Summer House, page 35
Nona looked at Helen. “He did?”
Helen smiled. “He did.”
“Where’s Teddy?”
“He’s catching a ride home with a friend. He’ll be here any time. He knows we’re down at the beach.”
“Well, then, let’s go.”
Nona surrendered some of her pride and allowed herself to lean heavily on her daughter-in-law as they progressed through the house, out the doors, and onto the lawn.
The heat of the day had diminished, and the air was clear and sweet. The groomed lawn was soft beneath Nona’s feet, and birds called and flew among the trees that bordered the land.
“I’d almost forgotten how lovely it is out here,” Nona said.
Helen kept a firm arm around Nona’s waist and held Nona’s hand with her own. They arrived at the strip of sand shaped by the wind into low dunes. Tall narrow blades of beach grass grew in the dunes, and wild roses twined everywhere in lush profusion. The perfume was heavenly.
“Stop a moment,” Nona told Helen. “Let me just breathe.”
Helen waited, staring out at the water, until Nona said, “All right, dear. I’d better sit down.”
It was only a few more feet, and then they were on the beach.
Charlotte and Whit were at the water’s edge, squatting in the sand, whispering and laughing softly as they compared shells. Suzette was ensconced in one of the new clever canvas chairs that had arms with a cup holder and a little platform where she could rest her legs.
Worth sat in a beach chair, holding Dawn, wrapped in several light blankets, in his arms.
“My, it looks like a party,” Nona said, as she sank gratefully into a beach chair.
“It is a party,” Suzette agreed. “Look at all the food Glorious made.”
Nona accepted a glass of wine and a plate of cheese and crackers and sliced vegetables from Helen, who poured herself a glass of wine and sat cross-legged next to Worth’s chair. Nona sipped the wine and felt remarkably content with life.
“Look at the water,” Helen said. “It’s as still as glass.”
They all gazed out at the harbor. A few sailboats drifted idly in the distance, and a kayak sliced a white trail.
“The silence is lovely,” Helen said.
“Yeah,” Suzette agreed. “What a lot of noise those saws made. But Dawn just slept through it all.”
“Babies can do that.” Leaning over, Helen looked at her granddaughter. “She’s so beautiful.”
Nona said, “Her head comes to a point.”
“Nona!” Helen was shocked. “How can you say that?”
Nona said, “Her head comes to a point and she’s beautiful.”
“Hello, everyone!”
Nona turned to look. Teddy was striding down the lawn, undoing his tie as he walked.
“Oh, good, drinks on the beach. Heaven.” Teddy squatted down in front of Nona and put a hand on each arm of her chair. “Nona, I think taking the hedge down is a brilliant idea. It’s going to look great.”
“I’m so glad you think so.” Reaching out, she caressed Teddy’s cheek. How she loved this man, her second grandson.
Teddy stood up and walked to the drinks table. Nona forced herself not to look, but she couldn’t help it; she peeked, and from the periphery of her vision she saw Teddy pour himself a glass of sparkling water.
Teddy said, “Hey, Dad, let’s go for a walk. I’ve got some things to tell you.”
Worth raised an eyebrow, then said, “Okay.” Carefully he handed the baby to Suzette. He bent and removed his loafers.
Teddy kicked off his shoes. He and his father walked away, along the sloping beach. Helen brought her knees to her chest and hugged them.
“Summer’s almost over,” Suzette said, gazing out at the water.
“And fall is about to begin,” Nona said.
“Some days it’s as if life is just starting, brand new,” Helen observed.
“Well, it is,” Nona agreed. “Every day.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
NANCY THAYER is the New York Times bestselling author of Moon Shell Beach, The Hot Flash Club, The Hot Flash Club Strikes Again, Hot Flash Holidays, The Hot Flash Club Chills Out, and Between Husbands and Friends. She lives on Nantucket.
a cognizant original v5 release october 08 2010
Summer House is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2009 by Nancy Thayer
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Ballantine Books,
an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
BALLANTINE and colophon are registered trademarks
of Random House, Inc.
eISBN: 978-0-345-51521-6
www.ballantinebooks.com
v3.0
Nancy Thayer, Summer House
