Page 34 of Willow Vale

I smiled, imagining little versions of Wren and Finn with their golden hair and mischievous grins.

Finn made a silly face at River and he copied him with a goofy smile until he got shy when he noticed Wren was smiling at him. He tucked his face against my side to hide and I ran my fingers through his hair in silent comfort.

Amelia said as she watched my brother with a gentle expression. “I imagine raising a little boy alone is hard. I can’t say I’m surprised that you’ve managed, though.”

I shrugged. “I didn’t do it all alone. My grandfather was with us, he helped a great deal.”

Amelia pursed her lips at the mention of my grandfather. I knew exactly what she was thinking, but she refrained from commenting on my grandfather’s behavior toward me growing up.

Travis looked up from his plate, his gaze finding mine.His face was unreadable as Desmond reached over River and placed a hand on my shoulder. “He was a good man, Lila.”

My voice wavered. “Thank you.”

I quickly took a sip of the ice water in front of me when I suddenly felt a lump form in my throat. Travis watched me but he seemed to be the only one who noticed I was shaken by the mention of my grandfather. I never knew my father. He’d passed away when I was a baby and Irene never liked to talk about him. Having a relationship with my grandfather was the only other one I had in my family, but his own connection with Irene was never a good one. Maybe that was why we weren’t as close as we could have been. Because he saw traces of her in how I behaved as a child.

I liked to believe I wasn’t a bitter person. I tried to be positive, especially when I had a kid who could pick up on my emotions at the drop of a hat and he could adopt my behavior as his own. There were times like right now, however, that the bitterness toward Irene came to the surface. An unwelcome friend I tried to push away, but who would always come back when I least expected it.

River patted my arm, getting my attention. I looked down and found him looking up at me with his curious eyes, clear as the afternoon sky.

He asked, “Lila? You okay?”

Of course, he’d notice. My little brother was the most perceptive kid I’d ever met. I wondered if it had to do with seeing our grandfather sick for so long that he just naturally picked that habit up.

I leaned down and smiled reassuringly, aware that there were eyes on us despite the conversations going on around the table. “Yeah, I’m okay, baby.”

“Can I play with Travis after dinner?”

I looked to Travis and shrugged as if to say it was up tohim, and he nodded. “Of course you can. So long as that’s okay with Delilah.”

As soon as I agreed, River did a fist pump. “Yes! We can show Finn and Wren our toys too!” His excitement made everyone at the table laugh.

I mouthed a “thank you”in Travis’s direction for putting a smile on my kid’s face all evening. He simply nodded, not tearing his eyes away from me as he took a swig of his beer. Reminding me of how he’d taken that shot of tequila for me back at the bar. The way his eyes darkened when he looked at me. Making it impossible to look away just like right now as he consumed me with a single look.

A look that left mewanting.

After helpingAmelia wash the dishes in the kitchen and packing the leftovers into containers, I finally gave up and accepted two portions large enough to feed me and River for an entire week.

“Thank you so much for having us, Amelia. Dinner was wonderful,” I said, giving her a hug as I got River’s bag ready to go.

“No thanks needed. It was my pleasure. Long overdue, if you ask me. And you’ll be sure to come to next Sunday’s dinner too?” I opened my mouth to protest but she beat me to it. “It’ll be Desmond’s birthday next week, so I expect you to be there to help me decide on the type of cake we should bake for him. It’s a family event so attendance is mandatory.”

Family.

I wondered if she was including me and River too or if it was just a generalization. Either way, being considered family by Amelia made me happier than it probably should have.

“In that case, how can I say no?” I raised my hands up in defeat with a grin. Amelia always knew how to make it hard to say no. I wish I had her tenacity.

The fact that she considered us family warmed my heart to no end. I didn’t know if I deserved their kindness, but they took care of River and for that I would be forever grateful.

Wandering off in search of River, I found him curled up on the couch with a pillow tucked under his head and a fleece blanket draped over him. He was the picture of relaxed as his little legs were stretched across Travis’s lap. Trapping the man next to him. He was watching the TV, a kids show River loved to watch. The volume was too low, and I suspected Travis turned it down to avoid waking River up.

The moment he spotted me walking over he straightened and shut the TV off.

“He’s been zonked out for about ten minutes now.”

“Sorry if he trapped you,” I said as I crouched and pushed the curls off River’s forehead. “He’s a morning kid through and through. There’s no waking him once he’s out.”

“I didn’t mind. I enjoyed spending time with him today,” he said.

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