Chapter 3

"Hey Bry," the other two saw the soft smile on Sam's face knowing she had reached one of the Elys. "I need to ask you something."

"Hey Sammy," Bryan greeted her. "What do you need to ask me? If I'll marry you if you leave Jakey? Sure, why not?"

Sam started to laugh. "No, I'm not asking you to marry me. I've got someone here to claims to be one of your cousins."

"Yeah?" Bryan murmured. "Somebody trying to pick you up, Sammy?"

"It's not working," Sam chuckled.

"What's his name?" Bryan asked.

"Eric O'Callahan," Sam told him.

"You're kidding?" Bryan shouted and Sam took the phone away from her ear for a moment. "If that's really his name, I do have a cousin named Eric O'Callahan. That would be Mom's brother's kid."

"Wanna talk to him?" Sam wondered.

"Sure, put him on," Bryan told her.

Sam held out the phone to Eric, who took it.

"Hello?" Eric said into the phone.

"This is Bryan Ely," Bryan said. "You're my cousin?"

"Seems like it," Eric responded. "My dad's name is Rory and he has a sister who lives in Nevada named Maxine."

"That's right," Bryan laughed.

"Wow, this is unreal," Eric laughed with him. "I was sitting here and one of them mentioned a Jake Ely and I was like, 'hey I know a Jake Ely'."

"Jake and Sammy are engaged," Bryan told him.

Sam saw Eric look down at her hand, seeing the engagement ring now.

"Sammy's our little sister," Bryan went on.

"She's marrying her brother?" Eric asked in disbelief.

Sam and Jen burst out laughing.

"Yeah, she is," Bryan heard the girls laughing and he couldn't help laughing too.

"Listen Cuz," Bryan said to Eric. "You keep your hands off of Sammy, but you watch over her for us."

"Not a problem, Cuz," Eric responded. "Maybe I'll need to take a trip to Nevada now, huh?"

"I'll be coming up in a few weeks to visit Sammy and Jen," Bryan told him.

"Great, we can catch up then," Eric said.

"Sure," Bryan agreed. "Good talking to you, let me talk to Sammy."

Eric passed Sam the phone.

"Hey," she said into it.

"He's legit," Bryan told her.

"How weird is this?" Sam laughed.

"No kidding," Bryan laughed with her. "I miss you Sammy."

"I miss you too, Bryan," Sam sighed. "How's Cara?"

"She's good," Bryan said.

"How's everyone there?" Sam asked.

"We're all good," Bryan assured her. "We got the walls up on your house."

"You did?" Sam was excited. "Will you have it all enclosed by winter?"

"We should," Bryan told her. "Now that things are slowing down here in the fall, we should get to work on it a lot more."

"How's Vanessa?" Sam wondered.

"Sick most mornings," Bryan answered.

"Oh no," Sam frowned, then looked at Jen when she poked her. "Vanessa's sick most mornings," Sam relayed to Jen who nodded.

"Vanessa is your cousin Nate's wife," Jen told Eric. "She's pregnant with their first child."

Eric nodded.

"When are you coming up to visit?" Sam asked Bryan.

"I told Eric in a few weeks," Bryan responded.

"Good," Sam murmured. "I need some Ely hugs."

"I'm not sure I can pry statue boy away from his wife to come with me, but I'll try," Bryan laughed.

Sam laughed with him. "Tell him I have a hammock for him."

Jen burst out laughing there in the lounge as Bryan did in Sam's ear. Eric looked confused.

"I'll tell him, Sammy," Bryan said.

"I better let you go," Sam sighed.

"Love you, Sammy," Bryan told her.

"Love you too, big brother," Sam responded as they hung up.

"Hammock?" Eric asked.

Jen and Sam exchanged looks and both shrugged at the same time. They explained the meaning of hammock as best they could. Eric was looking at them with a stunned, yet amused look on his face.

"My cousin did that?" Eric managed.

"And loved every minute of it," Jen put in.

"And loved every second of attention it gave him," Sam laughed. "Quinn's a bit of a free spirit."

"They all are," Jen corrected. "Well except Jake who's a stick in the mud." She giggled when Sam gave her a dirty look.

"He is not," Sam narrowed her eyes at her friend who just grinned at her.

"I take it you don't like Cousin Jake?" Eric asked.

"You'd be right in that assumption," Jen continued to grin at Sam. "The only thing he ever did right in his life is he asked Sam to marry him."

Sam shook her head at her friend, but she was smiling.