Chapter 20

Michael had calmed down a little bit by Saturday morning, when he gave Jesse a ride into Hanger. There was an open house at his aunt’s house tomorrow, and he was expected to take care of the last-minute cleaning duties. His parents, who’d flown in for the funeral and some initial legalities, were leaving the sale up to him and the real estate agent. Although someone had died to make it possible, Michael couldn’t help seeing how advantageous the situation was for him: another weekend alone with Jesse was waiting for him, starting with this car ride.
Since he wanted to know everything about her, he started early on by asking about her childhood. She’d barely described the town she grew up in, however, when she somehow managed to turn the conversation around, and had him telling her about his family. There wasn’t much to tell: he had one older brother and very few relatives. Within a couple minutes of talking, he turned to find that she’d fallen asleep! It would have been perfect, had they been sitting snugly on the bench of a truck, with her head gently resting on his shoulder. However, as it happened, she was safely seated in her own bucket seat, separated from him by the stick shift, and leaning on the passenger door. And as he was obliged to concentrate on his driving, he did not even get to watch her as she slept. He couldn’t help grinning, though. The fact remained that she was sleeping in his car, and hopefully getting rested up for the fun-filled weekend he had planned for them. He’d already made her agree that, since he would be staying so close to her, they should “hang out” together on their day off. The first thing on their agenda, after lunch, was checking out the Aboriginal People’s pow-wow in town that afternoon.
Jesse woke up when he pulled onto the dirt road, apologized laughingly for not being better company for him, and pointed out the right driveway, in case he didn’t recognize it from the weekend before. As they drove slowly into the laneway lined with trees, he noticed two cars parked above the sloping driveway, one on either side.
Jesse noticed them too, and sat up straighter. “They’re here!” was all she said. As the camp came into view, more vehicles appeared: one on the right beside the camp, and two on the left behind the sauna, beside which a small trailer was parked. And in between these buildings and automobiles, sitting on steps, swimming in the lake, and coming in and out of the camp, were people. Old people, young people, babies and dogs, many holding food and/or drinks of various kinds. To Michael, it looked like the place had been overrun; to Jesse, it was one of the happiest sights in the world.
“I’d forgotten it was this week,” she said mainly to herself.
People were already waving, and as soon as Michael stopped the car beside the front porch, Jesse had jumped out and began receiving enthusiastic hugs from everyone in the crowd that had gathered.
Michael stepped out of the car hesitantly, and faced three large Italian men who seemed to be in their 40's, all with dark hair, suspicious glowers, one hand in a pocket and the other holding a beer.
“Hello,” said one, as he extended his free hand, “I’m Jesse’s Uncle Horace. Who might you be?”
Michael shook his hand and introduced himself as Jesse’s friend from Bible Camp. The other two men were also Jesse’s uncles, and grasped his hand firmly, with no smiles on their faces. But in the eyes of one, probably the youngest, with gelled and spiked hair, khaki shorts, and a short-sleeved dress shirt, Michael detected a glimmer of amusement.
Together, all four men walked around to the other side of the car, where Jesse was getting a decidedly warmer greeting. She seemed to remember Michael again, and introduced him to her family, and began rhyming off names as he met grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles and friends too numerous for him to keep track of. It was easy to pick out her mom, as the resemblance was noticeable, if not striking. He also appreciated her smile, which was decidedly the warmest of them all. When these introductions were over he followed Jesse to the patio, where she greeted three of her great-grandparents.
A group of teenagers came tumbling out of the sauna, shouting warnings for bystanders to get out of their way as they raced to the end of the dock and dove in, one after another.
“Those are my sisters, Corah and Marnie,” Jesse said, pointing to two of the girls as they ran by. “A couple of the others are cousins, the rest I think are just friends.”
“You think?”
Jesse shrugged. “Yeah, well, they might be one of my cousin’s cousins. It’s hard to keep track.”
Corah and Marnie, seeing no reason to interrupt their swim just for Jesse, waved from the water and invited her and her friend to join them.
Two little purple-lipped girls in bathing suits ran by him chasing after a small white dog, carrying cans of grape Crush and screaming in delight. Jesse scooped the littler one up before she could get away.
“This, I know, is a cousin!” she said.
“Jesse!” the girl cried, giving her a hug around the neck. The other one came back and demanded her hug as well.
“Jesse, will you go swimming with us?”
“Later,” she promised, releasing them both, and then they were off again. None of the adults told them to put on shoes or dry clothes, leave the dog alone, or knock off the racket. The kids could hardly be heard over the grownups and the radio.
But one elderly lady came out of the camp shouting, “Little girl! Little girl! Come put this sweater on!”
Jesse and Michael took a seat on the patio, where most of the adults seemed to be congregated in a circle of mismatched lawn chairs, watching a boy on a high stool in the centre getting his hair cut. A woman beside Michael with large red hair handed a baby off to a gangly pre-teen and lit a cigarette.
“So, Jesse,” she said after a puff, “who’s the guy?”
Her grandfather answered for her from across the circle. “That’s Michael, her friend from Bible Camp.”
“Does he speak?” asked her Aunt Sandra, also smoking.
“Where are you from, Michael?” said the lady cutting the boy’s hair, counteracting Sandra’s intimidating greeting.
“I’m Saskatoon,” said Michael, grateful for a question he could actually answer.
“Ghastly city,” said Jesse’s Uncle Reid.
“And what do you do in Saskatchewan?” asked the red-haired woman.
“I’m going to school right now,” he said. There were looks of approval all round.
“What are you taking in school?” asked Aunt Sandra.
“Theology and World Studies.”
There was uncomfortable silence for a moment or two.
“And what can you do with that?” asked the young uncle with spiked hair. “Become a priest?”
Jesse gave her uncle a look. “You can do lots of stuff with that,” she said dryly. “But he’s not going to be a priest.”
“Oh, I forgot, you’re not Catholic. So what d’you call them, ministers? Reverends?”
“Don’t be putting down Bible College,” said Jesse’s mother, the only one who didn’t look extremely disappointed with the young man. “I went to Bible College, you know.”
“Yeah, but you became a nurse first, so you could do something useful.”
“Only because Mum made me.”
“Always knew Jesse’d bring home a missionary,” said Horace gruffly.
“I didn’t ‘bring him home’,” said Jesse. “We’re friends.”
“Are you going to be a missionary?” asked the hairdresser.
“I’m thinking about it,” admitted Michael.
“Where would you go if you were a missionary?” asked the young uncle.
“Well, I’ve been to Equador, and I’d love to go there again.”
“Uh huh. And what’s it like down there? Is it a good place to raise a family?”
“Uncle Chris, really...”
“I’m just asking the boy a few questions. I’m your uncle, I’m entitled. Besides, your father’s not here to do it.”
“Ha!” laughed Sandra, “and you think you’re the best qualified to interview him?”
“Hey, whatever else you might say about me, I’ve got a loving, beautiful wife and three gorgeous little girls. And I’m the only one other than Theresa without a divorce under my belt.”
“Yes, but what were you doing with the first 35 years of your life?”
“And I make more money than any of you,” said Chris, looking pointedly at all his brothers and sisters, ignoring Sandra’s last remark.
“Yeah, yeah, and you were the only one who went to college instead of university, we know,” said his wife Kate, who actually was very attractive. “Give it up, honey.”
“Kate could still leave you, you know,” said Reid, “we haven’t told her everything we have on you yet.”
“Hey, come on now, we’re talking about the kid here, not me.”
While the parley continued to rage around them, Michael and Jesse smiled at each other.
“Sorry about them,” Jesse apologized quietly. “They’ve been waiting for years to do this.”
“It’s ok, I think I can handle it,” he replied with confidence.
“Just don’t get caught alone with any of them, trust me, it’ll get worse.”
“You think I’m scared?”
“No, but you should be.”
“So, Michael, do you golf?” This came from Horace.
The kids from the lake came trooping soggily past them and into the sauna.
“Uh, no, I’ve never golfed.”
“Well, you’ve gotta learn some time. We’re going golfing this afternoon. You coming?”
“He can’t,” said Jesse quickly.
“Why not?”
“He’s cleaning out Mrs. Petrick’s house today. She was his aunt.”
“Oh, there’ll be lots of time for that,” he assured her. “Come on, we tee off at one.”
Chris checked his Rolex. “Yeah, we better leave pretty soon. Come on, Dad.”
The boy getting his hair cut wanted to go, too, but one of his aunts convinced him that he wouldn’t enjoy it.
Horace stood up and beckoned to Michael. “Let’s go, son.” There was an evil gleam in his eye.
Michael ignored Jesse’s warning glance, and followed her uncles and grandfather. Jesse watched their retreating figures and despaired of ever seeing him again.
“They’re going to bury his body on that golf course, aren’t they?” she said to the women who remained.
“They might,” admitted her mother.
“Oh, he’ll be alright,” said Kate, after taking a swig of her strawberry cooler. “Besides, now all the guys are gone, we can go skinnydipping.”
Sandra laughed the way she did when she was slightly inebriated. “With my son around? I don’t think so.”
Kate’s face fell. “Oh right, the kids. Well can’t we send them off somewhere?”
“You might want to wait until it’s dark out,” said Jesse’s mom. “Unless you want everyone at all the other camps to see us.”
“Alright then,” Kate agreed, “we’ll do it tonight. Who’s in, ladies? Mom?”
“You’d be lucky to get me in that lake with my bathing suit on,” declared Nana, crocheting an afghan, “never mind going in naked in the middle of the blasted night.”
“What about it, Jesse? You and your sisters are old enough to join your aunts.”
Jesse wouldn’t make any promises, and she doubted that Corah or Marnie would be too keen on seeing the older generation in their all-togethers, no matter how dark it was. But the rest of her aunts, except for prudish Aunt Lilian, seemed up for it. Jesse just hoped there wasn’t a full moon that night.

She didn’t know what happened on the golf course that afternoon, but when Michael returned with her Papa and her uncles, the heckling stopped, for the most part. There was still some teasing, but it was mild. If anything, they were slightly more affectionate than usual towards her, and showed Michael a degree of grudging respect. They even let him try his hand at the barbecue. Jesse could tell that he was out of his element, having grown up in a small and very conservative family, but he handled himself nicely. After taking a quick swim with the men, he stayed close to Jesse for most of the evening, and it was nice.
Her sisters liked him, especially Marnie. Dom was pleasant but a bit reserved; Jesse thought he might be a little jealous. She was his favourite cousin, after all. It would probably get better tomorrow when their two older cousins, John and Craig, arrived.
When Michael said he had to go finish the cleaning at his aunt’s house, Jesse’s sisters and the older cousins declared their desire to see it, and his acquiescence in this matter did much to secure their approval of him. So when Michael drove over to the old stone house, a large group of teenagers followed, walking. It was a nice evening for a walk, still early and bright, with all the excitement of getting away from camp for a while, if only down the road. As permissive as they were, their parents’ constant presence was still a kill-joy for the younger ones, and they all felt the improvements of complete freedom.
“Should I prepare the kids to be scared?” Dom asked Jesse secretively.
Realizing then that Dom didn’t know about the changes that had occurred in the stone house, Jesse quickly filled him in on her late-night adventure to the late Mrs. Petrick’s house - excluding Michael’s stay at their camp, which she suddenly felt embarrassed about sharing.
“Interesting,” said Dom, when she had recounted the tale. “Do you still think it was an evil spirit? You might have just been imagining things.”
“Well, it is tempting to doubt the whole thing, I suppose. But Michael also told me that he’d had the same suspicion when he was younger,” she confided.
“That does lend credibility,” Dom agreed. “So I hope you’re right about it being gone, whatever it was.”
Michael welcomed them into the stone house with all the lights on, their brightness accentuating the fact that the sun was actually on its way down. Coming in behind her cousins, Jesse was shocked by the scene. The house was empty. Not a nicknack, not one piece of furniture remained. It was like a different house. All the windows were open, and the breeze brought in a pleasant scent to replace the mustiness that had attended the former occupant. The floor - wood in the living area, and stone in the kitchen - needed to be swept and scrubbed, but the area seemed so large and open, it was like a new house. The view of the lake, through the front windows and screen door, permeated the residence. All the cousins were impressed, but Dom and Jesse, having seen it in its prior state, was overawed by the transformation.
“I was just as dumbfounded when I saw it,” Michael assured her.
The younger teenagers discovered the staircase, but Jesse and Dom went directly to the bedroom. It was darker in that room than elsewhere in the house, being lit only by a lamp (the only article left that was not attached to the house, that Jesse could see); and having only two small windows, the mustiness lingered here a little longer. But there was no feeling of doom or danger.
“You should probably wash the walls,” Jesse advised. “It will help with the smell.”
Dom agreed, and Michael promised to do so. Other than that, no one had anything to say, and they left directly to see the upstairs.
The second floor had two equal-sized rooms and a bathroom, all of which converged around a landing that was almost large enough to be a room in and of itself. Jesse could imagine a couple of comfy chairs by the window, an end-table, and maybe a small bookshelf, making this a pleasant little common area. For now, however, everything was as bare as the downstairs, with slanting ceilings of wood that matched the floor. Michael informed them that it had been as crowded as the rest of the house, the last time he’d seen it.
Satisfied that there was nothing else of interest inside, the kids stampeded downstairs and out the front door, to see the porch and the yard. The older three followed them with less commotion.
“There’s no sauna!” one cousin accused, when Michael came out.
“It does have a dock, though,” said Michael.
“But it doesn’t have a sauna.”
“This is a nice porch,” Corah offered, “and the beach looks alright.”
Michael responded that they could only hope that the new owners would build a sauna, but none of them could imagine why anyone would sell a camp like this in the first place. Michael’s only defence was that his parents lived in Saskatchewan, and didn’t want to take care of two houses.
“Well, they could give it to you,” declared a female cousin. “You’ll need a house someday.”
“Ah, but do I have any intention of living in the wilds of Northern Ontario?” Michael asked the young girl. “I’ve never considered it before, and my parents certainly don’t expect it of me.”
All of Jesse’s relatives declared they would move there in a second, if they could.
“Wouldn’t you, Jesse?” Marnie asked her.
Of course she would. She’d have taken any camp on this lake, and she’d wanted this house particularly for years. But saying so now would have...uncomfortable implications, considering its present ownership. So all she said was that she could never afford it.
It was starting to get dark, and the mosquitoes were coming out. The group decided it was time for them to go home, there being nothing more to see here, and their own camp offering such conveniences as tables and chairs.
“Well, it looks like I’ve got work to do,” Michael said as they were leaving.
“And if you think I’m going to offer to help, you can forget it,” said Jesse, laughing.

Back at their own familiar camp, she thought over the events of the day and wrote them down in her journal. Somehow, this simple act often made things look clearer; but not today. First of all there was the issue of her house, the one she continued to think of as hers, no matter what logic said against it. In her mind, while walking through the bare rooms, she had seen where she would place couches, chairs, and pictures. She imagined the colour of the drapes, the placement of rugs, and - a nursery in one of the upstairs rooms. She saw herself rocking on a front porch swing, and working in the kitchen with a baby in her arms.
She may not have planned a baby, but it was coming, like it or not...and she was starting to think that she could like it. She had never liked the idea of giving it up, and now she was beginning to envision a life with a child. The only problem was that her fantasies weren’t realistic. They didn’t include living in a cramped apartment and subsisting on welfare, or working two jobs while her child was raised in daycare, or the problems that could arise from that child lacking a father figure. The alternative - going home - she didn’t know if she could bear. She longed for a feeling of independence, of making her way in the world. In her heart she felt that if by some miracle she could only get that house, then everything else would fall in place. She would have a garden, and her daughter would grow up knowing the feel of dirt between her toes, and the magic of watching a tiny plant sprout out of the ground. They would skate on the frozen lake in winter, with a black lab running beside them. They would go to the little Baptist church in town, and there would be fathers enough there to fill the role in bits and pieces. She would take swimming lessons at the pool with Dom as her teacher, and piano lessons from one of the ladies in town. Such a life she saw for the two of them... if only.
She wrote it all down, but there were no answers. She knew she needed to think rationally, to be reasonable, but she couldn’t make herself face that reality.
Then there was Michael. Once again, he’d been thrust into her personal sphere, and the strange thing was, he seemed to fit. He was obviously a little overwhelmed; to him, her camp had probably seemed crowded and chaotic, not to mention somewhat iniquitous. All of which it was, no doubt. But he had stayed with her. He’d endured their taunting patiently, he’d been friendly, and she didn’t even want to know what he’d gone through on that golf course. More than that, though, it hadn’t bothered her to have him here. It was always a little dangerous hanging out with Rocky Bay people outside of Bible Camp. It could be really fun, but there was always that difference, the sense that somehow people changed on the outside, or maybe her perception of them changed. That hadn’t happened with Michael. Here, in what amounted to her inner, if not innermost circle, he wasn’t a stranger. He was the same person outside as he was inside; they were as much a team here as they were while directing campers into their seats at chapel. He seemed to belong with her, and that was what got to her. She shouldn’t let herself be so dependent on anybody. He’d be gone after the summer, and she didn’t want to miss him.
Uncle Horace came into the sunroom and intruded on her thoughts and her writing. “Hey kiddo, whatcha’ doin’?”
She closed her book quickly, and said “Nothing.”
“Doesn’t look like nothing to me. What’s that you got there, a diary? You write all about your boyfriends in there?”
“No, just my strange relatives.”
“Ooh, that hurts,” Uncle Horace feigned with a hand on his heart. Still, he wasn’t to be put off. Taking a seat beside her on the couch, he crossed his arms, looked down at her through dark, serious eyes, and asked her in a gruff voice, ‘what was up with this Michael fellow?’
Jesse looked back up at him, met his eyes and said calmly, “We’re friends. He’s here to help sell Mrs. Petrick’s old house, so he gave me a ride. That’s all.”
Horace, fancying himself wizened by years, sat staring at her for some moments trying to see a sign that she was hiding anything.
“We’re good friends,” she added in the interim.
He was apparently trying to stare her down. He held her gaze until finally tiring of the showdown. He tried another tactic.
“So, is that all you want to be?” he asked in a very grown-up, you-can-tell-me voice.
“Did I give the impression that I didn’t?” she questioned, mimicking his tone.
“Well, you seemed awfully close this afternoon.”
Her neck hurt, and she had to look away, finally. “Like I said, we’re very good friends.”
“Close friends?”
Jesse sighed. “Yes, we’re close.”
“Close enough to go out with him?”
She shook her head and smiled patronizingly. “Uncle Horace, you know I don’t date.”
“Well, maybe you should make an exception.”
“I don’t want to make an exception.”
He was indignant. “What, is it against your religion or something? How are you supposed to find someone to marry if you don’t date?”
“I’m not looking to get married.”
“Oh come on, every girl wants to get married.”
“Not every girl.”
“So you want to end up old and alone? I can tell you from experience, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” He shook his head, looking out at the lake that was now almost hidden in shadow. “You don’t wanna be alone, Jesse. Take it from someone who knows.” He turned back to her in a livelier mood. “Besides, a pretty girl like you can have your pick. Just think of how many hearts you’d be breaking if you didn’t at least give the boys a chance.”
Jesse shrugged and smiled. “I’m afraid I don’t feel at all responsible for anyone else’s heart. It’s cold and unfeeling of me, I know, but I am unmoved.”
Her mother joined them, then, and Horace was forced to leave her alone.
That night, lying between Corah and Marnie on the pull-out bed, she wondered about Michael. Was he sleeping in that empty house, all alone? She’d seen a sleeping bag in his trunk, but there was no bed in the house. It would be awfully uncomfortable, and so lonely. A bare house could be very scary at night. She’d once slept alone in one of the cabins at Rocky Bay, and even that small room had become cold and expansive at night; all that empty space gave her the willies, like sleeping out in the open, only worse. The ghosts of those who should have been there seemed to fill the empty bunks. But then, she had never done well alone. Michael wasn’t likely to be scared as easily as she was.

Michael worked until late into the night in that house, sweeping and scrubbing; and while he worked, he thought. What had he gotten himself into? He was crazy in love with Jesse, that much he knew. He also knew he wanted to marry her - as did Zeb, Keith, and now, the rest of the male cabin leaders from last week. But her family was crazy. Her extended family, at least, had no use for him. Her uncles hated him. He’d gone willingly like a lamb to the slaughter - and on the fourth hole, after hitting his ball directly into a pond that was almost in the opposite direction to where he’d been aiming, Jesse’s grandfather had asked him, point blank, what his intentions were towards his granddaughter. His sons stood around him, and Michael had felt like he was facing an Italian mob, but he stood tall and answered clearly.
“I intend to marry her, sir,” he’d said. They continued to stare at him for a few moments longer, and then the family patriarch nodded, and the game continued without another word about it.
He had never been so scared in his life. With every borrowed golf ball he lost, he grew more and more afraid. It didn’t seem possible, but he actually got worse as the game progressed. After each bad shot, he turned around to see five disapproving scowls. Three hours had never gone by so slowly. He was sure he would never play a game of golf again, ever.
What he hadn’t seen were the grins and silent laughter that prevailed behind his back. Jesse’s uncles weren’t cruel, but they did have a rather sadistic sense of humour. Though they actually liked this boy, they thoroughly enjoyed tormenting him that afternoon, and they had no pity. There would be time for niceties later.
So he finished cleaning the stone house with a troubled spirit, and later fell asleep on the hard floor, praying for two miracles: first, that her uncles didn’t murder him in his sleep; second, that Keith and Zeb had been right about his chances with Jesse.

They were late for church; it happened every summer. Either they slept in, or forgot what time it started, or forgot it was Sunday. Jesse’s mother and sisters didn’t seem to mind it as much as she did, walking in while the congregation was singing and having to find out what page of the hymnal they were on, or trying to find a space on a pew for all of them to sit while someone read the announcements from the pulpit. Jesse hated it. Today, though, the humiliation was lessened a little, by the sight of a friendly and familiar face: Michael, in the second-last row, graciously stood aside to let the ladies in, and then sat down beside her. She usually knew no one at this little church that they attended once a year. Her mother knew some members of the congregation, having grown up here, but Jesse and her sisters always felt a little uncomfortable.
“You hardly missed a thing,” Michael whispered to her.
“Have you been here before?” she whispered back.
“No. I just saw the sign last weekend.”
The pastor opened in prayer, and they bowed their heads together. Then there was the sermon, but despite their interest in the message, both were inevitably aware of their closeness, making it hard to concentrate on anything else. Jesse couldn’t help glancing at the arm touching his every once in a while, and wondering at her reaction to the contact. The end of the service was a relief, but somehow she almost wished it weren’t over.
They went back to the lake for lunch and a swim before heading out to Rocky Bay. Michael was relieved that he met with no more hostility in any of Jesse’s relatives, except for one final warning.
“If you hurt her, I’ll kill you.”
These words, or slight variations thereof, were repeated at least five times, always quietly but clearly, accompanied by friendly pats on the shoulder, preceded and followed by jovial banter and well-wishes. Horace looked him in the eye when he said it, Reid stood beside him and pretended to be looking somewhere else, and Chris came up behind him and wickedly whispered it in his ear.
The least expected, and therefore the most startling protectors, were Jesse’s little sisters. They uttered their threats while they were still in church. Their ability to switch from open and amiable teenagers to potential assassins, and back again, was chilling.
The goodbye was not painful for Jesse. She wished she could spend more time with her family, but it wasn’t like leaving home. She might not see them again for a while, but they wouldn’t be far away. Besides, her family’s insinuations regarding her and Michael’s relationship was a bothersome nuisance she was not sorry to leave behind. She was just grateful that he seemed unperturbed by it all.
In the car, she asked him how he had enjoyed golfing with her uncles, and all he said was that he didn’t think golf was his sport.
She chuckled because he said it with such pain in his voice. “They really like you, you know.”
“Yeah, right. They just loved me, I could see it in their eyes.”
“Well, they have a funny way of showing their love.”
“Like with death threats?”
She gave him a disbelieving look.
“I’m serious, here,” he said, trying to give equal attention to both her and the road. “I have never had my life threatened so many times in the entire rest of my life as it has been threatened today.”
“Well?”
He was confused. “Well what?”
“Are you going to give anyone any reason to make good on those threats?”
“I’m going to try not to,” he said uncertainly.
“Well then, you have nothing to worry about. Stop being such a baby.”
He laughed. “What, so if I brought you to my family reunion and half of my closest relatives said they wanted to kill you, you’d be fine with that?”
“Maybe not, but I wouldn’t automatically assume that they didn’t like me.”
They spent a few minutes glancing back and forth at each other in silence, gathering their thoughts.
Michael spoke first. “So you’re saying they liked me.”
“They like you.”
“I don’t know...”
“And anyway, you’ll never have to see them again. They’ll be gone by next weekend.”
“Really?”
“Most of them.”
All he really cared about was the part where she mentioned ‘next weekend’. So, another weekend with her was a possibility. Good to know. But he intended to see those relatives again, whether they liked it or not. Jesse obviously loved them, so they were going to be needed at the wedding.
“Your mother was very pleasant,” he offered in an attempt at a truce.
“Oh yes, she’s like that.”
“She reminds me of my own mom.”
“Really? How?”
Michael wavered. “Well, she...ah.... ”
“All those mother-like qualities?”
“Yep, she had those.”
“And I’m guessing she didn’t threaten to kill you?”
“Not once.”
“That’s my mom. She’s never been a violent person.”
“Well, that’s where our mother’s diverge then. My mom packed a mean spanking.”
“I guess having sons will do that,” Jesse proposed. “My mom left that duty to my dad.”
Her dad. He had almost forgotten about him. “So, your dad...is he a big man?”
“Uh, medium I guess. Why do you want to know?”
“Protective, overbearing? Scares away all your boyfriends?”
“Well there was that kid in grade one that followed me home from school...” she joked. “They never did find the body, though, so nothing’s been proven.”
“I’m beginning to think your entire family just has this sick sense of humour,” Michael remarked.
“Ah, yes, we do have that,” Jesse admitted, trying to keep a straight face.
“And I always thought you were such a sweet girl.”
“I’m sorry you had to find out this way, but it’s for the best.”
The mindless chatter brought them all the way to Rocky Bay, where they were in for some very fun news; or not so fun, depending on how you looked at it. Due to a shortage of cabin staff, Jesse was being asked to do double duty - as a cabin leader.