Dogwood Hill. Sherryl Woods

also the one who’s married to Mack Franklin,” Aidan recalled, then recognized the man on the neighboring stool. “And he’s right next to her.”

      “And Megan O’Brien is next to him, which means Mick is bound to be here shortly.”

      Aidan chuckled. “I’m beginning to see the problem.”

      “I doubt it,” Liz responded direly, then led the way to the bar, where Mack had vacated his stool so she could sit next to Susie.

      “Interesting,” Susie murmured to Liz, regarding her with a grin.

      Aidan noted that Liz’s cheeks flushed bright pink, but before he could mention that to her, Mack started questioning him about his meeting with the team earlier. Knowing that the ex-player had a real interest in the game and his prognosis for the team’s next season, he filled him in.

      A moment later, Mick appeared and slapped him enthusiastically on the back. “You surprised me today,” Mick said.

      “How so?”

      “Making Henry captain of the team till the end of the year,” Mick said.

      Apparently this was the first some of the others had heard about it. Megan regarded Aidan approvingly. “I don’t know a thing about football, much to the dismay of my husband and my sons, but I do know Henry. That boy was born to be a leader. I’m so glad someone had the sense to see that.”

      “Agreed,” Mick said. His gaze narrowed. “You did see that in him, right? It didn’t have anything to do with who he is, did it?”

      “I honestly had no idea who he was when I appointed him captain,” Aidan said for the second time that afternoon. “He stepped in, showed some initiative and spirit, and I decided on the spot to recognize that. I wanted to send a message to all the boys that they’ll be rewarded for their actions on and off the field.” He shrugged. “Punished, too, for that matter, but we didn’t get into that.”

      Mick nodded. “I like that. I know Kevin and Shanna appreciate it, too. Kevin called me right before I came over here to tell me how excited Henry is. Do you know anything about how he came to live with them?”

      Aidan shook his head.

      “Shanna was married to the boy’s dad. Henry adored her, but when she and his father divorced, she was forbidden from having any contact with Henry. It about broke that woman’s heart and left a little boy with no one he could count on except a couple of strict grandparents who didn’t know what to do with him.”

      Aidan frowned. “What about his father?”

      “He had a serious problem with alcohol. It tore up his liver. After Shanna moved here and got together with Kevin, Henry’s grandparents saw that Henry’s best chance for a normal life was with Shanna and Kevin. They kept him in touch with his biological daddy, but when he was gone, they adopted Henry. He’s blossomed since he’s been with them. We’re all real proud of him and glad to count him as an O’Brien.”

      The story reaffirmed what Aidan had already guessed, that the O’Briens were good people whose lives centered around family, no matter how that family might have been cobbled together. Once more he had to wonder if there would have been room in their hearts for him if only his mother had paved the way years ago by telling Thomas O’Brien he had a son.

      * * *

      Aidan was still thinking about his connection to Thomas O’Brien the next day when Coach Gentry pulled him aside before that afternoon’s practice session.

      “Rob mentioned to you about the after-school club you’ll be sponsoring next year, right?”

      “The one that works with the bay preservation foundation,” Aidan said.

      “That’s the one. I know you have practice with the team this afternoon, but the club’s meeting after school. It’s the last meeting of the year. Thomas O’Brien’s going to be speaking to the students to thank them for their work. I thought you might like to stop in and say hello. Any chance you could get there by four? That’s when we’ll be winding down. Thomas has arranged for refreshments to be sent over from the inn. You won’t want to miss those.”

      Aidan knew there was little to be gained by postponing the inevitable. He had to be in the same room with Thomas at some point. Just like that Sunday dinner at Mick’s, it might be best to be surrounded by other people.

      “I’ll do my best to make it,” he promised the coach. “It may just be for a couple of minutes, though. I don’t want to cut practice short and set a bad precedent. The team needs to take these sessions seriously, even if the season is months away.”

      “Understood.”

      Though the meeting was on Aidan’s mind the rest of the day, he managed to push it aside long enough to get the team started on a series of drills. He asked Henry and another PE teacher, who’d volunteered to help out, to record the results while he ran over to the school to drop in on the end-of-season party.

      Thomas had just wrapped up his speech and, while a table was set up with refreshments, the kids were all gathered around him asking questions, clearly inspired by whatever he’d said to them before Aidan’s arrival. With their serious expressions and earnest questions, it seemed they thought of him as a sort of rock star of the environmental world.

      Aidan hung back, watching Thomas and listening to him as he interacted with the students. He wasn’t even the tiniest bit condescending, but rather took their questions seriously and answered them thoughtfully. When he caught sight of Aidan, he sent them off toward the refreshment table, then made his way over to Aidan. He held out his hand.

      “I hear you’re taking over with this gang next fall,” he said, shaking Aidan’s hand with a firm grip. “It’s an incredible group. They’ve done a good job this year.”

      “I may be new to the area, but I already understand what a great cause it is,” Aidan said. “I’ll do my best to encourage the kids to continue doing whatever they can to help.”

      “Awareness is always the first step with something like this. People tend to be careless with our resources until they understand the consequences. Then most people are more than willing to do their part to protect them.”

      Aidan had the feeling Thomas was just warming up, so he was grateful to have a team outside waiting for his return. “I’m going to want to hear a lot more about this and what activities you’d like us to take on next fall, but I’ve got a bunch of players on the field doing drills. I need to get back to check on them. I just wanted to say hello and let you know you can count on me.”

      “I’ll do that,” Thomas said. “Maybe we can get together a few times over the summer to brainstorm.”

      “Sure,” Aidan replied, though the prospect filled him with a sense of dread. Suddenly it felt as if everything was moving too quickly. He’d wanted to find his father, maybe even see him from time to time, but this was already more intense than he’d envisioned.

      Of course, he thought with a sigh, maybe that was because of the huge secret that stood between them. He knew exactly who Thomas was, but the older man knew him only as the new football coach and sponsor of an after-school club. Once the truth was out and that dynamic changed, who knew what might happen?

      * * *

      Liz opened the shop’s doors on the Friday morning of Memorial Day weekend not knowing what to expect. There was a familiar trickle of regular locals who stopped by before noon, mostly to pick up the organic pet food she stocked. Cordelia was among them.

      Liz smiled at the older woman, who was wearing a flowered print dress and bright yellow sneakers. “You look very perky and springlike today,” she told her. “How are you, and how is Fluffy?”

      “That cat does something every day to put a smile on my face,” Cordelia told her, then confided, “But I do miss Archie. I know he was too much for me, but he’s such a special dog. I named him for my late husband.