Beyond Midnight (73 page)

She laughed at the pun and slammed the door in his face.
Just in time, too. The predictable knock at their door came within seconds, and Becky ushered Katie into the room.

"
Daddy, Daddy!
"
cried Katie.
"
I saw a starfish, but it was dead and Becky said it would stink if we took it back to
Salem
.
"

"
Hi, Mom!
"
Becky called through the bathroom door. Helen opened it.
"
Hi-hi,
"
she said, knotting a batik pareo around the bathing suit she
'
d slipped on.
"
Where
'
s Russ?
"

"
In the game room with the kid from two-sixteen.
"

"
An
'
I saw a crab—it walked like this, backward,
"
Katie said, sticking out her behind and shimmying in reverse.
"
And then I saw
...
um
...
this black thing with
...
like a porcupine has?
"
She turned to Becky for help.

"
Sea urchin, sweetie,
"
said Becky.

"
Aunt Mary called,
"
said Helen.
"
She says hi.
"

"
I bet she
'
s sorry she didn
'
t come.
"

"
With the backgammon tournament this week at the center? Are you kidding?
"

"
An
'
those things could stick you if you stepped on
'
em!
"
Katie said, tugging at Helen
'
s pareo.
"
I didn
'
t go by them, though. Becky carried me so I could see them in the water.
"

"
How was the beach?
"
Nat asked Becky.
"
Empty? Crowded?
"

"
Great! I met some kids my age. They want to meet me down at the pool,
"
Becky said.
"
if you want me, that
'
s where I
'
ll be. Just shout.
"

She flounced out of the room, then turned back at the door that separated the suite.
"
Y
'
know—I never knew a honeymoon could be such fun.
"

Her mother and stepfather exchanged a look.
"
Yeah. Neither did we,
"
Helen said dryly.

"
Oh. Do you want me to watch Katie some more?
"

"
No, no. . . you go ahea
d. Have fun," said Helen, sigh
ing.

"
Okay,
"
Becky said uncertainly, and left, a little less bouncy than before.

She left the suite and Nat and Helen burst out laughing.
"
I heard that!
" Becky said from the hal
l. When he was sure she was out of earshot, Nat shook his head and said,
"
Whose idea was this family honeymoon, anyway? Katie, wait
,
not on the bed
—
let me wipe the sand off your feet first.
"

"
Oh-h-h, come on,
"
Helen coaxed.
"
It
'
s
Bermuda
! The kids are loving it. And it
'
s the last break we
'
ll all have together for a while. You like
Bermuda
, don
'
t you, Katie?
"
she asked her newest child.

"
Yes!
"
said Katie, standing unsteadily on one foot as her father brushed the sand out of her toes with his fingers.
"
Especially the starfish. I wanna go back and get it.
"

"
This little piggy
'
s in trouble
now,
"
said Nat, wriggling her toe menacingly.

"
Oh, Daddy! I
'
m too old for that game.
"

"
Oooh, Miss Hoity-Toity! I hope you
'
re not too old for a nap?
"

"
I
'
m
definitely
too old for a nap.
"

"
That
'
s what I thought you
'
d say. What about some quiet time instead?
"

"
How about a snack and then some quiet time?
"
Helen asked.

A deal was struck. Helen settled Katie in the adjoining room with a glass of milk, a Bermuda tea biscuit, and a Dr. Seuss, then came back to see Nat bending over the balcony rail, looking down at the pool.

"
I
'
m glad she didn
'
t see you leaning over like that,
"
Helen chided softly.

Nat sighed.
"
I know. I wonder if she
'
ll ever get over the fear.
"

"
In time.
"

He waved—obviously at Becky and her new friends— then came back inside.
"
I don
'
t like the look of the fella she
'
s talking to. I wish she
'
d wear something more
...
modest
...
than that bikini thing.
"

Helen laughed and said,
"
T
hey all dress like that. Heck, i
f I looked like her,
I
'
d
dress like that. At least she wears both pieces.
"

Nat sighed again.
"
Why do you think I didn
'
t want us to go to a
French
island?
"

He made it sound like a fate worse than death.

Helen wrapped her arms around him from behind and leaned her cheek on his back.
"
You are so sweet. Fatherhood is going to make you an old man in no time flat.
"

"
Well
,
it
'
s a whole n
ew set of worries, a seventeen-
year-old. It makes four look easy.
"

"
And don
'
t forget Russell.
"

"
Ah
...
Russ,
"
Nat said, his voice swelling with affection.
"
My man. That boy is so cool.
"

"
What, cool. He
'
s a typical fifteen-year-old,
"
she said, utterly grateful for it.
"
Except taller.
"

"
Did I tell you he beat me at the gym four games in a row? Michael Jordan could take lessons.
"

Smiling contentedly, Helen ducked under Nat
'
s arm and together they stood and looked out at the serene vista before them. It was a perfect
Bermuda
day. Soft breeze, bright sun, pink sand, blue sea.. . the whole idyllic scene, framed by soaring palm trees to the left and to the right. The gentle rollers that slid over the sand seemed—to Helen, in her present mood—to have come from a great, great distance; from somewhere where angels cavorted with dolphins and spirits rained blessings on all living things.

"
I see a basketball scholarship ahead,
"
Nat said dreamily.
"
I see Duke
...
Se
ton Hal
l
...
Notre Dame
...."

The words tripped off his tongue reverently, a father
'
s litany of hallowed places.

"
We
'
ll go to all his games,
"
Nat said, lost in his fantasy.
"
We
'
ll cheer him on. We
'
ll get thrown out of motels for having rowdy victory celebrations. We
'
ll—
"

Helen gave him a squeeze.
"
We
'
ll do the best we can, my love,
"
she said, gazing out at the sea.
"
We
'
ll do the best we can.
"

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