Family Bonds
One of the things that Rob Everett enjoyed most about his present time of life was that more often than not, he was an observer rather than an actor in the family dramas that inevitably unfolded around him. And of course the more family members that were brought together in the same place and at the same time, the more drama there was. The christening of his youngest grandchild should have been a simple ceremony followed by a small party for close family. His wife had other ideas.
With the aiding and abetting of his two older sons, a celebration of an important religious milestone had turned into the family social event of the year. Catherine, disappointed because there had not been a big wedding had prevailed upon Hal and Phoebe to use the christening as a means of what she called "family bonding time." In the case of the wedding, Hal had sided with Phoebe when she refused to have a reception. In this instance, he had taken his mother's part. Rob suspected that in both cases he had chosen what he perceived as the path of least resistance.
Once Bob and Ben had heard that a relatively large contingent of Figalillys were attending, including the cousins Emmeline and Sylvia, they needed very little encouragement from their mother to open their wallets and flaunt their wealth. In what could only be described as a late-in-life case of sibling rivalry, they sought to outdo each other in terms of how they could ensure the comfort of Phoebe's family members.
The younger folk were set up at a local hotel in a couple of suites where the boys had also taken rooms. They were told to order anything they wanted from room service or the dining room. They even rented them a couple of luxury sedans so that they would have freedom of movement.
Most of this generation was world travelers, but Liam's bride-to-be, Mary, had never been outside of the village before. For better (or perhaps worse) the lively young red-head was not shy in the least, especially when it came to taking advantage of her family-to-be's foolish in-laws.
Liam was something of a wise guy of the first order as well. When Phoebe expressed her mortification that Mary was imposing to the degree she was on the boys' generosity, he just told her to bug off. Mary was having a little fun at the Everett brothers' expense and it was their own fault if they were being taken in. Rob had then pulled his daughter-in-law aside and told her to cool it. The boys would never miss the money and it was giving them all a good laugh at their expense.
But since Phoebe had never wanted any of this, she was more bothered than anyone by the fact that the christening had taken on a bit of a circus atmosphere. The afternoon of the day before, the Hal and Phoebe had a barbecue for the newly arrived family. It had been a time of good cheer and merriment for all involved. His son had thoughtfully laid in a good supply of stout. However his stab at playing the good host had a few unintended consequences and things became rather boisterous towards the end.
It was difficult to say which family's behavior was worse, but in the end there are always two topics that will get any family going, religion and politics. Since there was very little common ground to argue between the Brits and the Yanks, so to speak, that left the former topic. Initially he had thought that the youngest Figalilly brother, Jimmie, was the quiet one. However after a couple of pints of Guinness he was only too ready to take on the theoretical heathens of the family. He started with Liam.
"Well, big brother," he said. "I don't understand why you're bothering with all the fuss of a church wedding next month. When was the last time that you were in church? Christy's wedding?"
Liam was not one to take a challenge like that lying down, but Mary had the quicker tongue and came back at him immediately.
"Me? Go to a registry instead of a church?" she replied in indignation. "It's about what the bride wants you know. The groom has got to follow along."
"Well," he conceded. "Knowing your Mum, I'm sure that she's been making sure that you've been paying lip service all these years. But you're no better than him. Anyone who sees that red hair can tell it."
"I want to know where you come off making aspersions against my future wife," declared Liam. "And, love, you shut your mouth. I'll do the defending around here."
Rob watched in amusement as Emmeline gave Mary a quick jab in the ribs. He could tell that she couldn't stand the girl. But Jimmie wasn't done.
"Well I'm sure that your Dad wouldn't mind saving a few pounds if you did opt for the registry route," he said. "Or you could just go off to Gretna Green."
"Who's Greta Green?" asked Prudence, who had been listening avidly and not understanding a word.
"Gretna Green," replied Trelawney. "It's in Scotland where couples go to elope."
"Oh," said Prudence. "Why don't you go to where Mommy and Daddy eloped?"
"I'm not sure that they would pass inspection with Pastor Dugan," said his son Hal mischievously.
"Hal!" he said, remembering to do his duty as a parent. The last thing that he needed was for his own boys to get involved.
"Sounds like we have a good old fashioned reductio ad absurdum going on here to me," commented the family lawyer Lewis, who himself had had a few.
"Are you saying that me and Liam getting married is absurd?" asked Mary in a huff.
"No, love," soothed Sylvia. "It's the conversation that's absurd."
"But the conversation is about me and Liam," she said. "Isn't it?"
"No," said Prudence. "It's about someone named Greta Green eloping in Scotland."
"GretNA Green!" insisted Trelawney. "And nobody's eloping anywhere. Unless of course one of your uncles wants to have his way with one of my cousins."
"Trelawney!" chorused Sylvia and Emmeline together.
"Isn't one of you going to put a stop to this?" asked Rob of the aunts and uncles.
"Oh, no," said Aunt Justine, for once amused. "I can't remember the last time I've been so entertained at a family function."
Thankfully, Aunt Agatha wasn't present.
"Just say the word, Emmeline," said Bob suggestively.
"Why don't you go for Sylvia, Bob?" asked Ben. "I'd prefer Emmeline for myself."
"Okay," he shrugged. "One is pretty much the same as the other."
"Those are my sisters that you're talking about," objected Jimmie, his attention distracted from his brother's future nuptials.
"You started this bloody rot with all that talk of elopements and such," said Emmeline, now getting annoyed herself.
"Oh, there she goes with the bloody rot, I suppose that next she'll be calling him is a bloody loon," said Trelawney.
"I thought that the bloody loon was Christabel," piped up Butch, clearly wanting a piece of the action for himself.
"I dunno," said Liam. "Christabel? Jimmie? It's one of those interchangeable insults for the pair of them if you know what I mean."
Prudence had been thinking.
"But Emmeline," she said innocently. "When you called Christabel a bloody loon, didn't you say that you were going to elope if you ever got married?"
"I wonder where she heard that?" asked Sylvia of the air.
"It was Trelawney," said Prudence a bit smugly. "She said that I'm a tape recorder, but I think that she is too."
"Uh, oh, Pru," said Hal looking over at Annabel "That was a hat trick."
"But Uncle Alfred's not here yet," said Butch. "How can there be any hat tricks?"
"Do you know what three strikes and you're out means?" asked his brother Hal.
Before he could answer, Annabel was on her feet and making her way towards Prudence. Prudence looked at her with her biggest puppy dog eyes.
"I'm sorry, Aunt Annabel," she said, giving her usual excuse after tattling. "I forgot."
"Forgot, my arse!" she replied. "When I promise a sit down, I mean what I say."
"God keeps his promises," commented Trelawney.
By now the backyard was full of laughing men, women, and children, half of whom didn't even know what they were laughing at. Catherine had been in the house with Phoebe and Agatha cleaning up. When she saw everyone laughing together, she looked pleased.
"Oh, I just love it when families get along!" she enthused. "Tell me, what was the joke?"
"Uncle Ben wants to elope with Cousin Emmeline," said Butch before anyone could shut him up.
"Isn't that lovely!" she said. "And what did Emmeline say?"
Rob couldn't stand it anymore. Despite the laughter, a few of the adults were looking daggers at each other.
"Dear," he said emphatically. "That was the joke."
"Oh," she said in disappointment.
"I think that we all have an early morning and a busy day tomorrow," he said. "And these children need to get to bed."
Trelawney opened her mouth.
"Not a word," he roared, regretting his choice of words. "Now go back up the street with your Mama Kate, right now."
"Yes, sir," she replied politely. "I believe that Auntie Anna may be through with Prudence. Perhaps she could come with us."
"Very good idea, little one," said Liam. "Very good idea!"
Rob looked at David who shrugged.
"If Annabel returns out here," he said. "It's very likely that this lot will get a sit down too. What do you say, folks?"
In no time, the backyard cleared out and he left with Charlie and David to go back up the street by themselves. Fortunately, Phoebe, who had been tending to Maisie, had missed the latest exchange.
"I must say that was a lark," commented Charlie, still chuckling. "Figures that my son stayed out of it."
"Well," said Rob. "I'm glad that Phoebe didn't witness it. I just hope that none of the children say anything."
"Oh, they said plenty already," said David. "Especially that Prudence. I must say, I have never heard anyone muddle a story as good as her."
"You should see her play chess," remarked Charlie. "Such a muddle of thinking, but a darn good little player. I've never seen the like."
"I wonder what the other "kids" are up to now?" asked Rob feeling worried.
He discussed it with David and they decided to go over to the hotel together to get their errant offspring under control before the ceremony the next day. Charlie decided to turn in. He knew that Johnny was probably just quietly getting drunk and didn't want to get mixed up with the others.
To a large extent, Phoebe was right and the whole thing had gotten out of hand. Catherine, focused as she was on bonding with the older generation, was oblivious to the shenanigans of the younger. And if things got too far out of hand tomorrow, then it could wreak havoc on Catherine and Phoebe's previously harmonious relationship and therefore on his own peaceful existence.
When they arrived, they found them all rather enthusiastically enjoying a "nightcap" after the family barbecue. Rob could see that at least one of the boys had the bartender running a tab. None of the family was shy about drinking and Rob thought that it was good that they had come while the crew was still lucid enough to comprehend what they were going to say.
"Having a little party for yourselves here, boys and girls?" asked David in a tone that mingled amusement and disapproval.
"Oh, now, Dad," said Liam in a cajoling tone. "We're just doing a little celebrating in honor of the little nipper, you know, being welcomed into the church and all."
"A prelude to the wedding celebrations next month no doubt," he replied. "You know, another significant religious milestone in your lives."
"That's right, sir," said Mary smartly. "Just a little prelude. Practice makes perfect, you know, especially when it comes to church and all that."
"Well," he said a bit more sternly. "None of you lot needs any practice at this kind of behavior. I believe that you are all quite adept at it already. And watch your mouth, young lady, or I'll tell your Dad."
"Just as long as you don't tell my Mum," she giggled.
That was a mistake.
"One more word and it's back to Rob and Catherine's with you," he said in a tone that implied that he had heard more than enough from her. "Any more of your cheek and you'll be sharing a bed with Trelawney Rose rather than a suite with the girls here. It was me that convinced your Mum that you could be trusted to stay here with the others."
"Oh, Dad," said Liam. "Now be reasonable. You know that there will be no hanky-panky. Between Syl and Jimmie here, we've got two of the biggest prudes in Cornwall."
Rob looked over at David who was clearly becoming infuriated by the lack of respect among his children. He decided to step in before a brawl broke out.
"Boys," he said calmly to his own sons. "No one is trying to throw a wet blanket on your little party here, but you will have to be up early for church tomorrow. When your mother arranged this whole thing, she promised Phoebe that it wouldn't get out of hand."
"Come on, Dad," said Bob. "A couple drinks in the bar are hardly what I would call out of hand."
"Well, a couple of pews of hung over heathens in church tomorrow will be," he said, now getting annoyed himself. "Maybe you all will be flying out of here in a couple of days, but we attend this church every Sunday. If you make a spectacle of yourselves, then we have to live with it."
"I've always been able to hold my drink," mumbled Mary.
"Shut up, girl," ordered Liam. "Or you'll be bringing down the wrath of God on all of us."
Rob found the dynamic between the young people very interesting. Normally, Sylvia and Emmeline had more than a few things to say, but in this context, they were silent. And the two younger brothers seemed to be deferring to the elder. Johnny was a Trelawney and obviously wanted no part of the discussion. Just as his father had predicted, he was wisely (or more likely cowardly) choosing not to make himself a part of it. He realized that young Mary was a handful. In fact she had only just turned twenty.
But away from home for the first time, the spunky young lady clearly wanted to take full advantage of her newly found freedom. On the other hand, Liam was determined to show her who was boss. He suspected that even though the men held all of the power in the culture that strong-minded women were not shy about exerting themselves in domestic relationships. Liam was obviously not going to be an indulgent husband.
No one would ever know what might have been said next because a cheerful Cockney voice was heard out in the lobby.
"Yes, now sir," it said. "I am looking for the Everett party, wherever they might be."
"In the bar, sir," said the polite voice of the female desk clerk.
"In the bar? Why a' course! Now why didn't I think of that?"
"Hold on to your hats, all," said Emmeline in a low voice. "I do believe that Uncle Alfred has finally arrived."
Rob had never met Uncle Alfred before, only heard of him. Even without any forewarning, he would have known the gentleman anywhere. He was rather short, not unlike the Figalillys, and dressed in a well-worn suit with a bowler hat. He entered the room and set down his shabby suitcase with a flourish.
"Well, then, you all," he said cheerily. "Having a little bit of a party of our own, then?"
"Why Uncle Alfred," said Emmeline smoothly. "Isn't it lovely to see you? The children were asking about you earlier. It's a pity that you missed them."
"The children, yes, well," he said. "Plenty of time for them tomorrow. So what are we drinking?"
"Whatever you want, sir," replied Ben grandly. "Everything is on me."
"Well," he said. "I don't know who you are lad, but I like you already."
"Oh, I'm sorry Uncle Alfred," said Emmeline, with exaggerated decorum. "I have forgotten my manners. This is Rob, who is the Professor's father and his brothers Ben and Bob. Do you know young Mary from the village?"
"No, but I'd certainly like to," he said suggestively, ignoring the men.
"Well, Uncle Alfred," said Liam meaningfully. "Then let me introduce you to my fiancée."
"Your . . . ?" he sputtered. "Yes, of course. How do you do madam, and might I wish you both the best of luck in your future life together?"
Looking around, Rob wondered what could possibly happen next. Uncle Alfred asked for a whiskey neat, which he quickly downed and then asked for another. His somewhat florid complexion indicated that he could hold his liquor as well as any of them. The young people seemed relieved that his entry had broken into what had about to become a lecture by David. David looked at him and shrugged.
"Well," he said. "Carry on, then. But don't do anything to disgrace the family tomorrow or I'll let your mother at you."
The young people looked at each other seriously. Rob knew that Annabel was already worried about the potential raucous behavior at the wedding. Considering the wild time that had occurred at Christabel's wedding a while back, he could see why.
However, the young people must have realized might not be the best place to fully cut loose. Another consideration was that the Chenoweths, who were throwing the wedding, were not particularly well off and would be only too happy to cut the cost of the alcohol bill to save a penny or two if Annabel said the word.
After he and David left, they could hear the high spirits resume.
"Well, I tried," said David shaking his head. "Annabel and Phoebe will have your wife to thank for starting all this rot by encouraging your two spendthrift sons to create all this bloody bonding time."
"True enough," he said. "But if Phoebe is upset by their behavior at church tomorrow, it will be cold comfort to be able to blame Catherine."
"Well," he said thoughtfully. "There may actually be an advantage to the fact that Alfred showed up when he did."
"And what's that?"
"Alfred Wiggins is amusing in small doses," he explained. "But no doubt the party will break up earlier for him being there. The little ones love him, but the older folk? No, he has actually shown up right in the nick of time."
The next morning at church, Rob could see that he was right. The partygoers were all seated in pews behind the family elders, dressed in their best, and appropriately solemn for the occasion. None of them seemed the least bit tired or hung over. Behind them were the family friends, the four from the nursing home, the Tucker family minus Topher, and Lois Lenihan with Tim.
As soon as they sat down, Butch conspicuously moved from his seat in the front row, back to the one next to Tim. Prudence made a move to get up. No doubt to move back to sit next to Hannah and Miriam Tucker, but Trelawney grabbed her wrist and made her sit down. Hal sat with his girlfriend beside Prudence on the other side so that she was trapped.
After the regular Sunday service, Pastor Paul called up Phoebe and Hal with the godparents for the simple ceremony. Maisie, or Margaret Mary Everett, as she was called now, was well behaved, barely squawking as the water fell over her forehead. The usual promises were made about the godparents helping to raise her as a good Christian.
The christening gown, which had originally been made by Grandmother Rose Trelawney for Phoebe was lovely. Since Maisie was a little larger than either Phoebe or Trelawney had been, Catherine had had to make some alterations so that it would fit. Rob couldn't tell the difference for the life of him, but Annabel had noticed right away, since her own family had an identical one.
However, Annabel had earlier made a generous gesture after she had seen Maisie fully dressed, before they had left for the church.
"Phoebe," she said. "You know that if you're planning on having any more children, one of them could be a son. Since your Mum never had call for it, you don't have a little christening suit for a boy in your family. Mother made a one for Liam and all the boys wore it. If you do have a son, I would be happy to lend it to you. Unless course, Catherine has a family suit that her boys wore."
For once, Rob saw his wife look uncomfortable. It had been over forty years since either of them had seen the suit. Even if they could find it, no care had been taken to preserve it. When it came to passing along family heirlooms, it appeared that the Figalillys were far more practiced. In fairness however, they had all been living together for generations in the same village. Being the Americans that they were, even if Catherine could trace her origins back before the Revolutionary War, they could not match an old English family.
Phoebe must have sensed this because she said, "That would be lovely, Auntie. We will let you know if the time comes."
"Oh the time will come," said Trelawney wisely.
They all turned and looked at her.
"I should probably go see to Elspeth," she said uncomfortably.
"You probably should," said Phoebe meaningfully.
Annabel smiled after she was gone.
"Still our little Trelawney, isn't she?" she said fondly. "Even if she's having a little bit of a crush on a lad for herself now."
Phoebe and Catherine looked at each other in surprise. They both had had their suspicions, but Annabel was so definite about it that the girl had clearly taken her into her confidence. Serves them right, thought Rob, the poor girl was entitled to a few private thoughts of her own after all. And everyone had been so obsessed with the christening that they had all but forgotten about her.
"Oh," said Annabel. "She wouldn't tell me who it was of course, just some lad that hasn't given her as much as a sideways glance. And of course he's the love of her life and she'll be devastated without him. Now how many times have I heard that?"
"Probably more times than you can count," said Catherine. "But boys can be just as bad as girls when it comes to crushes."
Looking at Hal and Phoebe now, up there holding their first child, he recalled how devastated his son was when he had thought that he and Phoebe would never marry. It had certainly not been a case of unrequited love, but the obstacles had seemed insuperable at the time.
He noticed that Tom Williams was appropriately sober as he stood beside Emmeline. Rob had no doubt that he would take his role with regard to Maisie's spiritual upbringing very seriously. It was a good thing that Bernice had assured them that she would also help. He didn't think that Emmeline had the least bit of interest in any spiritual upbringing.
Phoebe had told him that she had volunteered for the job before Maisie was even conceived and that she had promised because of all the help that Emmeline had given them so that they could elope. He personally would have considered Sylvia a better choice, but perhaps she would be the next one. Trelawney was never wrong when it came to these kinds of things.
Following the baptism, Pastor Jason made a quick exit, explaining that his family was waiting for him for an out of town event. No one seemed to care except for Trelawney. But she had Francine to put her arm around her to comfort her in whatever little sorrow she was feeling now. He wondered who the object of the crush was and suspected that Francine knew.
If he had to make a guess, he would have to say Topher, her knight in shining armor. Of course she had probably been having those feelings for a long time, but since Topher was now involved in what looked like a long-term relationship with an older girl, Trelawney was forced to face facts. He was, for all intents and purposes, a man and she was a little girl. He knew that Topher had never encouraged her, but knowing Trelawney, she probably hadn't needed any encouragement. Much of the time she lived in her own little fantasy world.
He had seen her looking with longing at Hal and Sharon and Liam and Mary, the latter couple especially. When all was said and done, they were a jolly pair, constantly teasing and laughing with one another. He was also a good fifteen years older than her. The large age gaps between men and women as married couples did seem the norm for their culture. In some ways it made sense. The man was more mature and the woman more malleable to his ways, however it was a very old-fashioned concept. But so were betrothals from birth.
Thus the christening ceremony went off without a hitch. Now it was time to return home for the party. While the younger folk had been good as gold in the church, there was no telling what they might be up to next. However, with the very stern Aunt Justine creating a more serious presence, he imagined that it would be a very brave (or foolish) person who would act out when she was in that mood. He had already seen her frowning at Mary Chenoweth. He wondered if Liam, or anyone else, had warned the girl of the potential pitfalls of incurring her wrath.
Trelawney sat very quietly in the backseat with her two Aunties. Agatha put her arm around her and told her to cheer up. She gave her a little smile and snuggled closer. Whatever was going on had just gotten worse. He had seen Sarah go over to the other two girls after the baptism. The three had done some whispering together and then disappeared for about ten minutes. When they returned it was Sarah who had her arm around Trelawney's shoulders. It made him glad that he had sons.
When they arrived at home he went straight to the bartender that the caterer had brought and ordered him to put away the liquor until two o'clock. But because he was afraid that the kids would take off on their own, he told him that he could only serve Mimosas until then. Nodding, the bartender agreed. That will slow them down, anyway, thought Rob.
The second car that arrived after theirs was Bernice and Tom's with Prudence. As usual, Bernice had brought her a small gift, this time a pretty piece of jewelry. Inwardly he sighed. Would the constant flow of "things" never stop? But he had a little more tolerance when it came to Bernice. She had come so far from her sorrow at the loss of her daughter and her initial bitterness at Hal's remarriage that allowing her to spoil Prudence a bit was a small price to pay. In the case of his sons, the gift giving had turned into a popularity contest.
Prudence hung around the front gate, waiting for the Tuckers to come, but Tom and Bernice came right in. They had obviously never met the aunts before and not too surprisingly Bernice and Justine hit it off. They were both strong-minded women with a similar worldview. They went off to chat while Catherine began to rush around organizing everything and everyone, while Agatha pulled Trelawney aside to comfort her. Rob looked at Tom and offered him a drink.
"I told the bartender nothing but Mimosas for the others until after two, but I have a few beers stashed in the fridge," he said quietly.
"Sounds good to me," replied Tom. "I never liked champagne myself. Gives me a headache every time."
Rob looked at him impishly.
"Considering the way those kids were drinking yesterday, I'm hoping that they end up with a few headaches," he said. "They certainly sent me to bed with one."
"Well," said Tom. "At least they were properly sober for the main event. I do recall that your sons all were very . . . jolly, shall we say, at Hal and Helen's wedding. But this isn't a wedding."
"Try explaining that to my wife," he grimaced. "She is in heaven with all of this organizing and planning. Phoebe doesn't like any of it. I finally had to tell her yesterday to just grin and bear it. Fortunately both families have been taking advantage of the opportunity to get to know each other better and celebrate so there's blame on all sides."
"Well to get off of a sensitive subject," suggested Tom. "How are my grandchildren doing?"
"Well, let's see," he replied. "You've met Hal's girlfriend Sharon. She's a sweet girl and a great influence on our intense scientist. And Prudence is happy with Brownies and ballet. I assume that she's roped you into attending the Nutcracker?"
"We wouldn't miss it," he said. "Although I wouldn't say this to either Bernice or Prudence, the one that I am really looking forward to seeing Trelawney as Clara. Have you gotten a chance to see any rehearsals?"
"I've been sprucing up the sets a little," answered Rob. "She is truly remarkable. It's not just her dancing either. She really carries you along with her emotions. She's perfectly cast. In fact, she looks like a little angel flitting around in her nightgown for the dream sequences."
"That's the way that I always think of her," said Tom fondly. "She was the little angel who gave us back our daughter's family. But on the other side of the spectrum, the only one that you haven't mentioned is Butch. What's his problem?"
"Problem?" asked Rob, trying to dodge the issue.
"That was a pretty defiant gesture that he made back at the church when he refused to stay with the rest of the family up front," he commented. "Is he suffering from the old middle child syndrome?"
"That could be part of it," replied Rob. "He's got the same kind of chip on his shoulder that Ben used to get, and sometimes still does I think. At least that's part of what is driving this competition to see who can spend the most money. But Butch also has some kind of personal grudge against his father."
"For playing favorites with Hal?" asked Tom.
"Yes, that and the fact that now that Butch is finally bringing home the grades that we always knew that he was capable of getting," responded Rob. "Butch sees himself getting more attention and has interpreted that it is because he is finally doing what Hal has wanted all along. But he still won't acknowledge the fact that all the children are getting more attention because Hal has been on sabbatical. He has refused to make peace, even though Hal has tried several times now. And he can be downright surly with the rest of the family."
"That doesn't sound like Butch at all," said Tom in surprise. "Do you want me to try and talk to him?"
Rob shrugged.
"You can try, but so far whatever has been bothering him is something that he is keeping to himself," he said. "The way that I figure it, when he's ready to talk, he'll talk. Until then, every time we try becomes another excuse to be rude."
"Well," said Tom. "Maybe I'll have him up at the house some weekend, without Prudence. If he's the center of attention and away from the gang it might just get him to open up."
"Not to mention give the rest of the family a break," remarked Rob. "I do know that sometimes they feel like they're walking on egg shells around him."
"Okay," replied Tom decisively. "I'll talk to Bernice and remind her that Prudence isn't her only grandchild. Prudence likes playing Nana's little girl. On the way back from the church she said something about getting a 'sit down' from Annabel yesterday."
"The Figalillys take children's discipline very seriously," answered Rob. "Prudence tattled one too many times, after she had been warned to cut it out. She tried to pull her usual 'I forgot' routine but Annabel didn't buy it. After all, she did raise three daughters."
"True enough," said Tom. "I had a feeling that it was something like that. Prudence playing up the injured feelings a little more than she needed."
"And if you look at it another way," commented Rob. "It was just another form of tattling."
The two men looked at each other and laughed. Catherine had been somewhat miffed that Tom was chosen to be the godfather, but he kind of liked the idea. After all, she was the one who wanted to encourage more family bonding and what was it they always said? You can't pick your family.
As the rest of the family showed up, he could see her running around trying to make everyone feel at home. As the official host of the party, Rob joined her. He also was determined to enforce his rule on the alcohol allocation before one of the boys got to her. He had already had enough of that kind of bonding for one weekend.
To be continued . . .