleep and by the time we’d finished breakfast the next morning I knew she was the right woman for me. I’d have waited until I could woo her properly before we got married but her home situation was so bad I decided we couldn’t afford to wait to get married. Fortunately, she said yes and her mother agreed.”
“I was so desperate to get out of the house that when he announced to my Mum that we were getting married, I didn’t disagree with him. But I needed Mum’s permission because I was a minor, you see.” She squeezed Frank’s hand and gave him a sunny smile.
Jan looked puzzled as both her parents stared at Cassie like she’d grown an extra head. Gray broke the stunned silence. “You aren’t eighteen yet?”
“I turned seventeen in May.”
Gray blinked then recovered quickly. “I knew you were younger than Frank, but I thought you were twenty-one, at least.”
Frank said, in a serious tone, “Cassie nursed her grandmother through four years of terminal cancer starting when she was twelve. After her Granny died last year she had to go live with her mother. Penny’s a drug addict and her new husband and all his friends were hitting on Cassie. There was no way I could let her go back to live there. The only way she could have gotten help was if she got Children’s Aid involved. Her mother’s husband has some gang connections and if Cassie had called the authorities there was a good chance that there would be some retaliation against her or her mom. So rather than wait for all that to be sorted out, I got Penny to come to City Hall and sign all the permission forms.”
Bonnie’s eyes got wide but again Jan jumped in first. “I thought Mom and Dad’s fighting was bad.”
Frank said, “It was bad, Jan, but it worked out fine. Penny doesn’t believe that her husband and his friends were hitting on Cassie and she refuses to get treatment for her addiction. Cassie was in more immediate danger than you were so I had to take action.”
Bonnie said, “But now she’s got you.”
Cassie looked at Frank with some mild worry on her face and thought, I’ve got him for now, anyway. Then she put aside her doubts as he smiled tenderly at her.
Frank said, “Yes, she does.” He noted the flicker of doubt and gave her hand a squeeze.
Bonnie sighed as she noted the starry look of affection on Frank’s face. “Well, there will be a lot of raised eyebrows at the yacht club on Thursday. Some of the folks there will be very disappointed that they didn’t get an invitation to the wedding. You’ll hear about it, for sure.”
Frank looked like he’d run full speed into a brick wall. “Ugh. I don’t suppose I can beg off?”
Bonnie laughed. “Possibly, but you’d hear it from Mother for the next ten years. You might be able to leave Cassie home, though.”
Frank held up his hands in a ‘stop’ motion and shook his head. “Not a chance.”
Gray said, “You’re wearing a ring, though. It won’t be that bad this time around.”
Cassie and Jan looked at each other trying to see if the other had any clue about what was going on. Frank saw the confused looks. “It’s the Captain’s Dinner for the Tall Ships Festival at the yacht club on Thursday. Mother was expecting me to escort one of the many ‘suitable’ women she knows.”
Jan said, in a puzzled tone, “Who could be more suitable than Aunt Cassie, Uncle Frank?”
Gray said, “I love you, Janny. Don’t grow up too quick.”
Cassie said, with a bitter tone, “Like I had to.”
Frank stroked Cassie’s hand to comfort her. “In any
case, Mother made me promise to show up. I was going to ask Kiera again to avoid one of Mother’s blind dates, but …”
Bonnie interrupted, “But she’s a gay activist, Frank. Pastor Morris was appalled when he saw you together in the society pages last spring.”
“Bonnie, Kiera is my oldest friend and a perfectly lovely woman and she’s bright and charming, like Cassie, and she thinks Dad is funny, which he isn’t sure how to take. I’ve been discussing faith with her off and on for the past couple of years. I pray for her every day.” As an aside to Cassie, he said, “I’ve known Kiera, Kiera Barnes, since we went to elementary school together. She’s the other coach for the junior men’s water polo team at my swim club. She hasn’t been allowed to coach the girls’ team since she came out, not that she’s ever been asked to. She’s amused by the club’s attitude, fortunately, but she has no interest in anyone under thirty and hasn’t ever.”
Bonnie looked disapproving. “She’s shared those sorts of details?”
“Only in passing and only once. The summer between second and third year I asked Stephen to give me Kiera’s phone number in Toronto and he informed me that she wasn’t interested in men. But I asked her out anyway because I needed a date for one of Mother’s charity dos at Massey Hall. Mother had mentioned that one of Grandmother Murcheson’s preferred debutantes would be in Toronto the same weekend and I didn’t want to have to spend the evening fending her off. So I went with Kiera. She’s a good conversationalist and she dresses well. Almost as well as you do, my dear Cassie.”
Cassie looked skeptical at the compliment but was surprised to see the nods of agreement from Bonnie and Jan. Frank continued, “So I asked her if it was true she was a lesbian and she pointed at an openly gay thirty-something woman who was attending the gala with a younger woman. Kiera said that she and the older woman had recently broken up because Kiera wouldn’t share. I jokingly said she should steal the young woman from her former lover and Kiera said that she needed to be with someone who could talk about more than fashion and parties and who was sleeping with whom. Then she said it was a shame I wasn’t a woman because I wasn’t boring.”
Cassie said, “She’s right. You aren’t. Even if you are an accountant.” Then she leaned in to give him a peck on the cheek. “I’m very glad she wasn’t interested in you.”
Gray said, “Ah, newlyweds.” Then he winked at his daughter. “So, Jan, will you look after your brother and sister on Thursday so your Mum and I can go on a hot date?”
Jan wrinkled her nose and said, “Eeew, gross.”
Bonnie snickered and dragged her husband’s head down for a long kiss. Frank said, “Hey, you guys. Get a room.”
Jan stood up and said, “Okay. Okay. I’m leaving.” She walked over to Cassie and leaned down to give her a hug. “Welcome to our dysfunctional family, Aunt Cassie. Thanks for the books.” Then she ruffled Frank’s hair and blew a raspberry towards her parents who smiled and waved as she descended the stairs to the basement family room.
Cassie broke the silence first. “I thought it would be really weird with me being only two years older than Jan but it went okay.”
Gray nodded. “I think you’ve got way more life experience than either Bonnie or I had when we got married after university.”
Cassie said, “Doesn’t feel like it sometimes. I missed out on a lot of things.”
Bonnie reassured Cassie, saying, “We’ve learned a few things in the past year and one of them is that you live your life one day and one decision at a time. I suppose you didn’t have the same range of choices we did but it seems you made a lot of good decisions along the way, including marrying that brat.” She smiled at Frank who gave her a goofy grin.
In a more serious tone, she continued, “Gray and I didn’t learn how to really listen to each other until this year and we’re still dealing with all of the leftover anger. But we both thank God that Frank pointed us in the right direction. It would have been so much easier for me to just file for divorce but that would have left us with no way to release all the anger and with broken kids. And it would have taught them that it’s all right to give up when things get tough.”
Frank smiled. “Well, we should head home, folks. Thanks for the lovely dinner.”
Bonnie said, “It was a pleasure to meet you, Cassie.” She turned her attention to Frank. “Mother wants us to come over for the afternoon, too, but we didn’t give her an answer. Would you like us there?”
Frank looked a question at Cassie. Cassie answered, “I think I’d like that, Bonnie. Are the kids coming, too?”
Bonnie looked like she was trying to remember something. “What did Mother say? Oh, right. She said that Frank should check his messages because Dad has to be on the evening flight to Toronto. She wants all of us over for lunch after church, including the kids. I think she wants an excuse to hang out with Sophie again.”
Frank looked at his watch. “I should be able to give Mother a call to confirm when we get back to the apartment or leave a message if they aren’t back from the club.” He rose and helped Cassie up.
They climbed into the rental car and Cassie let out a long sigh. “That wasn’t as bad as I feared but I’m glad it’s over.”
Frank said, “You charmed everyone again, my dear.”
Cassie shrugged. “My spare grannies taught me how to do that, especially Mrs. Robertson. When you have to deal with overworked doctors and nurses it helps to be firm, polite and friendly. I got a lot of practice in that last year before Granny died. I even learned how to do it when I was so scared I could barely keep it together.” She paused. “But now I know why you insisted I get all of those really nice clothes from those high end stores. If I dressed like Jan, no one would take me or our marriage seriously. I mean, she’s got a great style for someone going into Grade 10 but if I wore shorts that small …” She frowned.
“You’d look younger than Jan, I know.” He gave her a comforting smile. “I don’t care because I already know you and I think you’re wonderful the way you are. But it will be easier on us if we show everyone what they expect.”
“And what do they expect?” Cassie’s tone was seriously curious.
“They expect that I would be married to someone from a wealthy family, between twenty-three and thirty, smart, beautiful, charming and with a great sense of style.”
Cassie crossed her arms and slumped into a defensive posture. “Great. Apparently I meet one of those six.”
Frank held out his hand. Suspicious, she put her hand in his and he raised it to his lips. “You meet four of those six, my lovely wife, and since I have more money than any one person really needs, I don’t care how wealthy you or your family are. We can’t do anything about our age difference but you’re so much more mature than I was at seventeen, or twenty-seven for that matter, that no one will really be able to tell. When I was your age I was so caught up in chasing girls and partying that I didn’t pay attention to my surroundings.”
“When I went to England after high school graduation I drank so much at the pubs that I really only remember landing at Heathrow and checking into the hotel. I vaguely remember the opening minutes of a Man U versus Chelsea match that is supposed to have been one of the greatest soccer games of all time but if I didn’t have the ticket stub in my souvenir box I might not believe that I was there.” He shrugged. “I did catch a replay of that game on television a couple of years ago and was ashamed that I couldn’t remember any of it.” He gave a rueful grimace. “Then I became a party animal in university. After I became a Christian I overreacted to those bad habits by becoming a workaholic.”
He smiled at Cassie. “Remember when I talked about us being partners?”
Cassie nodded. “Yes, I remember.”
“Well, you help me dial it back. It was awesome to feed the chickadees with you last week. I need more of that in my life and without you I’d just fall back into working too much.”
Cassie felt her spirits rise. “So what’s here in Halifax
that’s special?”
Frank’s brow furrowed for a moment then he said, “I know you wanted to see the Pier 21 exhibit. I haven’t been yet so that should be interesting. The Public Gardens and the Commons are nice to walk through on a sunny day. There are some nice shops and restaurants on the waterfront. Peggy’s Cove isn’t very far away and it’s beautiful in any weather although I prefer to visit Sambro Head and go diving the wrecks out there. Maybe we can go for a long drive after lunch tomorrow and have supper at a nice pub I know that looks out over St. Margaret’s Bay near Chester. Is there anything that you saw on-line that appeals?”
“I would love to visit Lunenburg or Fortress Louisbourg and I’ve never had lobster.”
Frank had another idea, “Do you think you’d like to sail?”
Cassie’s face brightened. “I don’t know. I’ve only seen the boats on Lake Ontario from a distance. It looks exciting.”
Frank said, “I’m not sure what I can arrange for the coming weekend, but Kiera is an avid sailor. She owns a 35 foot catamaran. If you’d like we might be able to sail with her down to Lunenburg or back.”
At Cassie’s look of uncertainty he said, “She’s not going to hit on you, Cassie. She never hits on anyone that she knows is in a committed relationship. I wish some of Dad’s friends and business associates were as scrupulous. We might have to be careful at the Captains’ Dinner.” At Cassie’s sudden tension he said, “I’ll be right by your side and I’ll let you know who to watch out for.”
Frank knew that Cassie was thinking, so he waited for her to respond. Eventually she said, “Kiera and Stephen are good friends of yours, right?”
Frank said, “My closest friends, really. Until you.”
Cassie squared her shoulders. “Then they’ll have to get used to me being around.”
Good for you, thought Frank. “So they will. I’ll email Stephen and Kiera to let them know I’m in town and find out what their plans are for the next week.”