by Jerry Cole
“Good. I think you needed that.” I joined her, pulling two plates down. We piled ours with food, sitting at the table with beer to talk through the meal.
“I did. Revealing something like that before your girl leaves is crazy. I think we dealt with it separately before we got to talk about anything.” Rosa shook her head. “Can you believe that Jake said that to me? He was with the bitch he cheated with. I mean, I feel sorry for her truthfully. She’s probably nice.”
“I get that impression. I think they talked about brunch that day.” We both laughed as she reached for her beer. “That had nothing to do with you and Taryn. You connected from the start. The relationship was just the next step.”
“It’s fucking weird to do all of this for the first time. I’ll tell you that.” She laughed.
“Do you know if you want to go there or stay here?” I pressed as she fell silent.
“I want to have both of you nearby. I do know that.” Her voice was soft. “How do I choose? Can’t you move to Connecticut?”
“I love it there. I just don’t know if Owen wants to live there.” I replied, and she nodded. “I think it’s gorgeous, and we both know I can work from anywhere.” I patted her hand. “I think you’d find work easily there. You’re talented.”
“Probably. I’m sure that Tar is going to end up with the shop.” She looked at me with shimmering eyes. “I just don’t want to be anywhere without you.”
“I’m where Owen is. At least it isn’t far if you do move away, and we can visit a lot.” I reassured her as I lifted the chicken to my mouth.
As if his ears were burning, Owen opened the front door. He inhaled deeply with a smiled as he closed it, setting down his gym bag. “That smells great. I hope you saved me some.”
“I brought home bags of this shit. There’s plenty.” Rosa grinned at the sight of him before glancing at me. “Who knew that we’d date twins, and I’d end up with the female?”
“Not me!” I gazed at Owen as he approached me for a soft kiss. “Plate up and join us. This is incredible.”
He did and sat beside me at our small table. Taking a bite of a rib, he groaned. “So good. Thank you, Rosa.”
“I owed you for helping me through my breakdown yesterday. Things are much better today. We talked at lunch.” She smiled at Owen as he nodded, chewing his food.
“That always helps. If nothing else, my sister makes her point clear. I always hated that as a kid.” He chuckled and shook his head.
“We’re going to talk more over the holidays about what to do as far as location. It’s not that far to where we couldn’t visit on weekends. It’s just our schedules that interfere.” Rosa ate a bite of potato and chewed thoughtfully. When she finished, she looked directly at Owen. “Would you ever move back to Connecticut?”
He choked, swallowing some beer to regain his composure. “I love it there, Rosa. I do. I just established so much here with the camps and the lessons, and none of them are reminiscent of the injury that ended all things pro for me. I like being this guy. Does that make sense?” He asked as pain washed over me.
“Yes, it does.” She wiped at her eyes, likely seeing his real feelings for the first time.
“That being said, I do live in a state with two hockey teams. Love the games, but hate the way they make me feel sometimes.” He reached for a piece of chicken as I rested my hand on his thigh. “Sorry, Peter. I know you love them.”
“I’ve never been a player, so I don’t see it from that point of view,” I said as he nodded. “I’m where you are, babe.”
“In a matter of weeks, you’ll be drowning in holiday fun. Can you handle that?” Owen asked as we both nodded. “Thanksgiving is normal. We always have pizza the night before, and Mom is up at dawn to get things started. She loves help if you’re into that kind of thing.”
“I think that sounds great. I love her cooking, and I’ve never had that kind of family.” Rosa took one more bite before pushing her plate away. “On that note, I’m stuffed.”
We cleaned up after dinner, and she disappeared into her room for her call with Taryn. I pulled Owen to our room, holding him close as I kissed his muscular neck. “I can’t wait for some extended time off. I won’t be working for a second there. I want to take it all in!” I wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him closer.
“I’ve never taken anyone home for a holiday apart from a friend.” His confession caught me off guard. “High school wasn’t full of relationships, and Ray had a strict policy of seeing his family a few towns away from mine. He wouldn’t compromise, and neither would I. That’s just how it was.” He turned his head to kiss me. “Is it bad that I appreciate that you don’t have a close family?”
“No,” I laughed as I pressed closer to him.
“I also like that my family never liked Ray, even though it sucked at the moment. I just knew I wouldn’t give up time with them for someone like him. I didn’t even want to move in with him.”
“Isn’t that weird after being together for a while?” I asked as he looked at me in the evening light.
“Looking back, yes. I wanted it with you so quickly, but that attests to our feelings for one another. It would devastate me to break up with you, but with Ray, it was easy. That’s not normal.” He leaned in for another slow kiss. “I love you.”
It felt like I blinked, and we were packing for Thanksgiving. I had enough for five days this time, and we loaded the bags up in Owen’s car. We locked up the apartment and headed out Tuesday evening, grinning as we talked about the food and pies that Rosa would help with over the next few days. Owen seemed to be in a great mood as he drove, answering questions as my best friend babbled in the back seat.
We pulled into the driveway at ten. Taryn told us that she stayed the night most of Thanksgiving week to help out. True to her word, Taryn rushed out of the front door and wrapped Rosa up in her arms. “It’s so good to see you, baby.”
We got the luggage out, walking inside to hug Mom and Dad before we took the bags to their respective rooms. Mom showed us the pies that she’d prepared, including apple, pumpkin, pecan, and even cherry. They looked delicious, and I longed to slice some from the pumpkin pie for a late-night snack. We’d only eaten some fast food on the way here.
We fixed a quick meal of pot roast, chatting before Mom and Dad went to bed. Taryn dragged Rosie to her room soon after, no doubt, to make up for lost time. I grabbed beers and blankets to go out to the deck and see the clear sky for as long as we could stand it.
“It’s cold here in the winter,” I told him, pressing close.
“I know. I used to dare myself to stay out here as long as I could. It’s gorgeous at night.” He kissed my cold cheek as I smiled. “Want to hike at some point if we have time?”
“That would be great. What else does your mom do?”
“She decorates the tree Saturday night. It’s a whole thing with chili and anything leftover that’s still decent. She bought a fake one years ago so she could put it up sooner.” I laughed, and he rolled his eyes in the moonlight. “Tradition.”
“I love it.” We went inside after roughly half an hour, headed to bed to warm up under the covers after a quick shower together.
“We can sleep in a bit tomorrow, but not Thursday. It’s one of the few days of the year that she tends to freak out. Her fault. She cooks so much, but she trained Taryn to help out when she was young.” He chuckled as I wrapped my arms around him.
“You don’t help?” I asked as he sighed.
“I do. I don’t like watching football with the guys. Sometimes there’s a hockey game on, but they’re die-hards. Dad’s always loved football first.” He pressed his face into my neck, breathing me in.
We fell asleep within the hour, waking up around nine to the smell of coffee and bacon. “That smells amazing,” I said, turning my face toward the bedroom door. “Babe?”
“Yeah. It does. Just a few more minutes?” Owen asked, holding me tight.
“I’m starving,” I whined as h
e groaned.
“Fine.” We got up, cleaned up enough to be presentable, and made an appearance in the kitchen. There was a big plate of waffles, bacon, and fresh fruit that everyone was nibbling on with steaming cups of coffee in front of them. We greeted them, plating up our food before joining them.
Mom went over her list to make sure that she wasn’t missing anything as she ate. Dad read the newspaper, giving her loving glances as she talked to herself. They looked great and healed well. Dad barely walked with a limp anymore and was back to golf with his buddies, though just on nice days now. I sat back and took it all in, feeling the warmth in the house.
It was never like this growing up. I didn’t even call my family on the holidays, much less visit them.
We managed a small hike before dinner down to the lake with the girls. They were holding hands and kissing here and there, looking like a couple in love. I felt happy to see Rosa this way, even though the question of where she might live still hung heavy in the air.
Today wasn’t the one to worry about that.
We had a pizza dinner with beer and wine, sitting outside until we couldn’t stand it. Mom reminded all of us that she’d be up at six to start cooking, and the girls agreed too readily. The one aunt and uncle on Mom’s side would be stopping by, but that was it apart from friends dropping in.
Mom went to bed at nine, and the rest of us enjoyed a movie in the living room. Dad followed his wife to bed at ten-thirty, and the girls grudgingly went to bed at eleven. “Couch or bed? It’s going to be loud in here, no matter what.”
“Bed. I need all the sleep that I can get.” I kissed him in the dim light, feeling the butterflies in my stomach. They were still there, and I suspected that they would always be.
When I got up at eight, the action in the kitchen was at full swing. I saw potatoes in a bowl and vegetables to chop. The girls were working on stuffing as classical music played through the room, laughing as they worked. “Mom goes old school. Nothing is out of a box. I had fond memories of my Gram cooking dinner when we were young, and she taught Mom everything. They died when we were eighteen just months apart.”
“I appreciate that.” She was working on checking cooking turkeys and the progress on the rest of the food. “What time is dinner?”
“Three. It’s kind of a drop in thing for anyone that needs a place.” Owen smiled as I poured us each a cup of coffee.
“Your mom is a saint.” I laughed as he scowled at me.
“Not in the kitchen when she’s stressed out.”
We spent some time helping with food prep, snacking on the appetizers that Mom set out throughout the day. People dropped in and out to say hello and check on Mom and Dad. I recognized most of them, but there were some new faces. Even friends of the twins stopped in to catch up and welcomed Rosa and me with open arms.
We sat down to dinner at the extended table, watching as Dad sliced the turkey and Mom said grace. They weren’t religious, but Amber believed in being grateful for what you had in front of you. The accident only cemented that belief further.
There was so much food. She cooked two turkeys, two massive bowls of mashed potatoes for either end of the table, yams with brown sugar, roasted vegetables, and several other sides that I sampled. Owen looked at me with a curious brow, and I smiled. “Excellent.”
I lingered over the meal, helping with the dishes beside Owen. If I sat on the couch, I’d fall asleep, and moving felt a bit better. The girls took a break to enjoy another glass of wine with Aunt Laurie, and I grinned at Owen. “You’ve been doing this your entire life?”
“I have. It’s one of my favorite days of the year,” he enthusiastically replied, slipping another plate into the dishwasher. “When we were little, Halloween and Easter were a big deal. They always made things fun for us. Now, we still have Easter dinner, and she makes up baskets for us. Be warned.”
“Oh, wow. That’s crazy.” I laughed, handing him the last plate.
Chapter Nineteen
Owen
The night wore down as people left for the night. Mom sent everyone home with leftovers. There was still plenty for tomorrow, and Mom always made sure of that. We went to bed starting at eleven, and all slept in the following day.
I ate two full plates of food the night before and too many slices of pie to count. I asked Peter to run to the lake with me in the late morning, and he agreed since he felt the same way. The girls were watching movies with Amber and refused to move, so we headed out on our own.
“I don’t think I’ll ever eat again,” Peter told me as we jogged at a steady pace. “That was a shit load of food.”
“It always is,” I laughed as I glanced around at the trees. It was cool outside but felt good as I kept moving forward. “You’ll never go hungry in this family.”
We made it to the lake, taking the long way back before stumbling into the house. Everyone looked at us from the couch, yawning as we stretched. “You missed out. That felt great,” Peter said as he looked at Rosa and Taryn.
“Uh-huh. I want to nap and eat before we have the tree party tomorrow. You boys are crazy.” Taryn yawned, shifting slightly to be closer to Rosa.
“I can’t wait for that. I used to always decorate with Peter, but the tree was small. This will be the real deal.” Her eyes shimmered as she spoke, and Peter scoffed.
“Are you insulting the effort I made for you to have a memorable holiday?” He asked as she groaned.
“No, but this is a family thing. I want to start traditions like this.” She kissed Taryn’s cheek, and I smiled at them. My sister looked about as happy as she’d ever been.
We showered and sat down with the laptop to see if there was anything worth buying. Peter had been thinking about a new computer, and there was a great sale on laptops, so he purchased one. We also snuck in tablets for all the women and a watch for Dad. I grinned at Peter as he closed out the page, kissing him. “That was fun.”
“I think they’ll appreciate everything. That client worked out well for me.” He said, looking happy. They had a few rough days, but now Peter was earning what he was worth. I took more rent from him since he was officially out of the loft, and we split the bills three ways. It seemed like everyone was happy with that, so I left it.
“I’m glad. I hated seeing you stressed. The whole point of working for yourself is to avoid that.” I dropped my head back to the pillow and closed my eyes. “Nap?”
“We shouldn’t, but we just ran a lot of miles.” He agreed, pulling me close. “Nap and then maybe a small dinner.”
“Small. Yeah.” We both fell asleep in the quiet house, waking up in the evening. I rolled over to pull Peter into my arms, smiling as he murmured something to me.
“It’s so quiet,” he told me, kissing my jaw.
“Welcome to the day after in the Hensley household. We’ll make up for it tomorrow carrying boxes for Mom,” I chuckled, breathing him in. “It’s past six. Want to see what’s going on out there?”
“Do we have to? I could go back to sleep,” Peter argued, sliding a hand down to cup my ass.
There was a tap at the bedroom door, and we both groaned. “Are you decent?” Rosa called as Peter threw something at the door, making her laugh. “We’re heating food up if you’re hungry.”
My stomach growled, and I laughed. “I guess I’ve made a decision. Are you in?”
“Sure.” We got up and pulled on sweats and long-sleeved shirts to wear into the kitchen, cleaning up. When we got there, every piece of Tupperware that Mom owned was out and opened. Food was being heated up, and I went to hug Mom. “Thanks again for all of this.”
“It was a special day, wasn’t it?” She asked, smiling into my eyes. “My babies are happy and in love.”
“We are. You’re still with us, and that’s another thing that I’m thankful for.” I waited until everyone heated their plates before fixing mine. We sat at the table to eat, playing back the night before with laughter.
Mom asked us to bring the
boxes into the house from the garage to get an early start. We did just that, setting them against the wall before we found the tall tree. “Want this set up now?” I asked Mom as she smiled at me.
Dad, Peter, and I put up the ten-foot-tall tree, leaving everything else for the following day. I knew how chaotic and also beautiful it was going to be, and made sure it was perfect for decorating.
“We got a tree that was shorter than us. Your mom goes all out,” Rosa said to Taryn as they laughed. “You’re so lucky.”
“You are too now.” Taryn kissed her and Rosa took her hand, squeezing it. We all put the food away after cutting slices of pie to enjoy on the couch.
The girls fell asleep there, and Peter and I covered them up before going to bed. “This reminds me of too many nights with Rosa,” Peter whispered as we made sure everything was locked up. We went to bed, stripping down to boxers before sliding under the covers. “I love you.”
“I love you.”
Mom made French toast and sausage for breakfast for all of us. After that, we helped her start two large crockpots of chili and mix cornbread to go with the crusty loaves of sourdough bread. “Why are there so many Fritos?” Peter asked as he glanced at the counter.
“This family puts them into chili along with the cheese. We butter the bread,” Taryn answered proudly as he and Rosa stared at each other. For dessert, Mom made a cheesecake that she planned to top with strawberries before serving with coffee. It was huge, and Peter murmured that she could sell it in a restaurant, and nobody would know.
We went down to the lake for a while when the food cooked, and I loved that Peter appreciated it as much as I did. He looked over the choppy water, grinning into the cold as I watched him. “Do you prefer this over the city?” I asked as he seemed to consider his answer.
“It’s different. This is beauty and peace, though I love the city’s chaos and vibe. It’s like they balance each other out somehow.” Peter smiled at me. “I’m grateful that I have a place like this to visit.”
“What if Rosa moves out here?” I asked as he frowned. They were at the bookshop doing something for the afternoon, so we were free to talk.
