Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
Vivian smoothed back a few loose wisps of hair. Her kitchen smelled incredible, and she smiled as she took a deep breath, inhaling the aroma. It was Sunday morning, and she was just finishing cooking another large breakfast for her family. She always cooked a big Sunday morning breakfast, and her children and their partners came over for it whenever they could, which was most of the time.
“Good morning!” Hazel pushed open the back door, holding a basket under her arm. “I baked some mini blueberry muffins to go along with the meal.”
“They’re really good.” Samantha appeared behind her mother, grinning. “I ate one.”
“Sounds fantastic.” Vivian hugged Hazel and Samantha. “I’m so glad you’re both here. Why don’t you put that basket of muffins on the dining room table and then hang up your coats in the closet?”
“We’re lucky they’re not soggy!” Samantha called as she disappeared down the hallway. “It looks like it’s going to snow soon!”
Hazel chuckled. “I think she means the coats, not the muffins.” She looked around her mother’s kitchen with a smile. “You’ve really outdone yourself this week, Mom. Yogurt parfaits and ham and cheese skillets? It all smells incredible.”
“And I’ve got some cinnamon rolls just finishing baking in the oven.” Vivian’s eyes sparkled. “With your muffins, we’ll have plenty of food to go around.”
“That’s good, because Samantha is starting to eat as much as a gorilla.”
“I heard that!” Samantha called from the hallway.
“I’m sorry, you’re right—it’s more like two gorillas!” Hazel called, teasing. “I don’t know where you’re putting it. I think your stomach is a bottomless pit.”
“Wow, Mom.” Samantha returned to the kitchen, shaking her head. “I request more flattering metaphors in the future. First a gorilla, and then a bottomless pit.”
“Technically, the first one was a simile,” Hazel said, raising a finger.
Samantha shook her head, laughing, and Hazel pulled her into a hug.
“Come here, my beautiful girl, who in no way resembles a gorilla or a bottomless pit. You’re like… a very pretty lumberjack.”
Samantha wrinkled her nose. “Do lumberjacks eat a lot?”
“So I hear.”
Vivian chuckled as she pulled the cinnamon rolls out of the oven. They looked perfect—fluffy and golden brown. “I like that analogy. I’ve often felt like I was feeding a crew of lumberjacks. All you kids ate so much when you were teenagers. It’s because you’re still growing, Samantha.”
“I know! I’ve grown two inches since I was last measured, I think. We need to check. Mom, can we—oh, hey, Aunt Alexis!”
At that moment, Alexis and Grayson stepped inside through the back door. Alexis looked a little tired, but she was smiling broadly. Behind her, Grayson was wearing a homemade knit hat, and Vivian thought to herself that it was good to see him looking so laid-back, instead of like the uptight city slicker he used to be.
“Good morning, everyone!” Julia called as she appeared in the kitchen, yawning. “Sorry, I overslept a little. I was up late talking on the phone with Cooper.”
“Giggling like a couple of teenagers,” Vivian teased.
“Did I keep you up?” Julia’s eyebrows lifted in worry.
“No, not at all. I was up a little late myself. Just had a lot of thoughts bouncing around in my brain.”
Vivian hadn’t been worrying about anything the night before, not exactly. She’d felt a little overwhelmed as she contemplated everything they had left to do for the Christmas event, but for the most part she’d stayed up because she’d gotten lost in thought, reminiscing about the past. She missed Frank, and she couldn’t help wishing that she wasn’t going through life without a partner.
“Now we’re just waiting on Dean,” Hazel said cheerfully, carefully taking the cinnamon rolls out of the pan and placing them inside a cloth-lined basket. “He’s always last.”
“And usually a little late,” Alexis said. “Let’s go sit down and start eating without him. I’m starving.”
Dean arrived within the next minute, however, smiling and looking energetic. Soon they were all seated around the big dining room table, dishing out large helpings of the delicious food. In addition to the skillets, parfaits, and baked goods, there was also a dish of breakfast sausages and a plate of toast.
As the family was cheerfully chatting about how their weeks had gone, Vivian noticed Alexis spooning an enormous glob of peanut butter onto her toast. Vivian cocked her head to one side in confusion, wondering why her daughter was choosing to eat something that she’d always disliked instead of the ham and cheese skillet, which was usually one of her favorite meals.
“Alexis,” Vivian said in a quiet voice. “Don’t you hate peanut butter?”
Alexis shook her head. “Not right now I don’t. I have a major craving for it. Thanks for having on the table, Mom. I know you brought it out for Dean, but this is hitting the spot right now.” She took a big bite out of the toast and closed her eyes, clearly savoring the taste.
“If you don’t tell Grayson your news soon, he’s going to get suspicious,” Vivian whispered. “You’re having pregnancy cravings, and he’s going to notice that your food preferences have changed. Besides, what if you send him out in the middle of the night for some bizarre food you’re craving? Then he’s really going to know.”
Alexis shook her head as she chewed. “I’ll do it soon. I just haven’t found the right time.”
Vivian gave her a sympathetic smile. “Is it really about finding the right time? I don’t think there’s any ‘right moment’ for news like this. He just needs to know.”
“I’ll tell him.” Alexis sighed and took another giant bite out of her peanut butter covered toast.
“So, Dean, when are you going to start bringing Noelle to these breakfasts?” Hazel asked, grinning. “I saw the two of you walking down Main Street holding hands last night. You looked as thick as thieves.”
Dean held up his hands. “Hey, we didn’t steal anything.”
Hazel laughed and threw a blueberry from her yogurt parfait at him. “Stop avoiding the question. When are you going to bring her to family breakfast?”
The tips of Dean’s ears turned pink. “Well, I don’t know that we can consider her to be family yet,” he mumbled, and then coughed.
“I like that you said ‘yet,’” Alexis said, grinning.
“She’s welcome here anytime,” Vivian said, smiling. “After all, Cooper comes sometimes and he and Julia aren’t engaged yet.”
“So many good ‘yets’ this morning,” Hazel said, laughing as she and Alexis made gleeful eye contact.
“Speaking of Cooper,” Dean said, clearly trying to change the subject, “how is he, Julia?”
“Great. He’s doing such good work at Greener Pastures that they gave him a raise.” Julia got a dreamy look in her eyes as soon as she started to talk about her boyfriend. “And Macey is as darling as ever. I can’t believe how fast she’s growing up.”
“You two are inseparable now,” Alexis said, smiling and shaking her head. “Remember when you first started dating Cooper, and you weren’t sure how it was going to be to date a man with a little girl? And now you and Macey are practically attached at the hip.”
Julia laughed. “Well, I didn’t have any experience with kids, at least not really. I was worried I wouldn’t know how to handle being around her. But she stole my heart, that’s for sure.”
“And you take such great care of her,” Hazel said. “You’re always making her special snacks. You’re going to be a great mother someday.”
Julia reached out to squeeze Hazel’s hand in thanks, and Vivian and Alexis shared a glance. Vivian wanted to assure Alexis that she too was going to be a wonderful mother too, but she knew she had to hold her tongue in that moment.
I’ll be able to talk about it as much as I want to once she shares her news with Grayson, she thought. I hope she tells him soon!
At that moment, her phone buzzed in her pocket. Ordinarily, she would ignore notifications during a family meal, but she’d been on the alert for an email from Terrence Rawlins. She was determined not to miss it like she had the last time.
She pulled out her phone and checked the notification. She pressed her lips together when she saw that it was a text from Allison, one of The Lighthouse Grill’s cooks. Allison had shared a social media post with her, from the McCormick Brewery’s Instagram page. The post stated that in honor of Christmas, the McCormick Brewery was hosting a free beer day.
“What is it, Mom?” Hazel asked, sounding concerned.
Vivian looked up, realizing that she must have been frowning as she looked at the article. “Oh, it’s nothing really. Allison just sent me the news that the McCormicks are hosting a free beer day to celebrate Christmas.”
“What?” Hazel cried indignantly. “Show me.”
Vivian handed her the phone, and Hazel huffed in frustration when she saw the post.
“Can I see it?” Alexis asked, and Hazel handed her the phone from across the table. One by one, the Owens siblings looked at the post. Dean shook his head as he handed the phone back to Vivian.
“Honestly, the nerve of that guy.”
“It’s a good idea.” Vivian sighed. “It will make the brewery popular, and people are more likely to buy something when they’ve had a chance to sample it first. It’s smart marketing.”
“Sure, but he’s only doing it because he heard about our community event.” Hazel’s eyes glinted with feistiness. “He’s got to compete with us. I’m pretty sure he would never give away free stuff unless he was trying to look as generous as us. There’s no reason to be impressed with him over this. We shouldn’t pay it any mind.”
“I agree,” Julia said. “They’ve never done anything like this before. I think it’s more than a coincidence that they’re doing it for the first time the same year that we’re having a big Christmas event. I think Judd McCormick is doing this to be competitive.”
“And he’s missing the whole point.” Alexis shook her head. “Our event is more than trying to one-up a rival business. It’s the heart behind it that matters.”
“I hope you’re right.” Vivian sighed. “I feel frustrated—like he’s never going to let us be. He’s always going to come along and try to make the pub look bad.”
“We won’t let him,” Dean said firmly. “Besides, we’re the most popular place in town, and for good reason. He can’t hurt us even if he tries. Sales haven’t gone down at all since that article came out, have they? The one where he implied that we’re not as professional as they are?”
“Not at all.” Julia grinned. “Sales have gone up, actually.”
“See?” Dean turned to his mother with a smile. “They can’t touch us.”
“Thanks, kids.” Vivian smiled, feeling a bit better. “I hope you’re right, and I hope this event is as meaningful to the community as we want it to be. Seeing it make a difference would certainly bolster my confidence that we’re doing more than just meeting the McCormicks where they’re at money-making wise. I want to feel as though we’re more than just a business for profit. I want the pub to be about community more than anything.”
“Don’t worry, it’s definitely a center of our community.” Julia smiled at her. “Even the tourists love us and want to come back. We’re like a second home to a lot of people in Rosewood Beach. A lot of our customers come to eat there at the same time every week. We’re part of their routine.”
“Some of them even try to eat at the same table every week.” Alexis laughed. “They love coming to the pub. Sometimes it’s just a couple, but a lot of the time it’s a whole family.”
“And clearly, sharing meals brings people together,” Samantha said, gesturing with a dramatic flourish at the food-covered table in front of them.
Vivian laughed. “Oh, you’re all darling. Thank you. I’m glad we’re putting this event together as a family.”
“I am too,” Julia said. “I know it’s going to be wonderful. You just forget about the McCormicks and focus on having fun. This Christmas event is going to be spectacular.”
Vivian smiled, feeling encouraged by Julia’s words. Soon the conversation changed to other subjects, and the room was filled with the sounds of laughter and bantering again. Vivian still felt a little ruffled by the news of what the McCormicks were trying to do, but she felt grateful to be there with her supportive children, enjoying a delicious meal and looking forward to Christmas.