“You should have told me how bad things were here. You should have let me come home sooner.”
“And tie you up with debts and worries?” Walter reached forward and picked up one of the logs he’d chopped. He rubbed his hand down the rough bark and then threw the log on the pile with the others. “That’s not what I want for you. Birds should fly the nest, not be tethered to it. It was our problem, not yours.”
“And you didn’t think I could make that decision for myself?”
“This place was my father’s dream and then it was my dream. It was never yours. A man shouldn’t have to carry the weight of another man’s dream.” There was a sadness in his voice. “I gave that dream to your father to carry and it weighed him down. I have to live with the guilt of that. I wasn’t going to put that same weight on you. I may be old, but I can still learn.”
Jackson felt pressure in his chest and a thickness in his throat. He’d never had trouble forming words before. “What if it’s my dream, too?”
Silence stretched, long and deep.
Walter’s throat worked as he stared at the mountains.
Jackson put his hand on his grandfather’s shoulder. “What then, Gramps?” He saw the sheen in his grandfather’s eyes and the tension in his jaw that came from expending effort to hang on to control.
“I guess that would be different.”
The atmosphere shifted.
“Gramps—”
“Is it your dream?”
Jackson was surprised by how easy it was to answer that question. This time there was no pause and no silence. “It always has been. Maybe I had to go away to see it.”
Walter’s shoulders relaxed. The tension left him. “You’ll save this place. You can do anything you want if you put your mind to it.”
There was no crash of cymbals to highlight the dramatic shift in their relationship. No fireworks to welcome in a new phase. Just words. But words so deeply felt they changed everything.
“We’ll save it.” Jackson wrapped his arms around his grandfather and felt strength and fire pumping beneath thin bones and fragile flesh. “We’ll carry that dream together. We’ll save this place together. That’s a promise.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
“THE LAKE IS usually frozen solid between December and March. Providing the weather is right, we maintain the section of ice closest to the lodge as a rink for pond skating and we maintain a skate trail around the lake. So far, it’s been a good year.”
“Hey, Kayla—” Tyler was already on the ice “—if you can stay upright we’ll make you an honorary member of the O’Neil pond hockey team.”
“Ignore him.” Jackson gave her elbow and knee pads. “These will help if you fall. We’re going to take it slowly to give you a chance to get used to being on the ice.”
Kayla secured the knee pads.
Maybe it was wrong of her not to say something, but she didn’t see why they should have all the fun.
Sean fastened his skates. “And if you do fall and break something, I’ll fix it for a discounted rate.”
“You’re so generous.” Kayla stood still while Jackson fastened her skates.
“Bend your knees slightly and lean forward. Whatever you do, don’t lean back.” He straightened and held out his hand. “Don’t be nervous. The ice is thick here so you’re in no danger of falling through.”
She ignored his hand and skated onto the ice.
“Kayla—”
“Back in a minute.” Enjoying herself hugely, she glided across the ice, getting the feel for the unfamiliar skates. Then she increased speed, flowed into a jump, spun and landed perfectly, executed another couple of spins and glided back to where Jackson and Sean were standing, mouths agape. “You’re right. It’s fun.”
Sean folded his arms, grinning. “Is there something you’d like to tell us?”
Jackson stared at her. “Where did you learn to skate?”
“At school, a long time ago.”
“You went to school in London.”
“So? They have indoor ice rinks. Not as picturesque as this, but ice is ice.” She doubted anywhere in the world could be more picturesque than this.
“You didn’t think to mention it?”
“I wasn’t sure if I could remember how to do it, or if it would feel different being outdoors. It doesn’t. It feels wonderful—” She glided away from them and spun again. When she stopped, Jackson was on the ice next to her.
“You’re good.”
“Not that good. I won a couple of junior competitions, but I wasn’t prepared to practice for hours at a time. I wasn’t dedicated enough.”