Athena's Enigma

25 - A Hidden Hint

“You’re his uncle on which side?” I was trying to make simple conversation. After our introductions had been put out of the way, I helped Nate make Logan comfortable. I got him a pillow while his uncle got him a blanket and even though he protested it, we made him put it on.

Logan fell asleep on the couch within a few minutes and Nate offered me some homemade hot chocolate. He had said it was so I didn’t come over for nothing. I was currently sitting down in Logan’s tiny kitchen table while Nate stood by the stove over a pot of fresh hot chocolate. It smelled delicious.

“My sister is his mother,” he explained without glancing over at me. “Why do you ask?”

I shrugged and traced light circles in the wood of the table. “You’re so young to be an uncle and I didn’t see a striking resemblance.”

Nate laughed. “Yes, my parents…were not expecting me... As for the resemblance, well you must not be looking close enough.”

I titled my head to the side and studied Nate as he worked. He couldn’t have been that old. He turned to glance at me and his blue eyes met mine and I gasped.

“You have the same eyes,” I shouted out in realization then blushed at my sudden outburst.

Nate smiled and nodded. “It’s something we share and that’s not all I’ve contributed to his family. I believe you’ve met his sister?" 

I thought back to when I last saw Evie and how different she looked from Logan. “Your hair color?” I guessed. “She has black hair like you.”

Nate nodded as he pulled out two coffee mugs and poured the hot chocolate evenly into them. After he did so, he added some spice that looked like cinnamon. Then he handed me a cup before taking a seat across from me at the table.

“I guess Evie’s hair color isn’t entirely my fault. Her father has black hair too,” he said as I took a sip of my drink. My eyes widened as the hot liquid came in contact with my taste buds and it wasn’t from the temperature.

“Oh my God, this is amazing,” I muttered glancing into my cup of liquid gold. “You have to give me the recipe.”

“I don’t have a recipe,” Nate mumbled as if in thought. I looked at him surprised and he explained, “I just freestyle with my food a lot.”

“Wow, how do you know that the combinations will work?”

Nate shrugged. “It’s a gift.”

“And a curse?” I completed the cliché with a small smile.

Nate returned it. “More than you know.”

I noted that he hadn’t even touch the other cup of hot chocolate. “Are you not going to drink any?”

“It’s for Logan,” he explained. “Something warm to get into his stomach.”

“You’re such a caring uncle,” I complimented. “Why are you in town?”

“Well Logan was sick and his mother was always a worrier and she wanted to come down herself but she has work along with his father so she asked if I could come and check up on him.” Nate leaned back in his chair.

“How sweet,” I murmured missing the comfort of my own uncle. I wondered if he ever considered visiting me.

“So tell me about yourself,” Nate changed the topic. I looked at him questioningly but he just kept his relaxed expression yet his thoughts spoke up. ‘Logan has told us so little about her you would think he’s trying to keep her all for himself’.