Chapter 62

We continued to relax on the deck until the sun began to disappear behind the ridge and the temperature began to drop, and George said, “I think we need to go inside and get a fire going.”

“How can we help?” I said.

“Mike will show you where the wood is kept, and you can each bring up an armload.”

“No problem,” I said.

We followed Mike outside and down to ground level, where he showed us the pile of firewood stored under the deck and protected by plastic. By the time we returned to the great room with armloads of wood, George had a nice fire going.

“Something surely smells good in this house,” I said.

“Man,” George said, “you’ve got that right—good things happening in the kitchen, I suspect.”

Grandma came into the great room long enough to admire the fire and say, “Could somebody set the table?”

All four of us jumped up, but George said, “I think four will be a crowd right now. You guys sit down, and I’ll take care of it.”