Page 81 of Starry Nights over Dragonfly Lake

‘Beth.’

He interrupted her rambling and she gulped. She knew what he was about to say and couldn’t stand to hear it. Not on Christmas Day. Maybe later in the new year but for now, shedidn’t want to have him reject her. It had been the most perfect day and she wouldn’t let it be ruined in her memory.

So, upon hearing the honk of geese outside as they skidded their landings onto the lake, she walked over to the open front door and looked out.

‘Did you know that geese navigate by the means of stars and magnetic fields through the nerve endings in their upper bills?’ she said, in a bright voice. ‘Nature’s incredible, isn’t it?’

‘Yes,’ he replied. ‘It is.’

Beth gave an overly dramatic shudder. ‘Gosh, it’s getting cold, isn’t it? Time to head back, I reckon. Are you coming? I play a mean game of Scrabble so prepare yourself.’

He looked at her for a long moment before nodding. ‘Yeah. I’ll come back with you.’

They walked back to Maple Tree Lodge in silence, both lost in their own thoughts.

For once, Beth could think of nothing to say, wishing it was Christmas morning again and that her heart hadn’t been broken yet.

44

January was heralded in with mild Atlantic storm fronts, soaking the country over and over. Gone were the sunny skies of December, now everywhere was dull and dark, subdued by the heavy grey clouds overhead.

Despite the awful weather, Noah and Ben continued to work on the three remaining lodges. Thankfully they had been made watertight before the bad weather had rolled in so they could carry on fitting them ready to be rented out in the spring.

Noah had particularly enjoyed making the furniture from wood that had come from the surrounding forest.

‘This is a great piece,’ said Walter one morning, running his hand across the coffee table that Noah had just brought into one of the lodges. ‘I like that it’s a cross-section. Look at those rings. It’s got to be over a hundred years old.’

Noah nodded. ‘It was one of those older trees that came down in the storms before Christmas. There are some beautiful cuts that I want to use for the kitchen cupboards in here.’

‘It’s looking great,’ said Ben, looking over from where he had been hanging a blind at the window.

‘Reckon we’ll be done in time for those first bookings at Easter?’ asked Walter.

‘Absolutely,’ replied Ben, coming back down the stepladder.

‘Well, if you need extra help, I’m up and running now,’ said Walter.

‘There’ll be no running if Grandma has her way,’ said Ben, giving his grandad a pointed look.

‘All this mollycoddling is driving me insane,’ muttered Walter, frowning.

‘How did you get on with those drawers for the boat cabin?’ asked Noah.

Walter immediately looked more cheerful. ‘Finished them this morning,’ he replied.

‘Excellent,’ Noah told him. ‘I look forward to seeing them later.’

‘Do you want me to start work on the matching cupboard doors?’ asked Walter.

‘Absolutely,’ replied Noah. ‘If you’ve nothing else on, that is.’

‘Nothing but my own time.’ Walter headed to the front door. ‘Right. I’ll get going on them now.’

‘See you later,’ called out Ben, before looking at his cousin. ‘Well done,’ he said. ‘Keeping him busy but safe has been an ongoing issue this past year so I’m grateful for some help in that regard.’

Noah nodded. ‘We can both protect him,’ he replied.

He was discovering that perhaps he was more like his great-uncle than he had initially realised. After all, he understood all about keeping busy. Work had been the one constant throughout his life that had kept him company when he had been so alone. It had helped to keep his mind from going towards darker thoughts at times too.