It was my turn to chuckle. I ended up sharing my humiliating story from the boat.
“Oh, shit,” she squeaked, clamping her hand over her own mouth. “Yeah, it’s hard to come back from that.”
“Right?” We shared a smile. “Honestly, it’s okay. That’s not what any of this is about, no matter what the socials say. But I swear to God, if he says ‘hello’ like that one more time…” I trailed off.
“I will douse you with cold water myself,” Fern promised.
“What a pal,” I grinned. “Your turn. Tell me about Gavin.”
She got all dreamy just by the mention of his name. “He’s amazing, Pea. He’s so smart. He went to Girbridge,” she gushed, referring to Aldayne’s famous university that was established in 1332, by none other than Queen Riannon herself. “He graduated summa cum laude with a master’s in philosophy, but his real passion is dance. He began training with the Sofie Agassi Ballet troupe when he was seven and has toured all over the world. He’s so well read and sophisticated, I marveled that I had anything to talk about.”
I took another bite of my skewer. “From where I was standing, it didn’t look like you two were doing much talking.”
She giggled. “It’s not that. I mean, it is that but, it’s more.” Her eyes softened. “He comes from a big family, like us. Audra’s the oldest. Then Gav. A couple of sisters. Oliver is the youngest, he just turned eleven. Their mom died shortly after he was born. She had been diagnosed with cancer during the pregnancy but refused treatment. They saved the baby. They couldn’t save her.”
The story made me sad for them. Like Auggie and his struggles, it appeared that one could have all the money and titles in the world. It didn’t spare anyone from the harsh realities of life, like losing a loved one way before you were ready.
“He wants me to dance with them,” she confessed softly.
“And?”
“It’s like you with Auggie. The timing is all off. How can I do that and take care of you?”
I took her hand in mine. “You take care of me by doing that. This is your big break, too, Fernie. And I’m sleeping all the time anyway. What are you supposed to do? Sit around all day waiting for me to ring a bell for more ginger tea?”
“I’d do it in a minute,” she swore. And I knew she would.
“If you want to do something a little more exciting, I say do it.”
“You don’t think Auggie would mind?”
“You leave Auggie to me,” I grinned. “I’ll convince him.”
“Mmhmm,” Fern said. “Don’t barf on him this time.”
We broke into the giggles before we walked arm in arm to the sofa in the living room, where we watched black and white movies for the rest of the night.
The next day we woke up bright and early. We wanted to get more sightseeing in before lunch with Archer. We prowled around the City of Brotherly love with Sean patiently driving us from City Hall to Independence Hall, where we got our pictures for Dallas at the Liberty Bell. We headed to Love Park for pictures at the iconic sculpture there. After jamming all that in the morning, we were ready to meet Archer for lunch at one of the city’s popular spots for cheesesteak.
Normally, I’d be all about the cheesesteak. We had visited Archer a few times in the past few years he’d lived in Philly, and next to seeing my brother, the food was my favorite part. He had the local favorite shipped to me every birthday for three years running.
Peanut, however, was not a fan.
I knew I was in trouble the minute the smell hit my nose. “Uh oh,” I said under my breath.
“No,” Fern breathed.
I nodded and she handed me a candy.
We had already decided not to tell my brother the Big Secret. Only Mom, Dad, Auggie, Audra and Fern knew. Presumably, Sean was also in the loop, but he had never said anything to me directly, nor did I openly talk about it in his presence. There was time to announce it later, as the need arose.
My strait-laced brother was on the need-to-know basis, in that he didn’t yet need to know.
He was a tried-and-true McPhee like the rest of us, but he had very strong, very conventional opinions. He was the one to be a little more cautious when Mom got pregnant at the age of 50. He ultimately came to love