Jake Price knocked most of the snow off of his winter boots, then removed them and set them outside the door of his parents’ house. Portland, Oregon, had been hit unusually hard by a recent snowstorm and the historic Craftsman homes on the block looked like a Norman Rockwell winter scene. He didn’t bother to knock before entering.

The telltale scent of a turkey roasting in the oven tantalized his senses as soon as he pushed the door open. His mother’s voice led him to the kitchen, where she perched on a barstool with her back to him, talking to someone on the phone.

“We’ll still see you for Christmas, right?” Barbara Price slumped slightly at whatever the caller said. “Only for two days? Can Alex stay longer?”

Jake could hear the disappointment in her voice.

“Okay, honey, we’ll talk to you later.” She set the phone on the counter and slid off the stool, resting against the bar.

“Mom,” he said.

She put her hand to her chest and spun around to face him. “Don’t sneak up on me like that. I’m an old woman.”

“Not so old,” he said, coming up to her and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She returned the hug and scrutinized him.

“Did you come by to do laundry? Thanksgiving dinner doesn’t start until one o’clock.” She glanced at the clock. “It’s only ten.”

“No,” he laughed. “I came by to give you a hand.” He grabbed a red-and-green apron from a hook on the wall. “What can I do? Put me to work.”

She beamed. “You can peel and quarter the potatoes. Your father usually does it, but I sent him to the store for butter.” She shook her head. “I forgot to add it to the grocery list when he went to the market yesterday. Ah, I’m getting old.” She rolled out a mound of dough sitting on the floured counter.

Jake tied the apron strings around his waist and sat down across from her at the bar. The potato peeler felt tiny in his large hands, but he quickly got the hang of it. He peeled a few potatoes and then asked, “Was that Maggie you were talking to? She’s not coming to Thanksgiving this year? I’d hoped to see her. It’s been a long time since we both came to a holiday meal.”

His mother’s smile slipped. “No, she’s in charge of the restaurant today. She and Alex will come down to Portland for a few days at the end of December.”

“But not for as much time as you’d like to see Alex, right?”

“Maggie’s really busy. She’ll bring him down here when she can. That girl has a lot on her plate.” She hesitated. “She sounded more stressed than I’ve ever heard her. I wish I could go up there and help out with Alex, but I’ve got my job at the library. I think she may have bitten off more than she can chew this time. You know Maggie.”

She busied herself preparing the lattice crust for an apple pie, but concern was etched across her face.

He did know Maggie, enough to know she was the most driven woman he’d ever met. When his younger brother Brian brought her home at his college’s Christmas break to meet the family the first time, she’d mapped out every minute of her time in Portland, determined to make the most of it. They’d affectionately called her ‘Maggie the human dynamo’ behind her back. Brian had been smitten from the moment he met her, and they got married in the December following his college graduation.

Jake had been stationed with the Army at Fort Lewis, Washington, at the time and had been able to get home for their wedding. Soon after they married, Brian had left for his Officer Basic Course in Missouri, taking Maggie with him.

A portrait of his brother in uniform sat on the mantel, drawing his attention. He and his parents had been devastated when Brian was killed in the Middle East and he couldn’t imagine how Maggie had felt, especially with a little baby.

Before Brian deployed for the Middle East, his parents had hosted a family picnic in their backyard. He remembered it had been a bright, sunny summer day. A perfect kind of day, where nothing bad could happen. Maggie had worn a white sundress imprinted with red roses and carried Alex in a wrap around her front. He’d watched as Brian wrapped an arm around his wife and kissed his son on the forehead. His love for his family shone through in his actions and Jake had wondered if he himself would ever experience the same happiness.

After a neighbor drew Maggie into conversation, his brother had taken him aside and made him promise to take care of Maggie and Alex if something should happen to him. Jake had slugged him on the shoulder.

“You’ll be fine, little bro. Nothing’s going to happen to you.” Jake had been on two tours to the Middle East himself and knew things weren’t great over there, but he didn’t want his brother to worry about leaving his wife and child behind.

“I know, but just the same, promise me you’ll do this for me?” Brian had smiled, but his lips quivered as he patted Jake on the back. It was the last time they saw each other before Brian headed overseas.

When Brian didn’t make it back, Jake intended to make good on his promise, but the Army had other ideas and stationed him in Korea for three years and then Germany for two. He’d kept up with Maggie and Alex’s lives through phone calls with his mother and he sent birthday cards to Alex, but his involvement hadn’t extended past that. The years passed faster than he’d realized. After twenty years in the Army, he’d recently opted for retirement. Now here he was, back in the States, retired at the ripe old age of thirty-eight.

He gazed out the window at the empty snow-covered lawn, so different than his memory of the warm summer backyard picnic so many years ago. He returned his attention to his mother.

“I could go help with Alex for a few weeks.”

“You?” She scoffed. “What do you know about kids?”

He shrugged. “I’ll manage. I’ve been around kids before, you know.”

Her demeanor softened. “What about your Border Patrol interview?”

“I’ll head up there after my interview on Monday. I’m sure they won’t call me back for a while. The federal government moves at the speed of a snail with their hiring process. I’d like to see Alex, and Maggie too, of course. It’s been years since I saw him.” He thought for a moment and counted the years. His brother had already been gone for five years? Alex would be about six now.

“Well, I’m sure Alex will be happy to see you. From what Maggie says, he’d love to have a man around. He’s been wanting to play catch with someone and begging her to enroll him in Little League. Can you imagine Maggie playing softball?”

He could actually. He had a feeling his sister-in-law could do anything she set her mind to. But how would he do with a six-year-old? He’d spent time with the kids of an ex-girlfriend when they’d been dating, but it wasn’t the same as with family. And that had been years ago. His ex hadn’t been able to handle a long-distance relationship and they’d amicably broken up soon after he moved to Korea. He’d heard from friends that she was now happily married to a local guy.

“I have a few things to wrap up here, but I’ll leave on Tuesday for Candle Beach. Don’t say anything to Maggie though, okay? I want to surprise her and Alex.”

His mother looked relieved. “I’m sure she’d welcome your help.”

He wasn’t convinced of that, but he knew he had to offer. He owed his brother that much.

“I can’t wait until I retire. Only three years to go. Then I can visit Alex whenever I want. And maybe in a few years I’ll have more grandkids…hint, hint.” She eyed him.

He sighed. “When I can find a woman to stick with me. I haven’t had much luck so far.”

She patted him on the arm. “You’ll find someone. You’re a good man. The right woman is out there for you.”

“Maybe.” He was pushing forty. If he hadn’t found the right woman yet, what were the odds he’d find her anytime soon? He’d had his share of romantic relationships, but most of them had been short-lived. Some due to the natural fizzling out of things, but most because of Army commitments. But the Army wasn’t part of his life anymore, so now it was all on him. That thought both exhilarated and terrified him.

* * *

After he watched the football game with his dad and helped his mom clean up the dishes, Jake went back to the extended-stay hotel room he’d lived in for the past month. It smelled like lemon cleaning solution, a sharp contrast to the homey aroma of turkey and apple pie that had pervaded his parents’ house. He’d stayed at the hotel to maintain his independence, but this definitely wasn’t home.

If he planned to visit Maggie and Alex for a week or more, he’d need to clean out his hotel room. No point in paying for a room he wasn’t using. He glanced around.

His application materials for the US Border Patrol sat on a desk pushed against the wall. Was that where his future lay? He’d enlisted as a teenager and the Army had been his life up until now. Other than his decision to attend college and commission as an officer through the Green to Gold program, he hadn’t had to make many career decisions. Now that he had the chance to be around family, did he really want to move up to the Canadian border, away from everyone he knew and loved?

He turned his gaze to his belongings. He planned to pack everything and be ready to drive up to Candle Beach right after his interview.

It wouldn’t take him long. After twenty years of military moves, he hadn’t accumulated much stuff. Most of it was in a local storage unit. The hotel room was as austere and uninviting as it had been when he’d moved in. Being in the Army didn’t make building anything easy, whether it be a romantic relationship or a sense of home. Now that he was officially a civilian, he intended to make the most of it. Visiting his nephew in Candle Beach might be exactly what he needed to start out his new life.