She didn't know how early it was, but Ann knew it was too early to be awake and she didn't know exactly what had wakened her.

Maybe it was that she and Danny made their peace with things that had happened and now they were going to begin the process of moving forward. What that was going to entail she didn't have a clue, but she also knew that they would figure it out.

It was a very full house that had gone to bed the night before and Ann still marveled that her grandparents managed to find places for everyone to sleep. It was going to be impossible for them to accommodate Mrs. McCawley's parents and Mama's at the house but Grams made reservations for them at a small inn not far from the farm so they wouldn't have to travel a long distance after coffee and dessert. A young woman and her husband, who was recently discharged after he'd lost part of his leg during his first tour in Vietnam, ran it. They were a nice young couple, according to her grandmother who just wanted to settle down somewhere where they could have some peace and quiet.

This Thanksgiving was the first time Ann could remember when all of the grandparents would be together for a holiday and she was looking forward to meeting Mrs. McCawley's mother and father. Even though Danny's family usually went to Philadelphia for Thanksgiving and Ann and her family went to Ohio, Mrs. Johnson always sent her homemade fudge at Christmastime. If they stayed home, family and friends would eat it when they stopped by the McCawley's house or it would travel with them and Ann's family when they all went to Tennessee to see Grams and Gramps.

She heard the soft snoring from Sarah in the bed next to hers and when she finally looked at the clock, the pre-dawn light had been telling the truth. It was just past four-thirty and Ann realized that she wasn't about to go back to sleep. She tossed back the blankets and as the cold morning air hit her, she shoved her feet into her slippers, grabbed her chenille bathrobe from the foot of the bed and slipped her arms into the sleeves. She stood up and cinched the belt around her waist before she ran a hand through her hair.

Ann thought she'd heard a pair of work boots punch the floor earlier as the wearer made their way to the stairs. She didn't have any idea who it could have been since the room she was sharing with Sarah was the first one at the top of the landing. She opened the door, stepped out into the hall and the house was still dark with the exception of a small, lighted lamp on the hall table that Grams kept there as a nightlight.

She padded her way down the stairs and listened for the soft voices of her grandparents from the kitchen. It was quiet and that was unusual, though she could smell fresh brewed coffee so she knew they were already up. It dawned on her that they might be out in the barn cleaning the turkey to get it ready for roasting. That was a sight she could do without, especially this early in the morning.

What she didn't expect to see was anyone else up and was more than a little surprised to see Danny's silhouette through the front parlor window. Ann couldn't help but wonder how well he'd slept sharing a room with his younger brother and hers.

So she pulled her coat off of the coat rack and stepped outside to find out. When she opened the front door it was much colder than she'd anticipate but the sun was just starting to come up and decided that she wanted to see it.

"Have you lost your mind? It can't be more that twenty-five degrees out here!" The look on Danny's face was annoyed, as he cradled a cup of coffee in his gloved hands.

"Don't talk to me like a five-year old Danny." He was reverting to form and Ann didn't like it. "I know it's cold out here because I can feel it, I just wanted to watch the sun come up."

"You'd enjoy it more if you were dressed for it." He frowned.

"There's a fire in the fireplace and I'll thaw out." She challenged. "Are you always such a grouch in the morning?"

"I'm grouchy when I can't sleep and bunking with that brother of yours, and mine for that matter is no picnic." He sighed before he took a sip from the steaming cup.

Ann couldn't help but smile. "You're just spoiled because you always had your own room when you were living at home and you have your own place now."

Danny didn't seem to find the humor in her comment. "You forget that I shared a room with Hank for four years, but at least he didn't snore."

"Okay I'll give you that. Besides, I do understand what you're saying because Sarah snores too." She laughed.

"I'll tell her you said that." He said before he took another sip.

"You wouldn't be telling her something that I haven't already."

He was looking at her as though he was considering something and put his cup down on the side table. "If you insist on being out here you can't sit on the swing, it's too damn cold."

"That's your opinion." She answered because she had a feeling about what was coming.

"Yea it is and I happen to be right. I've been out here freezing my backside off for the last twenty minutes and I just want to save you the trouble."

"So if I'm not going to sit on the swing, where am I supposed to sit?" She shoved her cold hands inside her jacket pockets and seriously considered going back inside, which could be what he already had in mind.

"There's always my lap." He seemed to be daring her. "Your feet have got to be freezing by now and even with your coat on that cold has got to be cutting through that robe."

He wanted her to go inside, of that Ann had no doubt. But she wasn't about to let him send her back into the house like a parent would send his child because she was old enough to know her own mind and he was going to have to get used to it.

"If you insist." She told him as she came around and sat down, on his lap. His look let her know that he hadn't expected her to actually do it and wasn't too pleased that she had. "Don't make offers that you don't really mean, didn't your parents teach you that?"

"I thought it would send you into the house." He admitted and his face seemed to be flushed, but that could have been from the cold.

"I know and that's why I'm here." She confessed as she put a tentative arm around his neck. "You still haven't learned yet that I'm going to do the opposite of what you want me to do because I don't like being told what to do, especially by you."

"You can be so damn stubborn." He shook his head and Ann felt one of his arms as it moved around her waist.

"But you love me anyway." She said softly as she put a hand on his cheek and when he looked at her he was smiling.

"That goes without saying Annie." His voice softened as he leaned close and kissed her. There was nothing hesitant about it because it was the kiss of a man very much in love and it sent a jolt of surprise through her, all the way down to her toes. He had learned from their previous encounter however, because his arms remained around her waist even though she sensed that he wanted to do more.

She had learned as well because she kept her arms around his neck as she kissed him back and resisted the impulse to let her hands find their way under the layers of clothing he wore. It wasn't difficult though because to allow their emotions to get the better of them again would only serve to prove them both liars.

"I've wanted to do that for the longest time." He said after he succeeded in clearing his throat after a second try. "I wanted to kiss you when we were on the sofa last night but it didn't feel right."

"So what changed between then and this morning?" She asked him and tried to will her rapid heartbeat to slow.

"It felt right this morning because I honestly didn't think about it until I did it." He admitted with a shrug before he slipped her legs off of his lap and stood up, his arm still around her waist. "The sun's coming up."

He stood her in front of him and kept her warm after he unbuttoned his coat and wrapped her inside of it. It was the first time in months that she felt content as she snuggled against him and believed that they had come through some kind of a trial and won.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked her quietly and Ann felt his cheek resting on the top of her head. It felt right to have him so close, as though they were where they were supposed to be.

"I'm thinking about how much I love it here and how it seems to get harder to leave every time I come." She said on a sigh as he kissed her cheek.

"I never thought I'd ever want to live anywhere but Hawaii, but I'm beginning to rethink that." He answered. "Maybe it's because of what I went through that has me wondering."

"Wondering about what?"

"My life and what I want from it." Danny sounded cryptic and she didn't exactly know what he meant. "I never thought about anything else but flying since I was a kid because there wasn't anything else that ever held my interest. It was all consuming and nothing could dissuade me from doing everything I could to make that happen."

"It's true that you sacrificed a lot to get into the Academy, but you made it in and you graduated near the top of your class." It wasn't like him to be so introspective, but he'd had a lot of time on his hands after he'd been shot down and it sounded as though he'd done a lot of thinking. "But this is all old news. What's really on your mind?"

"Nothing set in concrete. I mean I haven't gone so far as to make decisions about anything, if that's what you're asking." He was becoming even more cryptic and Ann was now lost.

"What would you be making decisions about?"

"It's like I said nothing concrete." Was all he said before he backed away from her and buttoned up his coat. "Why don't you go get some coffee and enjoy that fire before everyone else gets up. I promised Gramps that I would help him fix the front gate before our other grandparents get here."

She could have protested the way he cut off further discussion, but she also knew that it would be useless to try and press him for more answers. None would be forthcoming. "Have you had any breakfast?"

"Grams made some of her stick to the ribs oatmeal after I got up, so that should hold me until dinner." He grinned at her. "Maybe if she's got that bird in the oven, she'll make some for you."

"I have a feeling that she's going to make it anyway." Ann smiled back at him and walked to the front door. When she turned around, Danny was already off the porch, walking toward the barn and she called to him. "Danny, is everything all right?"

"Everything's fine Ann, now get inside before Gramps sees you out here and yells at me." He laughed a moment before he turned toward the barn and disappeared around the side of the house.

More so than at any other time that the McCawley's and the Walker's had come to Tennessee together, Danny seemed at home. They all helped with the chores while they were there, that was always understood. But it seemed to Ann that Danny had taken on the role of farmer in a very real way on this trip and couldn't help but wonder if he were aware of it.

"It's nice to see that you and my grandson didn't freeze to death out there." Grams commented with a smile when Ann walked into the kitchen and put a cup of coffee down on the table in front of her. "I must admit that the two of you remind me of Tom and me when we were young and just married. We would sit out there together with a hot cup of coffee before we had to get our day started and talk. Or sometimes we would just sit and enjoy each other's company."

Ann sat down and put her cold hands around the warm cup. "I've never seen him like this. Usually he's chomping at the bit to get back to Hawaii and in the air. But he seems perfectly content to be here for this trip and he's been helping Gramps a lot more than he usually does."

Grams nodded as she sat down across from her and took a sip from her own cup. "Tom has been grateful for the extra hands, but it hasn't escaped his notice either how hard Danny's been working around here. It seems to me that boy has something on his mind that he isn't ready to talk about."

Ann nodded in agreement before she took a sip of coffee from her own cup. "He was being a little mysterious earlier. All he would tell me is that he's been doing a lot of thinking about his life and what he wants to do with it."

"It sounds as though he might be rearranging his priorities because of what he went through. He was a very lucky young man and it was probably the first time that he had to think about his own mortality. Twenty-three is awfully young to have to think in those terms and it may have been an experience that was so intense that it changed his life."

"It's odd to think about that because all he ever wanted was to be a pilot."

Grams nodded again. "And it may be that very decision that has him rethinking things. Danny is still a young man with his whole life ahead of him and as I said, he might be rearranging his life into something that none of us expected."

"Now I know where Danny gets that cryptic streak, from you." Ann smiled at her surrogate grandmother. "He'll say something to me, like he did when we were outside and not be direct about it. It's almost as though he wants to prepare me for something without telling me what it is."

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know that he's deliberately trying to be cryptic honey, it could be something as simple as getting a feel from you for something that he has in mind. It wouldn't surprise me to see the two of you married in a couple of years and it's only natural that he wants your opinion on things."

Marriage? That was the farthest thing from her mind.

"Don't look at me like that Ann. I knew your mother was going to have you before she did and the same sort of feeling I had about her then, I have about you now." She scolded Ann gently at the look of incredulity that was surely written all over her face. "I must admit that I was a little uneasy when your father first told me about the two of you, only because all of you kid's have always seemed so much like brothers and sisters. But the first time I got to see for myself the way he looked at you, I knew that the good Lord intended for you to be together."

Ann shook her head. "I'm only eighteen, which is too young to get married."

"That's your father talking." Grams smiled. "You are the only one who knows if you're too young. For reasons that I know you understand he was much more cautious then a lot of young men his age. He loved your mother deeply and if we hadn't been at war when he was courting her I have no doubt in my mind that they would have married much sooner than they did. But when I talk about you and Danny being together, I certainly didn't mean that you'd be married any time soon, that will be up to you."

Ann took another sip from her cup. "After what's happened to him, I don't think that Danny is in any hurry to get married and certainly not in the middle of another war."

"It's hard to know what might be going through his mind but I have no doubt that he'll let you know." She smiled. "Danny is like his father and grandfather because he can be very persuasive when he chooses to be."

Ann nodded and could feel her face warm. "I know."

Grams laughed and reached over to touch her arm. "I'm sure you do. While you're here, there's still some oatmeal on the stove if you'd like some. It's going to be a long day and I won't have time to make lunch for anyone."

"Don't worry about that Grams. If anyone gets hungry, they know where the cold cuts and bread are."

"That's very true." She agreed before she got up from the table. "I put the turkey in the oven just before you came in so I'm going to take care of some other things. Don't worry about the milking today because I've already taken care of it and once your granddad fixes that front gate we won't have anything to worry about except getting everything ready for our guests."

"It's nice to know that all of our hard work paid off." Ann laughed. "I don't know how you two do it sometimes."

"When you have a good man at your side that you love and love what you do, it's easy." She answered before she walked out of the kitchen.

Ann got up from her chair and walked to the stove to check on the oatmeal. She picked up a potholder to lift the lid of the pot and there was plenty for the rest of the family as she suspected there might be. She spooned some of the cooked oats into a bowl and added some cream and a sprinkling of sugar.

"You're up earlier that usual." Ann heard her mother's voice from the doorway.

"I heard someone head down the stairs and I couldn't get back to sleep." She admitted as she sat back down at the table. "It just seemed logical to stay up."

"And you've always been a logical girl Ann." Mama replied as she walked into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee before she took Grams seat. "I couldn't help but notice that you and Danny have barely spoken for the three days we've been here and suddenly you go for a walk last night. You've got a few people wondering what's going on."

"There's no big mystery Mama, he was ready to talk and so was I. So we went for a walk and cleared some things up." She said somewhat defensively, though she shouldn't have been.

"I'm not trying to pry Ann. For some reason I can't help but think that there's something at stake on this trip."

"What do you mean?" Mama was sounding cryptic as Danny had and it wasn't like her. She was always direct in what she had to say.

"It hasn't escaped anyone's notice how much Danny's been doing around here. Tom seems to think that he's got something on his mind that he doesn't want to talk about and his way of dealing with it is hard work. Has he said anything to you?"

Ann shook her head. "He hasn't been clear about anything, but Grams says she thinks that he's rearranging his priorities."

"Do you have any idea what that could be?" She seemed really curious and wondered if Dad and Mama had been talking about Danny.

"It's like I said he wouldn't be specific. But I know Danny well enough to know that to press him only makes him say less." Ann elaborated.

"Well then we won't say any more about it because Danny knows his own mind." Mama smiled. "We've got a big day ahead of us, don't we? My parents and Ev's parent's will be here for dinner and I do believe that it's the first time that all of our parents will be together for a holiday."

"That's the way Grams wants it this year." She smiled back. "I honestly don't know how she's going to fit all of us at one table."

"It's called ingenuity honey and I have no doubt that Sarah will come up with something." She stood up, picked up a cup from the table and walked back to the stove. She poured coffee into it before she warmed her own cup. "I talked your dad into staying in bed with the promise that I'd bring him a cup of coffee. You might think about getting dressed because you're grandparents are going to be here pretty soon."

"I will." She promised as she stood up and carried her oatmeal bowl to the sink. "But while it's still quiet, I'm going to warm up my coffee and go sit in front of the fire for awhile."

"All right Ann. Dad and I will be down soon." Mama told her as she carried the cups out of the kitchen and Ann watched as her mother walked back up the stairs.

"Did I hear your mother?" Grams asked as she came up from the cellar.

"You did and she was getting some coffee for Dad and herself."

"She's awfully excited about her folks coming. I don't believe that they've ever been here and I feel badly about that." She mused as Ann washed out her bowl and put it and the spoon in the dish rack.

"I don't think it ever occurred to them Grams." Ann told her as she filled her cup again. "Besides, you may have just started a new family tradition." And she left the kitchen.

A warm fire was crackling in the fireplace when Ann walked into the parlor. The radio was on and she could hear news about the war before she turned it down and curled up on the sofa. She took a sip from her warmed cup and couldn't help but wonder what had Danny so preoccupied.

He had something on his mind and she only hoped that he would tell her what it was.