The Dreams We Share

Chapter 19 Until We Meet Again

Lucas joined his parents for breakfast; they had all slept in a little late. His parents had decided to also join him for mass, so they had already dressed and were ready to go. They had about an hour before leaving.

"Good morning, Mother," he gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Father," he nodded to him and then took his place. "I hope you both slept well.

"Yes, we certainly did," his father told him. We finally had to push each other to get out of bed. It was much too comfortable."

"Yes, it was, "Helen said as her husband winked at her. Lucas caught the look between them and cleared his throat.

"I am very pleased with the evening last night. It is nice to have you meet my friends. When I speak with you on the telephone, it will make it more personal when I mention my business and acquaintances," Lucas commented.

"Yes, we enjoyed the evening very much," his mother told him. "I must say meeting Miss MacKenna was particularly enjoyable; she is a remarkable young woman."

"I agree wholeheartedly," his father added.

"I am glad that your first impression was favorable. I think you will come to love her," Lucas said.

"I love that she obviously cares about you a great deal, Lucas," his mother told him. "That is foremost in importance. But she has a lot to admire aside from that. And as we all saw, she is no shrinking violet. Perhaps I didn't give her my best attempt to upend her, but she certainly can hold her own from what I can see. And she has a quick wit and a knack for subtle entendre…. very sharp in that regard."

"For what it is worth, I think that you and the young ladty are quite well matched. You will keep each other on your game. By the way, speaking of games, does she play cards?" his father asked.

"I don't know. She knows that I have played my fair share and that I own a saloon of course, "but she never commented and I never thought to ask," Lucas replied.

"Perhaps we shall ask her at lunch today," his father added.

"Speaking of lunch, we had better finish up with our breakfast as it will be time to leave for church very soon," Lucas told them.


They arrived a little before the service started to find the Hastings waiting for them at the church door. They greeted one another and Arawyn took Lucas' arm as he escorted her to their pew.

"You look lovely, your eyes are sparkling today like the light coming through the stain glass windows; both are special gifts. I find joy in being with you and other loved ones here at this moment," Lucas told her.

She looked up at him a smiled softly, "his grace is upon us," she told him quietly. He nodded as the organ music began, prompting the processional to the altar.


After the service, they all made their way down to the basement where the volunteers were working to prepare for lunch service. There was always a table with refreshments after church for the attendees. So, the room was filling with both churchgoers and those who were going to receive lunch.

"My what a crowd," Helen said, "is it always like this?"

Mary chimed in, "not quite this many at other times, the church service has added a number of people who are visiting and having refreshments."

Just then a pair of boys around Jack's age ran up to Lucas and asked if Jack was with him.

"Not today but I will tell him you asked about him. Perhaps he can visit another time soon. Let me see if I remember your names…. Hmmm… Sammy and Michael… Do I have that right?" Lucas asked.

"Yes!" They chimed in proud that they were special enough to be remembered. "Are you going to read to us," the one called Sammy asked.

"Not today but perhaps next time I come back", Lucas told them. They then ran off to join some other children.

"My, you are quite popular," Helen said to her son.

"Yes he is; Lucas is a marvelous story-teller and the children love him," Arawyn answered. She wanted so badly to add "just like I do," but she resisted.

Helen continued, "children have always been attracted to Lucas. I think perhaps because he speaks to them like they matter. He has a natural empathy with people in general, but with children in particular. They are so vulnerable, you know. But I suppose all the people that come for help here are."

"Yes, and Lucas gives them the respect and dignity they deserve. These people see that. He is a minister of their government, but he is rolling up his shirt sleeves and serving stew. Not only that but he sits amongst them and listens. He has a gift," Arawyn told her with her voice filled with admiration.

"Yes, he definitely has a gift, but it can be to a fault. He keeps giving and sometimes he forgets himself. The giving he finds its own reward, but he isn't always fair to himself. He doesn't ever ask for anything in return, even when he should. Does that make sense?" Helen asked.

"It makes perfect sense. I have learned quite a good deal about him since we met, what he has told me and what I have observed in the time I have known him. That is why I have been open and honest with him, asking him to let me take on anything he wants me too. I can't take his desire to give me the stars away from him, but I let him know that he should ask me to share his dreams too. To give back to him in whatever way I can. Some of that is letting him be himself. I told him I am a selective feminist. I am not going to tell him not to open the door for me when it gives him pleasure to do so. Oh my, perhaps I carried on a bit too much just now."

Helen placed her hand on Arawyn's arm. "It is quite okay. You want him to be happy and from what I can see you are doing a very good job of it; he has joy again that I have not seen in a very long time. Thank you."

Arawyn nodded, she had a lump in her throat, and she felt like she might cry.

"Why don't we go have a nice glass of lemonade and one of those delicious looking cookies," Helen told her. "Mary, Martha, young ladies, shall we get some refreshments?" She rounded them all up and they made their way to a table that was mostly vacant and took a seat.

Lucas had been in the kitchen speaking with the cook about the vegetables that he was expecting would come their way. He rejoined the men and asked where the ladies had gone. His father pointed over at the table where his mother was holding court. She looked to be in her element as she had all the ladies' attention.

Lucas smiled. Arawyn was getting a full dose of his mother right from the start. That was probably best, so she already knew what to expect from her future mother-in-law. He thought that they would become good friends; Arawyn had the spirit that his mother would admire.


They returned to his home just as it was time to head into the dining room for another of Gustave's Sunday feasts. Today they would have a venison Wellington that could make a grown man cry. The dessert would be a beautiful, layered trifle with the flavors of the Italian dessert, Tiramisu.

"So, Arawyn, you do a lot of work with children at the church and with young people at work. I take it you like children?" Helen asked.

"Mother, I thought you didn't do interrogations on Sunday," Lucas told her.

"I am just making polite conversation," she said trying to look innocent because of course she was digging.

"Yes, I love children. Watching their young minds develop and then seeing them at the other end as they enter adulthood at the university, I find it very rewarding. But that isn't the answer you were looking for, is it?"

Helen didn't answer right away but Arawyn continued on. "I have been very busy for over a decade with my education and then developing my career. Having children was a distant objective that was amorphous at best. But I am finally in a place in my life where the amorphous has begun to take shape. I am after all now past thirty and I think I would have begun to think about it, but to be truthful, meeting Jack and spending time with him and watching how Lucas is with him has made me feel the desire to have that in my life."

"Lucas, I hope that you don't mind me answering her question. Perhaps some might find my answer too personal," Arawyn told him.

"Arawyn, I do not mind at all. I know that you are answering my mother's question with honesty; well perhaps not the question she asked, but rather what she was after," Lucas told her. He reached for her hand and squeezed it.

His parents could clearly see the gesture and his father spoke. "Young lady, my wife has a way of communicating that is quite unique and that is both endearing and vexing at times. Most don't get her intensions, but clearly you do. It will make life a lot easier for a future daughter-in-law. If you and our son should marry, I will be very blessed to have you as my daughter."

Arawyn looked at him with a gracious smile, "And I will be blessed to have Lucas' parents become my own," she said quietly. Lucas put his arm around her and kissed her on the side of her head.

"Well, my dear," Martin said, "how are you at poker? Does that Irish complexion of yours deceive you or do you have a decent poker face?" he asked her.

"Deal 'em and we shall see," she told him. With that, Lucas got up to get a deck from the sideboard. There was a time when he always had a deck in his breast pocket but not for some time now. But he had a deck in every room, his suitcase, and his car. He also decided to bring a box of poker chips with him.

They played Five Card Draw and Seven Card Stud for almost an hour. "Read them and weep," Arawyn told Lucas as the other two had already folded from the most recent hand.

"Okay," Lucas said to his father, "I think your question has been answered. She just wiped me out." He turned to Arawyn and said, "but next time I won't let you win," he teased.

She poked him in the side. "I am very good. I used to play in college all the time. Remember we were a small group of women amongst many men; we had to learn to keep up."

He laughed, "Keep up? You probably wiped them out on a regular basis."

Lucas pulled out his pocket watch. "Mother, Father, I am going to have to take Arawyn back to St. Joachim's now. Do you mind if I stay with her for a few hours and help? I will come back after dinner, and we can spend some time together in the library."

"That is fine. I should do some repacking, so we are ready for our train in the morning. It leaves quite early," Helen replied.

Lucas helped Arawyn from her chair and led her to the foyer with his parents following them to say goodbye.

Martin kissed her on both cheeks and gave her a big bear hug. "Thank you. And take care of our boy. We shall be speaking soon I should think." Arawyn nodded.

Helen had her turn and embraced Arawyn, "Keep in touch and if ever you should want me to read your poems it would be not just work, but a delight."

Arawyn turned to both, "farewell for now and I hope you have a safe trip and a wonderful time in San Francisco. It is a city I would love to visit someday. Lucas has told me it is a favorite of his."

"Indeed, it is. I need to steel you away now," Lucas told her and led her down the steps and out to the car. His parents waved until they were out of sight.

Martin turned to Helen and placed his hand on her cheek. "He is going to be okay," he told her. And then pulled her in close and placed his lips on her forehead, giving her a tender kiss. He was after all his son's father; he had taught Lucas well.


The next morning Lucas took his parents to the train station for their 7:00 departure.

"I am so happy that you stopped on your way. And I am especially glad that you were able to meet Arawyn," Lucas told them.

"And we are so happy for you son," Martin told him.

"Will you mind if we stop again on our way back to Montreal?" Helen asked.

"That will be fine if my schedule permits. Just let me know what dates you plan to be here, and I can try to work it out," Lucas told them. "But if I don't see you then, we will see you at Christmas. Arawyn will be visiting her parents so we will travel there together. I hope you will meet them before that."

"We will call them when we arrive back home," Martin said just as the train whistled and they heard the "All Aboard".

He hugged his parents and then they boarded the train and took their seats. They waved at him through the window as they left the station and then he headed to his office at the Ministry.


The beginning of the week proved extremely busy. He met with James and Marcus and Jules to discuss strategy for the meeting with the Premier on Tuesday. A few other ministers would also be in attendance and in particular for the transportation aspect, which was of paramount importance to the success of the project.

The Tuesday meeting went well, and the Premier gave his full support to launch the pilot program. Lucas and the others were very pleased to say the least. He wanted to tell Arawyn right away. He knew that she was supposed to work that evening at St. Joachim's, so he rang up Mary to see if she could find someone to cover. She called him just ten minutes later to tell him she had found someone who would be at the church before 5:00.

He thanked her profusely and called Arawyn at her office. He was happy when she picked up.

"Professor MacKenna, speaking," he heard her say.

"Oh, but I do love that voice of yours, my fair Professor. Please tell me you will come out with me this evening. I can pick you up from work and we can go somewhere casual for dinner. I have news," he told her.

"Lucas, I can't, I volunteer this evening."

"Well, if that weren't an issue, would you come with me?" He missed her. He hadn't seen her since Sunday evening, and it seemed like an eternity. He had spoken to her on the phone before retiring for the night but that was not quite the same.

"Of course I would," she said.

"Now please don't be mad that I have stepped in, but I asked Mary if she knew someone who can fill your spot for tonight. I wouldn't have asked if this wasn't important to me, really to us," he told her.

"It is okay, Lucas. This time anyway, but don't make it a habit," she teased. "It sounds like you have news and I am anxious to hear it. You can pick me up at 6:00 if that is okay. I could use an extra hour or so to wrap up some things I would have had to leave if I had been going to the church."

"I will make a reservation for 6:30 at that new Bistro around the corner from the university. I will come to your office to escort you," he told her.

"See you then," she said and hung up the phone.


He picked up Arawn just before the agreed upon time and they made their way to the entrance where they met an older imposing man that he recognized as the chancellor of the university. The man stopped to greet them.

Arawyn spoke up, "Chancellor Fielding, I'd like you to meet Mr. Bouchard; he is the Minister of Economic Development. Lucas, I would like you to meet Chancellor Fielding."

"Chancellor, it is good to see you again," Lucas said as he shook the man's hand.

"And you too my good man." He turned to Arawyn to say, "we have met before at one of the Ministry functions. Mr. Bouchard has some progressive ideas."

"Please, it is Lucas."

"And you can call me Robert," the chancellor told him. "It looks like you may be on your way out, but please come by the next time you are here. I would love to hear more of what you have been up to of late."

"Certainly, I will be sure to ring you next time I am here," Lucas told the man.

"Well, enjoy your evening," he nodded to both and then went on his way.

Arawyn had had her arm through Lucas' the entire time. She had thought of withdrawing it once they had seen Robert but thought that would have drawn more attention than just proceeding as they were…. a gentleman escorting a lady across the square.

Lucas imagined what she might have been thinking. He placed his other hand on the one on his arm, squeezing it before they proceed on their way. He wanted to shout to the world that they were a couple; he certainly wasn't going to hide it.


They were escorted to their table by the maître de. He waited while Lucas helped Arawyn with her chair and then sat. The waiter handed Lucas a menu and asked if he could bring them anything to drink. There was a pitcher of ice water on the table and the man poured them each a glass.

"Arawyn, would you like a glass of Merlot?" Lucas asked her.

"Yes, thank you."

Lucas selected the bottle of wine from the list. "Would you also bring another menu for my guest. She is accustomed to making her own selection," Lucas told him.

"Why certainly, just give me a minute and I will return with that," the man told him.

"It wasn't necessary Lucas. I would have been fine with whatever you chose for me. Or we could share the menu," Arawyn told him.

"Times are changing. We all need to adapt to that; someday it will be routine to hand the lady a menu too," Lucas told her. "When I was last in San Francisco they provided everyone at the table a menu. The menus they handed the women did not have prices, however. I believe it is so that if a couple goes out, the lady doesn't feel dissuaded from her choice because of the price," Lucas told her.

"Well then, I can not wait to choose the most expensive item," she told him with a laugh. As the maître de returned with a menu for her. "Let us see what that is." She looked carefully at the menu pretending to search through the prices to find her choice.

Lucas had already located the two most expensive items, but he waited for her.

"Well, it seems that my choices are lobster or rack of lamb. I certainly can't eat that much lamb; how fresh do you suppose a lobster could be in Edmonton?" It really was just a hypothetical question as she had already found her choice.

"With routine flights now into Edmonton, you might be perfectly safe with the lobster," he told her.

"Hmmmm, be that as it may, I think I will go with something local. The fresh lake trout sounds delicious," she told him.

"What would you like for a starter? I try to be more adventurous, but I think I will just go with my favorite tonight…. Vichyssoise," he told her.

"That sounds good to me too," she told him. "We ate a lot of potato soup when I was growing up in Ireland. But I find the French make such a delicious version. It is so refreshing served cold in summer."

Lucas signaled the waiter that they were ready with their order. He added, "we will order dessert later, perhaps you can bring us the dessert menu after we have completed our entrée," he told the man.

"Very well, Sir." He nodded and went to attend to their starters.

She reached across the table and held out her hand. It was a gesture that he was used to doing, but he loved that she had taken the initiative. He took her hand in his; it was warm and soft. "So, tell me, what has you so excited?" she asked.

"The Premier is on board with our plan. With the pilot anyway, but he sounded very positive that he would be approving a broader version if the pilot looked promising," Lucas told her with a grin.

"Oh Lucas, I knew you would get his approval, but this is wonderful news. Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked.

"Well since you asked… " Lucas said. "I told him that we would launch city wide, not just in the St. Joachim area, although that would be the priority since logistics are already in place."

"Oh, my," Arawyn let slip out.

"I know. Perhaps I am being too ambitious. But I thought perhaps we could get logistics in place before the late fall and winter months?" Lucas told her.

"Well, that may be doable. If you start with crops now, I think you should focus on St. Joachim's. I can help you get ready in other areas. Let me speak with Mary and have her call a meeting. Our society has members across the city; we will invite them to join us. I can give them an overview of our plans for St. Joachim's and they can give input. Together we can come up with plans that will fit with the various areas. We will get a proposal together for you to review," Arawyn told him.

"Thank you, I do need your help and anything you can do to rally other areas to participate will be much appreciated. I don't want to interfere with your process but please let me know if you need anything from me. I am happy to come and support you when the plan is rolled out if that helps," he said.

"Yes, I think once we develop the proposal at the grass roots level, it will help to have representation from the cabinet to come show their support," she told him.

He let go of her hand as he saw their waiter deliver the soup. "Any time night or day, call me if you want to discuss this as you formulate your proposal," he told her. "Now perhaps we can put aside business and enjoy our dinner and one another," he said.

"Yes, I look forward to both, but you know, it is okay to talk about the project too. It is something we can share, and I don't mind. In fact, your excitement is contagious," she told him.

"My mother mentioned that, about us having this project to share. But for the rest of this evening anyway, let's turn our attention elsewhere," he told her as she nodded and picked up her spoon to taste her soup.

"This is truly delicious," she told him. "It has just the right balance of leeks to potatoes, perfect."

"It is delicious; and I am a connoisseur of vichyssoise," he told her.

"Arawyn, are you free on Sunday afternoon after church? I assume that Saturday you will be volunteering," Lucas asked her.

"Yes, and yes. What did you have in mind?" she asked him.

"Well, it is a surprise, but I would like you to go with me somewhere. Do you own any trousers? If you do, you should wear them and make sure you bring a heavy pullover sweater, a short heavy jacket, leather is preferable, and wear boots or sturdy shoes," Lucas told her.

"Now I am intrigued. I do have some trousers which I rarely have a reason to wear. I have riding boots and I have a cable knit sweater but not a jacket. I will ask Emelia if her brother has one, he has left in his closet. Where are you taking me?" She was so curious.

"A surprise means no telling." He told her. "But I think you are going to love it."


The rest of the week was equally full as the start. On Wednesday he had a dinner to attend with the Premier and his counterpart from neighboring British Columbia. It was to hammer out a trade agreement across borders so as the Minister of Economic Development his attendance was mandatory. On Thursday he went to help Arawyn at the church and on Friday she was attending a birthday party for her friend Susana. They spoke by phone for long periods of time before they slept; her uncle had had a phone installed in her room, so she didn't have to stand in the entry way and to give his niece some privacy.

Arawyn told him that Mary had arranged a meeting of the Ladies' Society for Saturday afternoon. They were holding it on the weekend to accommodate her busy schedule. She was looking forward to discussions. But mostly she couldn't wait to see what Lucas had in mind for Sunday. He was determined to keep his plan a secret.

Lucas missed her as he hadn't seen her since Thursday at the church. They had only had a few moments alone when he had dropped her off that evening. Her parents had visitors and her mother had come to the porch as soon as she heard his car to ask her to join them.

On Saturday he helped with lunch service and stole her for a few minutes afterward. He was expected at the James house in the evening to help entertain out of town visitors from the legislature, so he would be missing her that evening.
"Do you think it is okay if I steal a kiss?" he asked her, cognizant that they were just outside a church. "Just a small, brief one?"

"I am sure that it will be fine. No one is looking except for perhaps from heaven and he would definitely approve," she told him.

He held both her hands in his and brought his mouth to hers in a sweet kiss that nonetheless had her head spinning.

"I will miss you this evening, but I will call to say goodnight," he told her and then he returned her to the basement entrance.


On Sunday, he was all but dying to spend time with her. They attended mass as had become their custom and then he dropped her at home so she could change. He was on his way to do the same and then was to pick her up within the hour. He hadn't been personally exhilarated like he was in a very long time. And the weather for the day promised to be perfect, sunny skies and only the gentlest of breezes. He all but ran into the house to change and to stop by the kitchen to pick up the food that Gustave had packed for them. He had taken to have a bag ready at all times with a picnic blanket, tablecloth and napkins. Gustave always ensured that there were glasses, silverware and a bottle of wine in the picnic basket. He grabbed everything and hurried out to the car to pick her up.