At her nod, I answered, “Looks a lot like him but he’s buffer in the chest and shoulders. Very handsome, great eyes. Kind of hawkish whereas Max’s are all dark and soulful. He’s an athlete...” I considered, trying to remember what else I’d learned about him on the trip that wouldn’t breach Max’s confidence. “He’s homeschooled and smart. Curious about college. Interested in aeronautics.”
“Damn. I wish I could meet him. But we’ve already committed to Ty’s parents.”
“That’s right,” Ty said, coming down the hall with Sam’s backpack in one hand. “No take-backs. You’ll break my mom’s heart. Hey, Courtney.” He threw a smile my way.
Tall, lean and ginger, he wasn’t my type, but I could see why Nadia had fallen for him; they made sense to me as a couple. He was definitely happier than he’d been when I first moved in to the building, and she was less...wired when he was around. When I first met her, I thought she’d have a heart attack before she was forty with her constant running around and overly scheduled life. Since I hated committing to anything—even classes—my willingness to rehearse twice weekly was kind of a huge deal. A rehab shrink said that my aversion to planning related to my reluctance to move on, which contributed to my OCD issues, as well.
“That’s not what she’s asking, anyway.” Nadia summarized my request.
Soon Ty was nodding. “Not a problem. We’ll leave the keys. Use the dining room, kitchen, whatever you need.” He paused to survey the hallway with a frown. “Not sure this place is fully accessible, though. The doorways may give him some trouble, and the bathroom definitely isn’t designed properly.”
Belatedly I remembered Ty was studying architecture, so this was definitely his wheelhouse. “But the living and dining room should be fine, right?”
He nodded. “I’ll rearrange the furniture a little before we leave Wednesday, open up some wider pathways. Michael can spend the night here if you want, if he decides it’s doable.”
“Thanks. He said a hotel would be easier because the room will have the right facilities, but we’ll offer, just so he knows he’s welcome.”
Nadia wore a half-frustrated look. “I wish we could all hang out like before. But...I’m a step ahead now, huh?”
Sam opened up the trunk in the middle of the room and pulled out a basket of blocks, ignoring the rest of us. Ty glanced down at him, wearing a conflicted expression, then he pulled her toward me.
His look deepened to a sort of bemused tenderness as he wrapped an arm around Nadia’s shoulders. “Why don’t you have Thanksgiving here with your friends? You can eat with my family next year, but once everyone graduates, you may not have this chance again for a while.”
Her look brightened immediately. “Are you sure? But your sisters are coming.”
“Come over Thursday night. You can go shopping with them on Black Friday while I watch sports with my dad and Sam.”
“That’s perfect.” She bounced onto her toes and hugged him tight around the neck.
Taking that as my cue to head out, I definitely had a good feeling about the way the Thanksgiving bash was shaping up. A few days later, I went grocery shopping with Angus, excited about seeing Michael again, as if he were my little brother. Since I was an only child, that was a strange feeling...but cool, too. He sent me messages as he traveled, updating me as to where they were. I suspected he also wanted to see Max, and I couldn’t blame him.
On Wednesday, we started cooking, and at noon on Thanksgiving Day, Michael called to let us know he was near the apartment complex. Max dropped the knife he was chopping onions with and ran downstairs, excited like it was Christmas morning. I fought a stinging in my eyes and a tightness in my throat when I realized this was the first holiday in five years where he’d had any family around. I finished up chopping and added the onions to the celery in a pan. I wasn’t a great cook and Angus shooed me out when he realized I’d moved out of the preparation phase. So I hurried downstairs to greet Max’s family.
It wasn’t just Michael, but Uncle Lou, too. He looked older than he had at the funeral, though it had only been a few months. The veins in his hands seemed more pronounced, his face thinner, his body more frail. He hugged me, and I responded, at first out of surprise, but his warmth prodded me toward affection; he smelled of peppermints and camphor, his shock of white hair like dandelion fluff blowing in the brisk November wind. When I stepped back, he grabbed Max and I leaned over to give Michael a hug, too.
“We’re so glad you could make it,” I said. “It’s great to see you both.”
“Congratulations on hooking up with Courtney,” Michael said, elbowing Max.
He grinned. “It was your idea, bro.”
“I see how you are.”
“We brought wine,” Uncle Lou said.
Michael added, “Plus cheese and crackers.”
I headed toward the building and opened the front door while Max lingered with his family. Since I’d known him, I had rarely seen him this happy. Usually there was a shadow beneath his smile—not today. Waiting for them to come, I cherished the sweetness of seeing him like he was meant to be, completely at ease and...happy. He directed them through the front foyer and down the hall toward Nadia and Ty’s apartment. When he passed by last, I put a hand on his arm.
“Hang out here. I’ll help Angus and Kia cook. We’ll be down when the food’s ready. No more than a couple of hours. He’s been working on it since nine this morning.”
“Are you sure?” His gaze flickered after his family while his smile brightened, so I knew it was the right move.
“Completely. It’s no problem.”
He kissed me quickly, then jogged down the hall as Uncle Lou knocked. I waited until Nadia answered, and afterward, I hurried back up to resume my role as sous chef. Kia was largely uninterested, though she did make a nice fruit salad. And two hours later, we started ferrying dishes down to Nadia’s apartment. Inside, the decor impressed me, as she’d gone all out; somebody had obviously visited a party store and bought up turkey-day stuff, between orange horn-of-plenty paper plates, matching cups and napkins.
Max had his uncle and brother watching sports while he helped Nadia set the tables. They’d put up an extra card table and, as promised, shifted the sofa to provide a pathway that Michael could navigate without problems. I let out a silent sigh of relief, as I knew how much Max wanted this to be perfect. Judging by his smile, things were going great.