The Challenge(11)
“She’s one of my old horses,” Anne explained and patted the mare’s neck. “She’s very polite. She won’t give Juliet any trouble,” she assured him. “And by the way, I’m glad you called last night. I would have done the same with strangers who had invited my daughter somewhere, or even with Peter. You never know how responsible other parents are. It’s always good to check. And it’s good for Peter to see that other parents do it too, and that I’m not completely crazy when I call parents I don’t know.” He noticed how pretty Anne was. She was a little younger than Beth, but had a fresh, natural, wholesome look. Beth was chic, intense, harried, and a product of New York City living.
“Juliet hates it,” he confided, “but her mother and I both do it. At least for now. When she’s a little older, we won’t be able to get away with it. But at fourteen, I want to know who she’s with and where she’s going.”
“I completely agree.” The five teenagers were mounted up by then, the lunch was stowed, and they were ready to leave. Juliet was wearing a cowboy hat her father had bought her for her stay there. Anne reminded them to have fun, and to bring their trash back from the lake, not just leave it there. Peter rolled his eyes, and they loped off, following each other on a back road of the property that would lead to the foot of the mountain, and the trail which would take them a short distance up to the lake.
Peter rode ahead of Juliet and led the way, and the others chatted easily on the ride up. Twenty minutes later, they left the trail they’d been on, went through a clearing in the trees and suddenly saw the lake. It wasn’t vast, but it was picturesque with some lovely vistas and a narrow sandy beach. Peter and Matt got their supplies down, and they all helped each other spread blankets on the sand, unpacked the lunch and ate it quickly. It was delicious, with homemade chicken sandwiches, potato chips, cookies, and fresh lemonade Anne had made herself.
“Your mom makes the best picnic lunches,” Tim said in his affected speech, which was noticeable, but they could all understand him clearly. “My mom is a terrible cook,” he said and they all laughed. They knew it was true.
“My mom’s not much of a cook either,” Juliet added. She liked them. They were all nice boys, and she had enjoyed talking to Matt on the way there. She could tell he was crazy about computers. Matt said he was happy he didn’t have to bring his pest of a little brother, Benjie, with him.
“They sent him to some kind of day camp this week. I think he’s making mugs or decorating something. He always wants to come with me. He’d have wanted to come with us today.” She was learning a little bit about each of them. Peter had whispered to her earlier that Noel’s dad was really sick, which sounded very sad to her. She had noticed part of Noel’s insulin pump clipped on his jeans and didn’t comment on it. One of her girlfriends in New York had one too, so she knew what it was. She had heard about his older brother, Justin, who was helping his mom with his sick father, and took care of Noel a lot these days, since their mother had her hands full with their father, their office, and her two sons.
Juliet could tell that they had grown up together and were almost like brothers. She was disappointed to discover that none of them had sisters. There were four boys in their group and an older and a younger brother, but not a single girl. But they were good company anyway.
They wrapped up their garbage from lunch and put it back in the saddlebags to take home with them. Then they stripped down to their bathing suits and went swimming. They played water games for a while and dove under the water. Juliet kept up with them. She was strong and as tall as they were. She was taller than Noel, and they had fun with her. Peter stayed close and was attentive to her. After they swam, they lay on their towels on the sand and dried off in the sun. At four o’clock, they headed back and were at the Pollocks’ barn shortly after. They walked their horses into the barn, took off their saddles and put them away, and filled the feedbags for them. It had been a really nice day, the best one Juliet had had since she’d gotten there.
Afterwards, they went into the house and played video games for a while. Juliet played with them. Anne had left snacks out for them. Juliet couldn’t help thinking how lucky Peter was to have parents who were still together, and Matt too. Tim had mentioned that his parents were divorced, and his father worked on oil rigs all over the world, so he only saw his father between assignments for the company he worked for. Noel didn’t say much about his father, and he looked preoccupied a lot of the time. He was about to leave on his bicycle to go home around the time Juliet’s father came back in the truck, and he offered Noel a ride home. They put his bicycle in the back of the truck. Juliet thanked Peter, and said goodbye to Tim and Matt, and then they drove away. Noel told Tom where his house was. It was very close to the house Tom had rented. They stopped to let him out, and his brother Justin came out of the house to help him. Juliet’s breath caught when she saw Noel’s older brother. He was really handsome, and looked very grown up, with broad shoulders and long, powerful arms. He was striking looking with dark hair, and he paid no attention to Juliet whatsoever. He thanked her father for bringing Noel home, and then they headed into the house together as Tom and Juliet drove off. Juliet thought he looked very serious and acted like an adult, which wasn’t surprising with their father so sick.
“They look like nice boys. They all do,” Tom commented. Anne had told him in a quick aside about Noel’s father, and how upset they all were. With hospice on the scene now, they knew he couldn’t last much longer. She said that he and Marlene had had a nightmarish year, and they were all worried about how Noel and Justin would weather the last chapter.