The next day, Jo was preparing to cut up some onions for Asia to use for the big lunch with Nick’s sea buddies when Nick entered the kitchen. "Hey, Jo."

"Good morning Nick. Did you have a good time last night?" she asked, before looking with dread upon the onions.

"Sure did. Ain’t seen all those fellas for years."

"I meant at Amy’s party, but I suppose it must have been exciting for you to see all of them again." She started to peel the first onion.

"Spent two long months fightin’ for our lives together, Jo. Ain’t nothin’ like it. Ya get ta be sorta… ." he stopped himself cold, moving over to the counter. He picked up the knife and cut a small slice of bread.

"You get to be what, Nick?" Jo asked, wondering why he stopped so abruptly.

"Nothin’. Here, keep this piece o’ bread in yer mouth while ya cut them onions. Won’t hurt yer eyes so bad."

Jo laughed at him. "How is eating a piece of bread going to help?"

"Ya don’t eat the bread. Ya just sorta keep it in yer mouth." She looked at him incredulously. "Ya don’t think I know what I’m talkin’ about. Do ya? When ya gonna start believin’ me, Jo?" He laughed at her. "B’sides, What’s it hurt ta try?"

"All right, all right," she laughed. He handed her the piece of bread.

"Now don’t chew it," he said. "And don’t cut the ends off the onion. Work your way around it."

"But I can’t talk like this," Jo mumbled. "Is this another one of your jokes?" she asked as she swallowed the bread.

"Ain’t no joke, Jo, but ya gotta keep it in yer mouth. Like this," he said, tossing a piece of bread in his mouth. He gently moved Jo aside, picked up the knife and began to chop the onion with consummate skill. Jo was crying, but Nick showed no signs of watery eyes.

"Like that," he mumbled, putting the knife down on the counter.

"I didn’t quite see how you did that, Nick. Would you show me again?" Jo pleaded.

"Got my own work ta do today, Jo. Can’t be doin’ yours, too. But, nice try," he laughed. He cut another piece of bread and, moving close to her, he put it in her mouth.

He watched her work for a moment and then he turned around and headed for the door. Remembering something, he went back.

He put his arms around her waist from behind and whispered into her ear. "I had a better time at Amy’s than at the tavern. The company was a whole lot prettier."

Jo smiled.

He wiped his watery eyes as he walked out. "Good luck with them onions."

That afternoon, Nick’s buddies, having accepted Jo’s invitation to join them all for lunch before Nick brought them back to the train, were enjoying the feast immensely. Everyone was there, even Meg, Amy and Laurie.

"Did you make this Nick? It’s delicious," said Zach.

"Nah, Asia made it. Her cookin’s much better ‘an mine."

"Nick cooks?" Dan asked, surprised. "Can you believe that Mrs. Jo?"

"Nothing about Nick surprises me anymore Dan," Jo replied, laughing. Everyone else laughed, too, including Nick.

"Nick’s an excellent cook. Ya mean he never made nothin’ for ya?" Oliver added.

"No. He hasn’t," Nan answered, disappointed

"The women cook around here," Bess added.

"Nothin’ wrong with a man cookin’ Bess," Nick said defensively.

"That is true," Laurie said, coming to Nick’s defense. "Most of the chefs in the finest restaurants are men."

"Where’d you learn to cook, Nick?" Nat asked, full of curiosity.

Nick felt slightly uncomfortable. There were certain things he just did not like to talk about. He looked up at everyone waiting for his story. He looked away and then back again and decided to answer.

"When I was a kid," he stopped and looked around. He shifted in his chair. "My Pa an’ me’d go out lookin’ fer work in the winter when there weren’t no farmin’ ta do. Didn’t like leavin’ Ma alone with the li’l uns, but there weren’t much choice. Well, Pa was…". He stopped as memories of those hard but happy times came rushing back.

He smiled. "I hate ta say it, but Papa was a lousy cook. Bad enough we had ta eat what we could find but he could ruin the best o’ it."

"Sounds familiar," Jo laughed.

Nick laughed with the rest of them.

"Well, I got tired o’ eatin like that so I started watchin’ my Ma when I could. Mama was a great cook. She could make soup outta nothin’. And usually had to. But, she’d be trippin’ over me while I’s tryin’ ta see what she was doin’. Finally, she asked me if I wanted her ta teach me. I hesitated ‘cause I didn’t want my Pa ta feel hurt or nothin’." Nick smiled, now rather enjoying not only the very clear memory, but the sharing of it as well.

"So, I was standin’ there, not knowin’ what ta say. I could feel Papa’s eyes on my back. I shook my head no and turned away, when I heard my Pa nearly shoutin’, ‘What? Ya ain’t gonna let her teach ya? What’s wrong with ya L’il Man? Ya wanna eat my lousy cookin’ the rest o’ yer life? I sure don’t.’ Then he smiled and ruffled my hair." Nick laughed, a mix of happy and sad tears brimming in his eyes. The others laughed with him.

"Never known a better man. After they…," he stopped again, not able to say it. So he didn’t. "Ben an’ me didn’t have nobody ta cook for us, so it came in handy."

"Guess he had to cook good. Tryin’ to feed a picky eater like Ben all those years," Taylor added. Nick laughed in agreement.

"Would have starved without him on that island, too. Remember that sea turtle?" Zach asked.

"What sea turtle?" Nat wondered aloud.

"Nicky here nearly got himself killed going into the sea to catch this sea turtle we seen swimming around," Caleb answered. "But when he cooked that thing up, um, um we ate like kings for days."

"You ate a sea turtle?" Amy asked Nick, disgusted.

"When you’re hungry enough you’ll eat anythin’, Amy," Nick explained quietly. "I’ve ate worse things ‘an that."

"Speakin of food, what was that food ya made in Egypt that we all liked so much?" Caleb asked. "The one Theresa taught you."

Jo’s ears perked up at the sound of Theresa’s name as Nick glanced at her self-consciously. "Molakiah," he replied simply.

"What’s that?" Bess asked, her nose turned up at the mention of an unfamiliar food.

"It’s a leafy green vegetable that grows in Egypt. Ya chop it up and make it inta a sort o’ soup, with onions, garlic, coriander, lots o’ stuff," Nick answered.

"Onions," Jo chuckled, exchanging a knowing glance with Nick.

Asia was impressed. "Sounds delicious. How do you serve it?"

"Ya eat it over rice. Rich folk would have chicken or rabbit with it, too," Nick finished.

"You did that?" Nan questioned. Nick nodded his head and shrugged.

"Yup. He did. And we loved it," Taylor offered. "We loved all the Egyptian foods Theresa taught him."

"Kebayba, Scwarma and Wara-ein-ib," Oliver said.

"And Kofta, Falafel and Shish ta wouk," Zach added smiling.

Nick smiled broadly at the compliments.

"Enough about the food. Tell us about Theresa," Amy pleaded.

"Amy!" Jo scolded as she watched a wave of mixed emotions cross Nick’s face.

"Was she Egyptian?" Bess asked.

"Yup. A Coptic. But her Egyptian name was really… ." Caleb turned to Nick for help. "What was it?"

"Thurayya," Nick smiled.

"Yeah, that’s it. She used Theresa to make it easier on the foreigners she taught."

"Taught?" Nat asked.

"Yeah. She taught folks to speak Egyptain. Not many wanted to learn, ‘cept Nicky here," Zach added, teasing.

"You can speak Egyptian?" Meg asked Nick in amazement.

"Yup." Nick shrugged. "It was easy. Like learnin’ ta read. I had a good teacher." He grinned at Jo.

"Glad ya had her around, ain’t ya Nick?" Caleb teased.

"Hey, remember the dance?" Zach offered. "You two looked great spinning around that dance floor." The others uttered their agreement.

"A dance!" Bess said, delighted by the idea.

"Nick took Theresa?" Dan asked.

"Yeah, the perfect little couple," Caleb laughed. "Don’t think he left her side all night."

Jo noticed Nick smiling wistfully as his old friends spoke of the woman that had piqued her interest for so long. But, she wondered why Taylor was silently and intently watching Nick as the others spoke.

"What did she look like?" Nan asked.

"She was real pretty," Zach answered.

"Beautiful," Oliver concurred.

"Like an angel," Caleb suggested.

"Yup. She was," Nick concluded with a smile on his face and a far off look in his eyes. Jo looked away.

Lunch was finished, the children had left, and the adults and Rob had moved to the parlor for coffee and tea, when Caleb mentioned Theresa again. "So, what ever happened to Theresa anyway? You were buying a ring when we left, weren’t ya Nick?"

Zach disagreed. "No. We heard she was marrying some other fella, didn’t we, Oliver?"

"That’s what I heard, yeah," Oliver confirmed.

"So, did ya marry her or not?" Caleb pressed.

"No," was Nick’s simple reply, looking at Jo uncomfortably.

"Did ya ever even have the guts ta ask her?" Caleb asked.

"Forget it Caleb," Nick said, while Jo watched intently.

"Then it was true?" Caleb laughed. "She married someone else?"

"Drop it Caleb," Taylor said, finally speaking as he looked at Nick.

"Come on. What happened, Nicky? Did she dump the great Nick Riley? Thought you two were… ."

"Stop Caleb," Taylor insisted.

"…perfect together. You must have been hoppin’ mad."

"Caleb!" Taylor said, as Nick glared.

"I would have killed her!" Caleb finished.

"Shut up Caleb!" Nick shouted angrily, grabbing Caleb by the collar and slamming him against the wall. Realizing what he was doing, he let go quickly and backed off.

Taylor was there leading Nick away almost as soon as it happened. Then Zach and Oliver moved between them as well.

"What’d I say?" Caleb asked, clueless.

Everyone was shocked. Rob looked up from where he sat on the floor playing with Max. Jo, Meg, Amy, Laurie and Asia looked at each other in wide-eyed disbelief as Nick dropped into a chair and stared at the floor. Taylor bent down on one knee in front of him, put his hand on Nick’s shoulder and looked him right in the eye.

The room was filled with tension and silence so everyone heard what was said, though they spoke quietly.

"You alright?" Taylor asked.

Nick let out a deep breath. "Yeah." He squeezed his eyes shut, seeing only Theresa – her long brown hair; her captivating brown eyes; the way her whole body shook when she laughed at him; the way she would look right at him, holding his hand, listening intently, when he spoke from the heart; the way she spoke about his family as if she had known them all her life; the way she accepted him without judgment...

Taylor’s words broke the spell. "What do you want me to do?" Nick looked at him and then looked around the room at all the curious, concerned faces. "Do you want me to tell them?" Taylor asked.

Nick clenched his jaw, swallowed hard and then, glancing at Jo, nodded his head yes.

Now the bond forged among friends who have survived together, endured together and relied on each other through tough times is strong. Callous words, spoken in haste, are readily forgiven.

And so the tension eased quickly as Taylor began the story. "When we got off the ship after being on that island for two months Nick got the idea that we should find work on the Suez Canal. He said we’d be making history."

The mood beginning to lighten, the friends chuckled and then so did the others.

"But part of Nick’s inspiration was that he’d already met Theresa," Oliver added smiling.

"Nick and Theresa spent a lot of time together," Taylor went on. "When he wasn’t working or cooking for us he was usually with her."

"All the fellas liked her, but she only had eyes for Nick. After about a year Caleb and the others had had enough of the desert and signed on to a ship. Nick said that he was staying, that he had bought a ring and was going to ask Theresa to marry him. I decided to stay, too, for a while anyway. Couldn’t miss Nicky’s wedding," Taylor said smiling.

Nick sat still in the chair. His elbows were on his knees and he was still staring at the floor.

"Before we left, though, we started hearing talk that Theresa was gonna marry someone else," Zach interjected.

"I didn’t hear that until after they left. I spoke with Nick and he was sure it was a mistake. He was on his way to see her anyway. He had the ring in his pocket."

As Taylor told the story, the memory was as vivid and clear in Nick’s mind as if it had happened yesterday.