“Hello, Delphine.”
Mamaw lounged in her robe on the back porch, feet up on the ottoman, sipping coffee and reading the Post & Courier. Today was her birthday! Eighty years of living . . . Who’d have guessed it? She felt she’d earned the right to be decadently lazy today. Her past was behind her and she’d lived a full life. She didn’t like to think her best was behind her as well, but she was realistic that this might be true. Still, it was a blessing to live long enough to see your children grow and prosper and procreate and to witness another generation carrying the torch. As it was a curse to outlive your children, your husband, your friends.
This was the hand she’d been dealt, however, and she was glad to still be in the game. Eighty years of good resolutions and failures. Eight decades of dreams and dashed hopes. When she was young she’d marked the years’ successes and failures with a measure of equanimity. After all, she still had plenty of years left to set things right. When she reached sixty, she paid closer attention to the passing of the years, and now, at eighty, she didn’t dare hope for another decade, but prayed for at least a few more years so she could witness these young women finding their path. Truth was, she’d be grateful to see this summer through.
From the west wing of the house a screen door creaked. Mamaw turned her head to see Nate dressed in his usual outfit of soft fabric shorts, T-shirt, and tennis shoes. He was half bent in a crouch and scuttled across the porch like a ghost crab. She watched him hurry down the long wooden dock, breaking one of his mother’s strictest rules. Mamaw set her coffee cup down with a clatter and hurried as fast as her body could to the porch’s railing.
What is that boy up to? she wondered. Dear heaven! He was going straight to the edge of the dock. He wasn’t going to jump in, was he? Could he even swim? She felt her heart rate accelerate, was ready to call out.
Then a movement in the water caught her attention and she saw what the boy had been watching and waiting for. Carson was paddling her board toward the dock. She was dripping wet in her bright coral-colored bikini and her long dark hair was clinging to her muscled, tan body.
Just look at her, Mamaw thought with pride and wonder. With her dark looks and athletic body, she was like some exotic Amazon princess. For all that Mamaw had once been thought of as a local beauty, she wondered if she’d ever possessed Carson’s vibrant vitality.
A movement beside the paddleboard caught her attention. There was a dorsal fin. Mamaw clutched her heart as the memory of Carson’s shark story leaped into her mind. Mamaw squinted and leaned forward on the railing and saw that it was a dolphin! A short laugh escaped her lips as she brought her fingers to her mouth, almost slumping in relief. A dolphin . . . Nate must have spotted it from his window. It was no wonder the boy was so excited.
Mamaw continued to watch as Carson deftly stepped onto the floating dock and easily lifted her board from the water. Nate scrambled down to the lower dock and stared into the water, mesmerized by the dolphin that lingered there. She heard the dolphin’s piercing whistle, followed by the high-pitched sound of Nate’s laughter. Mamaw’s hand slipped again to her heart, this time in a gesture of tender surprise. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d heard the boy laugh.
The porch door slammed again, drawing Mamaw’s attention. Dora appeared in a panic, her eyes searching. She stopped at the edge of the porch and raised her hand over her eyes, spotting the pair at the dock.
“Nate!” she called.
“Oh, leave him be,” Mamaw called out to her. “He’s with Carson. He’ll be fine.”
Dora swung her head around, startled to hear Mamaw’s voice. Dora was neatly dressed in a blue seersucker skirt and white embroidered linen blouse. She’d taken more care with her appearance, something that spoke volumes to Mamaw.
“You look quite pretty this morning,” Mamaw told her.
“He shouldn’t be out there on that dock,” Dora said anxiously, moving her hands to her hips. “He knows the rules.”
“Oh, Dora, leave the boy be. He’s having a good time. And he’s in good hands. Carson swims like a fish. She won’t let anything happen to him. For heaven’s sake, child, take a moment for yourself and enjoy a cup of coffee. I don’t imagine you get many breaks early in the morning.”
Dora shifted her gaze to her grandmother. Her face appeared conflicted, as though she wasn’t sure what she should do.
“Go on and fetch some coffee and join me for a spell,” Mamaw told her, patting the chair beside her. “It’s my birthday. And I’d love a little company.”
Dora looked back out at the dock, then turned to Mamaw. Her face slowly shifted from resignation to a hesitant smile. “All right,” she said, and walked back into the house.
Mamaw took a final glance at the pair at the dock, locked in deep conversation. Good, she thought. That boy needed some time with his aunts. And Dora needed some time to herself.
A few moments later Dora came out with a steaming mug and a smile on her face. Mamaw smiled brightly in return. Perhaps it was going to be a nice weekend after all.
When Carson climbed onto the dock, she was surprised to see Nate sitting there with his legs folded staring out at the dolphin. He was such a skinny little kid, and he had the worst haircut. It was the old-fashioned bowl style; Dora had to have cut it herself, she thought, looking at the jagged, uneven edges. When the boy’s eyes shifted to her, Carson sensed nervousness, as though he feared her getting too close.
“Why, hello, Nate. What are you doing here?”
“Nothing,” he said, looking at the dock.
In the distance they could hear Dora calling Nate’s name. The boy tensed and picked at a scab on his arm but did not answer her.
“Didn’t you hear your mother calling?”
Nate scowled but said nothing.
“You should answer her. She might be worried.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want her to come here because she will make the fish go away.”
“The fish?” Carson paused. “Oh.” Nate meant the dolphin, which explained why he was here. “That’s not a fish, Nate. It’s a mammal. It’s called a dolphin. Come meet her.”
Nate’s eyes appeared eager but tentative. Carson held out her hand, which he ignored. Instead he carefully stepped down to the floating dock and approached the edge. Delphine swam several yards away but circled back, curious as ever, making clicking noises.