Here We Come (Aggie's Inheritance) (20 page)

“Anyone
who
grows
up
with
Aggie
won’t
be
surprised.”

“I
am
just
thankful
that
he
chose
Thanksgiving
to
propose.
It’ll
help
him
remember
to
be
thankful
that
he
did
when
he
doesn’t
feel
thankful
anymore
because
I
beat
him—badly.”

“
Thank
goodness
that
is
over.”

“Oh,
any
doubt
about
whether
Luke
is
the
right
man
for
Aggie
will
be
over
in
about
ten
seconds,
won’t
it,
Ron?”
Martha
beamed.

Aggie
bit
her
lip
to
bide
her
time.
She
was
just
about
to
widen
the
gap
between
them.
Luke
had
nervously
asked
how
the
meal
would
be
served,
confessing
that
he
preferred
to
avoid
yams
with
marshmallow
topping.
She
assured
him
it
woul
d
be
family
style,
each
dishing
up
their
own
portions.
She
just
neglected
to
mention
that
there
was
never
room
for
the
turkey
or
the
yams
on
the
table,
so
her
mother
served
the
yams
while
her
father
served
the
turkey
onto
each
person’s
plate.
And
there
came
her
piece
de
resistance.

Ron
Milliken
prayed;
Martha
and
he
stood,
and
they
carried
their
respective
dishes
to
the
table.
At
each
of
the
children’s
place
s
,
Martha
doled
out
minuscule
dollops
of
sugared
yams,
larger
portions
to
herself,
Aggie,
and
her
sisters,
none
for
her
husband,
and
an
enormous
portion
to
Luke.
“I’m
just
pleased
that
someone
else
likes
yams.
Ron…”

She
didn’t
have
a
chance
to
finish.
Luke
realized
instantly
what
had
occurred
and
reached
under
the
table
to
pinch
Aggie’s
leg.
Aggie
promptly
dumped
her
milk
in
his
lap.
“That
cancels
out
your
pinch.
I’m
still
one
up.”
Without
a
pause,
she
jumped
up,
grabbed
a
kitchen
towel,
and
passed
it
to
Luke.

“Aggie!”

“All’s
fair
in
practical
jokes,
love,
and
war.”

“This
seems
to
be
all
three,”
Ron
muttered.
“
Ok,
how
about
we
throw
out
some
things
we’re
thankful
for
before
we
end
up
with
an
all-out
food
fight.”

The
suggestion
was
a
good
one,
allowing
Luke
and
Aggie
to
enjoy
their
dinner—at
least
most
of
it.
Feeling
a
little
guilty,
Aggie
got
up
when
her
Mother
mentioned
being
thankful
that
most
of
the
family
was
there,
and
got
Luke
a
new
plate
.
She
removed
the
old
one
and
winked
at
him
as
she
sat
down
after
making
a
show
of
checking
for
more
conifer
seed
pods.

The
expressions
of
thankfulness
were
varied
in
both
type
and
length.
Ron
was
unusually
eloquent
and
emotional
with
his,
while
Vannie’s
was
brief
and
to
the
point.
Her
aunts
focused
on
Luke
and
the
children,
while
the
children
did
what
children
do
best—amuse
and
amaze.
From
gratitude
for
the
new
house,
to
not
having
to
go
to
Grandmother
Stuart’s
home,
to
her
still
being
their
“mom,”
some
of
the
comments
both
perplexed
and
astounded
her.