"I don't know why you had to invite him to dinner." Henry grumbled, dumping an armload of peeled potatoes into the sink and turning the water on full blast.

"Because he's your brother." Madeline laughed, rolling her eyes as she opened the oven and slid the turkey inside. "And your dad's already coming. And you haven't seen him in two years. And it's Thanksgiving."

"But every time he breezes into town, it takes me a month to get Shawn off his treasure hunting kick." Henry complained. "Last time, he and Gus spent a week digging up the beach. He didn't even do his chores!"

"He just wants to be like Jack." Madeline shrugged, wiping her hands off on her apron. "Can you blame him? Not every family has a real treasure hunter."

"What's so great about treasure hunting?"

Madeline stared at him for a moment in bemused bewilderment.

"Were you ever a ten year old boy?" She asked, shaking her head. "Or were you just born a thirty-two year old grump?"

Before Henry could respond, there was a knock at the front door.

"Anyone here?" A voice called.

"That's Jack." Madeline said, shooting Henry a warning look as she crossed into the dining room to check the place settings. "Be nice. You haven't seen him in two years."

"I know how long it's been, Mad." Henry muttered.

"Hey, Big Brother!" Jack grinned, coming into the kitchen.

"Hi, Jackie." Henry mumbled, taking the now soaked potatoes out of the sink and dumping them in a pot. "Where's Dad?"

"He's on his way."

Henry grunted and turned the stove on, not saying anything else.

"Aren't you even going to ask me about South America?" Jack asked after a prolonged moment of silence.

"Oh, is that where you've been?" Henry snapped sarcastically, turning to face his brother. "I wouldn't know. I haven't heard from you in two years, Jackie. Not even a damn post card."

Jack rolled his eyes, but his face immediately lit up when Madeline came back in from the dining room.

"There's the most beautiful woman in the world with the worst taste in Spencers!" He grinned, giving her a giant, playful hug. "Seriously, Mad. When are you going to come to your senses and dump my big brother and run away with me?"

"As fun as getting shot at in Ecuador with you would be," Madeline laughed, returning the hug and going back to the stove. "I think I'll pass, Jack."

"I've never been shot at in Ecuador." Jack protested, snorting as if the very idea was ridiculous. "Poison darts, maybe…Hey! Where's the kid?" He asked suddenly, looking around. "Didn't you used to have a kid stashed around here somewhere?"

Henry crossed to the doorway and went to the bottom of the stairs.

"Shawn!" He called up them. "Come on down! Uncle Jack's here!"

Not even two seconds later, there came the clatter of excited ten year old feet thundering down the stairs.

"Uncle Jack!" Shawn shouted gleefully, slipping and sliding across the kitchen floor in bare feet. "What'd ya bring me?"

"Shawn." Henry growled.

Shawn stopped dead in his tracks, glancing up at his father.

"Uh…I mean…how was your trip?" He corrected himself quickly, clearing his throat.

"Lay off him, Henry." Jack laughed, reaching into his pocket. "He's pragmatic. I respect that."

He pulled out a small, shiny copper coin and tossed it across the room.

"That's a 1942 Wheat Penny." He told his nephew, his eyes sparkling. "It's worth at least double its face value."

"Its face value is one cent, Jack." Henry rolled his eyes.

Jack glanced up at him, clearly not understanding his brother's point.

"So?"

"It's awesome!" Shawn gasped, holding it up to the light. "Thanks, Uncle Jack."

"No problem, Kid." Jack grinned, mussing Shawn's hair. "What are uncles for?"

"Apparently, disappearing for years at a time without so much a phone call." Henry grunted, heading into the dining room.

Jack rolled his eyes and glanced over at Madeline.

"Is he always like this, or did I catch him on a good day?"

"He's your brother." Madeline shrugged. "You should have sent a post card."

"I was kind of busy getting shot at in Bolivia."

"I thought you never got shot at in Bolivia."

"No…" Jack shook his head, grinning. "I've never been shot at in Ecuador. Bolivia is a completely different story."