The Best Things in Life

by Kate Sweeney

  “Oh, no, no. We all love Morgan. No one gives a tinker’s damn about that. Or you for that matter.”

  The grin that spread across Sally’s face had Cara leaning back.

  “Are you single?”

  “Why is that important? You sound like Betty. That has nothing to do—”

  “Oh, I know. I was just curious.”

  Cara rubbed her forehead. “Okay. So, you were going to tell me something?”

  “I was? Oh, yes. Well, you see, Morgan fell in love many years ago. The woman was from Minneapolis. Morgan got caught up in her, and when she put it in Morgan’s head that she’d have a better life away from here, Morgan thought about it. So, Morgan went to visit her for a week, and it turned out horribly.” Sally stopped; she took a deep breath. “And that’s all I can tell you.”

  Cara hung her head.

  “I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything, but I think Morgan should tell you the rest. I don’t think she talks about all of it much. Even to Betty, and she tells Betty just about everything.”

  “All of it,” Cara said absently.

  This might be more than a human-interest story. Cara had a feeling there was more here than just a story about a woman who saved a co-worker and her friend.

  “Okay, let’s skip that for now. How long have you known Morgan?”

  “Oh, all her life. We grew up together. All of us did. Except for Andy. Well, he did, but he’s a baby.” Sally laughed. “The next generation, I guess.”

  “I understand Morgan had cousins…”

  Sally groaned. “A bunch of selfish, manipulative…don’t get me started. I can’t believe they have the same blood running through their veins. They wanted everything for themselves, so they could sell the land to some company. And after the accident…” She stopped abruptly. “Well, Morgan can tell you.”

  “What accident?”

  “I’ve said too much.”

  “You haven’t really said anything.”

  “And that’s good. Shh...here they come.”

  She sounded like Betty. Getting information was going to be interesting.

  “You look guilty as sin,” Barry said severely. “What has she been telling you?”

  “Nothing, really,” Cara said truthfully.

  Morgan gave them a skeptical but amused look. “Sal, what have you been saying?”

  “Nothing,” Sal insisted. “Oh, don’t forget about the cookout on Friday. One o’clock. It’s the last day for the guests, and you know we always have something fun. The weather will cooperate—”

  “For now,” Morgan said.

  “For now,” Sal agreed. “It’s supposed to be warmish and sunny.”

  “Take it when we can get it,” Barry said, laughing. “Remember last year at this time?”

  When they all laughed, Cara joined them. “What happened?”

  “It was October 1. And they called for nice weather, so we planned our cookout, ya know, burgers, hot dogs, all that. We woke up to three inches of snow.” Sal let out a sigh of contentment. “But we had a great time. We still had the cookout, the kids made snowmen, then we ate by the fire in the restaurant. So, it all turned out okay.”

  “Oh, and you promised to take the kids for a ride around the lake in your plane. Don’t forget,” Barry said.

  “I won’t.” Morgan looked at Cara. “You’re invited, not that you have much of a choice. Besides, it’ll be more for your story.”

  “I’d love to. Can I bring anything?” Cara asked.

  “Just Morgan, thanks,” Sal said, smiling at both of them.

  “Okay,” Morgan said, playfully glaring at Sal. “The plane’s all set. I think we’d better get going.”

  They all walked out of the diner toward the pier. Cara took in the beautiful surroundings. She could see how they loved this place.

  “I need to go to the post office and see if there’s any mail,” Morgan said. “If there’s anything for you, want me to pick it up?”

  “No. I’ll drive in and get it. Until the snow starts and the lake freezes, of course. You can haul it up here in that snowmobile.”

  Morgan agreed. “It’s a deal. I get paid no matter what.”

  Barry clapped her on the back. “And it’s all about money to you…right.” He turned to Cara. “It was nice to meet you, Cara. You two come back for the cookout, don’t forget.”

  “Thanks, Barry. It was so nice to meet you both.”

  As they buckled in, Cara could feel Morgan watching her.

  “Something on your mind?” Cara leaned back into her seat, adjusting her belt.

  “I just didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable by anything Sal might have said. She’s an old friend.”

  “Not at all. I perfectly understand. Does it make you uncomfortable?”

  Morgan seemed surprised, but she smiled. “No, not at all.”

  “Good. Then let’s take off.”

  In a few minutes, they were airborne. Cara sat next to Morgan and put the headset on so they could talk.

  “How about I take you on a tour?”

  Cara nodded happily. Lake Kabetogama was beautiful. From this perspective, Cara could see all the islands, some bigger than others, but they were all magnificent. She stole a glance at Morgan, who seemed so content in the air, for which Cara was very grateful. Also, she had a nice profile. Her baseball cap hid most of the silver streaks Cara had noticed earlier. Morgan Gavin certainly did not look forty-eight. But when Cara regarded her, she saw the tiny lines etched in the corner of her eye, from either squinting into the sun or from laughing—probably both.

  Cara touched her arm. “I can see where you could have issues with campers on those islands.”

  Morgan nodded. “Not as much as you’d think, thank God. But occasionally, like yesterday, it happens.” She glanced at her panel. “We’d better get back. I’m running low on fuel.”

  “How low?” Cara asked quickly.

  Morgan winked. “I’ll get you back. If not, we can land on the water.”

  “Okay. If you’re giving me a choice, I choose the airport.”

  Morgan laughed. “You’re no fun.”

  In a few minutes, Cara saw the small airport and marina. Seeing quite a few airplanes and what Cara supposed were terminals surprised her for some reason. She had the idea Morgan cornered the market here in the boundary waters. Which, after seeing just one lake, she realized her mistake. This area of the United States and Canada was enormous.

  Morgan landed easily and taxied to a small building with a sign that read Gavin Tours.

  “Safe and sound,” Morgan announced, taking off her headset.

  Cara did the same. “That was fun. I had no idea how expansive it was up here.”

  They walked into the office to find Andy on the phone. He smiled and waved them in.

  “Coffee?” Morgan asked Cara.

  “Oh, no, thanks. I’m fine. So, this is the family business?” Cara sat in a chair by the window.

  “Yes. Dad and Uncle Jerry started it way back when.” Morgan picked up a clipboard and scanned the sheets.

  “Well, we have more tours.” Andy put his feet up on the metal desk and rocked back.

  “Good. How many?” Morgan put the clipboard on the desk.

  “Nothing I can’t handle. I scheduled them all day today and tomorrow.”

  “Everyone is getting in the last of the summer,” Morgan said.

  “It’s only September,” Cara said.

  Morgan and Andy looked at her.

  “What?”

  “Up here, that means snow will soon be falling.”

  “Oh, right. I keep forgetting where I am,” Cara said. “I don’t think I brought warm enough clothes.”

  “How long are ya staying?” Andy asked.

  “About ten days.”

  “So what’s Chicago like? I’ve never been. Only Minneapolis.”

  “Like that, only bigger. Lots of restaurants. Lots of people. And we have Lake Michigan.”

&n
bsp; “Well, I’m headed to Helena, Montana,” Andy said proudly.

  “Oh?”

  “Yep. A friend of mine works for a small airline. Just like here, he needs a pilot and a mechanic. And in a couple years, he and I are going to open up our own business, like Morgan here.”

  “Better than this,” Morgan said, leafing through the mail. “You guys have a great idea.”

  “I’m gonna miss Morg, but I got to take this chance.”

  “You’d be foolish not to. And I appreciate you working through the season. I just need a replacement.”

  Cara jumped when someone banged on the window. It was a young boy, grinning and waving. Morgan waved back, beckoning him in.

  “Hey, Pete. C’mon in.”

  Pete sheepishly walked in, glancing at Cara. Cara noticed a slight limp as he walked toward Morgan.

  “Wasn’t sure if you had customers. I didn’t want to bug you.”

  “No,” Morgan said. “Pete, this is Cara Pembroke.”

  “The reporter?” Pete asked.

  “Nice to meet you. I see you’ve talked to Betty.”

  “Everybody talks to Betty. Hi. Are you really gonna write about Morgan?”

  “I am. I’m gathering information. So, if you have any good stories.”

  Morgan put her arm around him, then put a hand over his mouth. “He knows nothing.”

  Pete laughed, trying to get out of her grasp. Cara immediately liked him; he seemed like an affable young boy, probably around eleven or so. Short-cropped sandy blond hair, brown eyes, and freckles across his nose. It was then she noticed Pete wore a khaki-colored ball cap with the Gavin Tours logo on the front; it was the same as Morgan’s.

  Andy jumped up. “I have to clean the plane. Pete, c’mon, earn your keep and help me.”

  “Sure. Nice to meet you, Miss Pembroke.”

  “Same here. And call me Cara.”

  Pete grinned. “Okay.”

  “Go on, get that plane sparkling.” Morgan affectionately pulled on the bill of his cap.

  “He’s a good kid,” Morgan said after they left.

  “Shouldn’t he be in school?” Cara asked.

  “He’s homeschooled. By my mother.”

  “Really? Why homeschooled?”

  “Well,” Morgan started. “He’s got a rocky home life. His mom died a year ago from cancer. His dad, unfortunately, hasn’t been dealing with it very well, and he takes it out on Pete. They’re just having a hard time adjusting. His dad ignores him and seems like he doesn’t really care what Pete does. And Pete, being smarter than the other kids, sometimes has a hard time at school. Now his father has a job offer in Ohio, and he thinks Pete might be better off in foster care. Can you believe that? Anyway, this spring, he came here for camp. Betty met him and fell in love. And so did Pete.”

  Cara regarded Morgan, who watched Pete and Andy clean the seaplane. “And so did you.”

  Morgan looked at her then. She laughed quietly. “Yeah, I did. He’s a good kid.”

  “Has anyone talked to his father?”

  “I’ve seen Paul many times since Sandy passed. He’s really having a hard time. My folks tried to talk to him. Everybody has. I don’t know. Paul’s a good guy, really. I can’t imagine how it feels to lose a spouse. Especially with a child.”

  “What’s happening now?”

  “For now, Mom has him a few hours in the morning, and he has to go to after-school stuff so he’s around the other kids his age.”

  “What kind of person is his father?”

  “Oh, Paul’s fine, really. He’s having a real hard time handling a kid with special needs.”

  “Special needs? Does he have a learning disability?”

  It shocked Cara when Morgan laughed.

  “I really don’t see what’s so funny about that.”

  Morgan cleared her throat. She knocked on the window and beckoned them in.

  “What’s up? We need to get this done,” Andy said.

  “This’ll only take a second,” Morgan said. “Pete, who was the eighth president of the US?”

  “Morgan…” Pete whined, then let out a sigh of resignation. “Martin Van Buren.”

  “And who was his vice president?”

  Pete rolled his eyes. “Richard Mentor Johnson.”

  “I’m sure you’re right. I have no idea.”

  Cara knew her jaw dropped.

  “A skeptic.” Morgan motioned to Cara. “You try.”

  Cara cleared her throat. “That’s not necessary.”

  “Please go ahead. Morgan won’t give up. It’s okay.” Pete glared at Morgan, who laughed.

  “All right. Um, who was the fifth president?”

  “James Monroe.”

  “And his vi—”

  “Daniel D. Tompkins.”

  “He could go on all day.” Morgan picked up her calculator and punched in a few numbers. “What’s three hundred seventy-nine times two hundred eighty-seven?”

  Pete looked at the ceiling for a moment. “One hundred eight thousand…seven hundred seventy-three.”

  Morgan grinned and showed Cara the calculator. “I’d ask him about square roots, but I don’t know how to calculate them on this thing. I’m sure it’s simple.”

  “Ooh, I got one,” Andy said. “What’s the capital of Paris?”

  Pete’s eyes widened; Cara tried not to laugh.

  Morgan raised an eyebrow. “Okay, guys. Back to work.”

  “Wait, what?” Andy said.

  Pete grabbed his hand. “I’ll tell you,” he whispered.

  “So he’s gifted,” Cara said.

  “Nah, I think Andy’s average.”

  “Very funny. You could have said that instead of laughing.”

  Morgan laughed, then stopped. “Sorry. He hates it when I do that to him. But I find it fascinating that he knows so much without a lot of book learning. Mom says he’s like a sponge. Whatever he hears or reads, he never forgets, and he can recall something in perfect detail after only seeing a glimpse of it. It’s really amazing.”

  “So, this is why he has a hard time at school. He’s far ahead of the other children and probably has a hard time focusing on something he finds mundane and boring.”

  Morgan tilted her head. “I’m not sure if I like you sounding like my mother. That’s exactly what she said. Mom used to be a teacher. She homeschooled me until the sixth grade. Then she said I needed to be around more kids than just the few I had around the lake. She said I was turning into an introverted crab-ass.”

  Cara let out a barking laugh; she could hear Betty saying exactly that. “Sorry…”

  “That’s okay. I’m glad you feel comfortable laughing at me. She was right. So, I finished junior high and high school the regular way. Good grades, average mostly, except science. I loved science. It helped when I started flying. Understanding aeronautics is tough, but I took to it so quickly. Mostly because of my dad and Uncle Jerry. They were good teachers.”

  “Did you ever think of the military?”

  “I did when I was right out of high school. I didn’t know if I wanted to go to college or not. My dad mentioned the Air Force, but it wasn’t for me. It takes a special sort of mettle to be in the military, and I didn’t have the drive to do that. It wasn’t in my heart. Staying here, becoming a pilot, and helping out with the business was.” She looked around the office and smiled.

  Cara could see exactly where Morgan Gavin’s heart was when she saw that smile.

  “You love it here.”

  For a fleeting moment, Cara thought she saw a look of sadness flash across Morgan’s face. She remembered what Sally had said earlier about a woman she fell in love with. She made a mental note to find a way of asking about the woman from Minneapolis without causing too much anxiety.

  Morgan nodded. “I do. I know it’s not much and I won’t be rich, but I’m happy. I have the best things in life here. But then, I don’t need much.”

  “You never thought of moving, or at least seeing what�
�s out there?”

  “I’m not a recluse. I’ve even been out of the state. How about that?” Morgan sat on the edge of the desk.

  “Okay, I deserved that one. I’m not making fun of you. I’m just trying to get some insight for the article.”

  “I know you’re not making fun,” Morgan said quietly. “So, this is just for the article?”

  Cara felt the heat rise from her neck. She absently scratched under her chin. “What else?”

  Morgan grinned and shrugged. “I dunno. I know we’ve just met, but maybe we could get to know each other, other than for the article.”

  Cara did not expect that. Though she’d be lying if she hadn’t thought of it. Kim’s face flashed through her mind.

  “I know you have a girlfriend, and I’m probably way out of line to even suggest it.”

  “You’re not out of line,” Cara said. “But you’re right. There is Kim.”

  “Hmm. That is an obstacle.”

  “Be careful. You’re about to cross that line.”

  “You’re right. Can I ask a personal question?”

  Cara looked at her hands. “You might as well.”

  “Are you in love?”

  “How did I know that was coming? I won’t deny a certain attraction to you—” She stopped when the smile spread across Morgan’s face. “But there is Kim, and I have to think about her.” She sat forward. “If I allowed anything to start between us now, it wouldn’t be fair to her. Or…us. If there should ever be.”

  Morgan nodded. “I agree. I don’t like it, but I agree.” She let out a deep sigh. “Well, at least we have the ground rules set. I’m satisfied for now that you’re thinking about it. Maybe we

  could—”

  “All done!” Andy announced as he and Pete walked in. “I have a reservation at one, then again at three.”

  “Good job,” Morgan said, still looking at Cara. She then regarded Pete. “How about lunch?”

  “Okay. I have the rest of the day. They’re not expecting me until dinnertime.”

  “Great. Let’s go. Andy, give me a call if you need anything. Oh, and my plane is low, fill ’er up, would you? Tomorrow, look at the engine. It was running a little rough this morning.”

  “It was?” Cara asked. “Should we have been flying?”