Page 56 of When I Come Back
He points his chin toward the dining room where all the tables have been pushed together to make one large table for the holiday feast. “She’s out there with my parents.”
I look over my shoulder to see her giggling in Travis’ mom’s lap. “Good. If you need anything, let me know.”
“Yeah, I will. Thanks, Thea.” He heads back to the kitchen as I walk over to the bar to get a much needed drink.
We ended up eating around one-thirty so the people who have family obligations could still make it to their Thanksgiving dinners. The lunch was mostly uneventful. We all shared stories of Hazel and Owen, laughter filling the room as stories of Owen being a hard-ass came up. I watched Cary out of the corner of my eye for the whole meal as he sat quietly on the other side of the table but a few seats down from me. Only speaking when someone complimented his mac and cheese or the “fucking orgasmic” mashed potatoes—as Ripley so eloquently put it—he’d made. I’d kicked Ripley in the shin for that one. He was supposed to be pissing Cary off, not complimenting the man.
Once we had finished eating and the chatter died down, Mr. Ashton had suggested Cary make a speech. The moment he’d said it, Cary turned ghostly white, but everyone at the table was encouraging him to speak.
In all my years of knowing Carrington Grant, I’d never seen him this nervous. He’s been standing up from his chair for a solid ten seconds, looking around the room and the faces around the table, no words coming out. Finally, he clears his throat.
“Wow. Uhh, I didn’t expect to make a speech. This was usually my dad’s thing. I should have come more prepared.” He laughs nervously. “I, umm, I don’t really know what to say. I’ve been sitting here listening to you all talk about my parents, sharing all your memories of them, and I won’t lie, I’m a little jealous. I missed this part of their lives.” He pauses. “As most of you know, before they died, I hadn’t spoken to my parents in thirteen years. I didn’t get to know them as an adult. The reason for our fallout doesn’t seem so irreparable now. But I guess that’s regret for you.” He clears his throat again, looking slightly less uncomfortable but still unsure of himself. He hasn’t made eye contact with me this entire time.
“I look around and see this community they built… with Thea’s help.” At that exact moment, his gaze turns to mine and sets my skin ablaze. “Truth be told, I wish I’d been here for it all. I wish I’d been the bigger person and just… called them. I wish I’d done a lot of things differently. Hindsight and all, right?” Another nervous laugh escapes him, and I break away from his stare, turning my eyes down to my lap.
“But, uhh, if there is someone here who can give a proper speech about them, it’s the woman who helped them bring this place to life. She probably knew them better than I ever did, honestly. Thea?”
My eyes widen and shoot up to him as he looks at me with sincerity. Public speaking is my worst nightmare. Standing up in front of everyone—despite considering these people family—and being the only one speaking makes my heart stutter and the back of my neck prickle with sweat.
“Stand up,” Tiffany whispers over to me, gesturing with her hands for me to get up out of my seat. The idea of standing is already making my head spin, but I do it anyway. I’ve got my hands on the table as I push myself up which means everyone can see me shaking. I quickly pull them back behind me. Cary is still standing, his eyes locked on mine. Tiffany looks over at him and gestures for him to sit down. “You had your turn, sit!” she says through gritted teeth. Her scolding him—something she’d never dare do if she were on the clock—is amusing and makes me smile.
“I, umm, I’ll try to do this without crying,” I say with a laugh, my eyes already tearing up. They all know I won’t succeed. I take a deep breath before continuing, “Hazel and Owen were… well, they kind of saved me, in a sense. When I moved back, I was so lost. I wasn’t the determined, strong-willed girl they’d known before. But they—they loved me anyway. They took me under their wing, and they—” I pinch the bridge of my nose to try and stop the tears from falling. “Sorry. Whew, this is hard. Umm, they essentially handed me my dream without me realizing it. I think—maybe—they somehow knew? Or, at least, Hazel did. She was always so intuitive.” The tears fall, cascading down my face like a dam was opened. “Fuck.” My hand flies to my mouth, remembering there are children here. “Sorry!” I look over at Travis who’s chuckling from his seat. He waves me off.
“She’s heard worse, don’t worry,” he assures me.
“I’m not sure I’m the best person to make a speech, guys. This is going so terribly.”
Ripley grabs my hand from my other side. “Keep going, it’s okay. You’re doing great, babe.” Cary’s fist clenches on the table at the nickname he now knows is just for show.
“Okay. Yeah. So some of you might not know this, but I went to school for marketing. I wanted to be the next big thing in the marketing world,” I laugh. “Or so I thought. I think what I actually wanted was to create something special and watch it grow and become special for other people. When I brought the idea of renovating to Hazel and Owen, I thought they’d laugh at me. We all know Owen was stuck in his ways. The diner wasn’t doing great at the time, but I still believed in it. And they kind of… just handed me the reins, which really could have ended poorly.” Laughter comes from all around the table. “The point is, they helped me find myself again through this place,” I gesture to RED, “and the love they gave me. Owen—after years of him seeming to only tolerate me—became the father I never had, and Hazel was like my second mother. And I miss them… so much.”
Ripley squeezes my hand, his touch comforting me. “They’re woven into these walls though. It’s one of the reasons I love being here. They allowed me to make a home for myself here, and I don’t think I ever expressed just how thankful I am for that. So hopefully, they’re looking down on us and watching this. I think they’d be so happy to see us all continuing their Thanksgiving tradition.” I pause to wipe the tears away from my eyes. “Anyway, thank you all for being here and loving this place as much as I do. I appreciate you all so much. Now, I’m going to sit down before I start rambling on again.”
The whole table is misty-eyed but laughing. As I sit down, Ripley’s hand goes to my knee, giving me a light squeeze as he kisses me on my cheek.
The rest of the day is filled with touching stories of the two people missing from this holiday. People filter in and out, wishing us a Happy Thanksgiving then leaving to be with their families. I’m busy clearing off some of the dishes left on the table when someone touches my elbow.
“Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?” Cary says as I look over my shoulder at him.
“Umm, sure… let me just put these glasses in the kitchen,” I say, gathering a few in my hands. The last thing I want to do is fight with him again, but knowing he’s leaving tomorrow and after everything he said at lunch, I feel like I should hear him out. “I’ll meet you on the back patio.”
As he walks away, heading outside, I take a deep breath before going to the kitchen and placing the glasses in the sink.
“Hey, I was looking for you,” Ripley’s voice comes from behind me.
“I was just cleaning up, but Cary wants to talk to me.”
His eyebrows rise as he says, “Do you want to talk to him? Things still seem pretty tense between you two after last night.”
I haven’t told him about this morning yet. If I did, he’d have words with Cary, and I don’t want to ruin Thanksgiving. “He’s leaving tomorrow. He probably just wants to say goodbye,” I say with a shrug.
“Yeah, okay. Let me know if you need anything.”
As he’s turning away I stop him. “Actually, could you keep everyone away from the patio? Just so we can have some privacy.”
He nods. “Yeah, of course.”
I thank him with a kiss on the cheek. My hands are getting clammy as I walk out to the back patio. The sun is setting now, and the way it reflects off the lake, framing Cary in a glowing halo, is breathtaking. He’s standing with his hands in his pockets looking out over the water. I take a moment to just stare at his back, relishing in his beauty but knowing he’s about to tell me goodbye. The pang in my chest is so painful, it takes my breath away.
