Chapter 13
Thirteen
As it was, Miles had already said too much about Roy. He had to stop himself from going on rants.
Yet how could he stay quiet? The guy was a despicable coward.
Having twins wasn’t easy, but how did Roy think Annie felt? How could this guy decide it was all too much for him, then run off to the city and leave his wife and kids?
And to tell Annie he’d use the island as his home base because he needed his own space? The audacity was unreal.
Heat crept up Miles’ neck every time he thought about it.
Maybe that was why he couldn’t stop talking about it. He found Roy’s behavior so ridiculous, so outrageous that he was compelled to tell Annie. She needed to know it wasn’t her fault. She needed to know any reasonable person who heard her side of the story would feel the same outrage.
What was Roy’s side of the story? What story did he tell himself? That Annie refused to move to Seattle, and that was why he didn’t see his kids?
He could tell Annie tried to hold herself back. She stayed polite. She didn’t want to “gossip.” As far as Miles was concerned, Annie wasn’t outraged enough.
Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter. He had to let it go and focus his attention on Thanksgiving, and on not bringing it up again. Bella was thrilled when she heard they’d be hosting Annie’s little family.
“Do you think the twins would like pumpkin pie?” she asked.
“I think they would love pumpkin pie,” Miles told her.
She grinned. “I’m gonna make everything from scratch, even the crust,” she said. “I’ll need your credit card to get this place ready. It’s not fit for guests.”
Normally he wouldn’t hand his card over for such a request, but she was right. They hadn’t hosted in years. Last year, they’d taken an Alaskan cruise during Bella’s holiday break. It had been an epic adventure, but it left them without proper placemats, as Bella pointed out.
When Thanksgiving arrived, Miles could admit they’d both gone a bit overboard.
Bella went all out on the house: rich wine-colored linens for the table, monogrammed cloth napkins, golden turkey napkin rings, new dishes and serving platters, and an ornate turkey-shaped candelabra where the long candles made up the turkey’s tail feathers.
She also bought an apron for Miles, head chef, with a turkey face prominently displayed on his chest.
For his part, Miles cooked two turkeys – one in the oven, and one deep fried. He made vegetarian and non-vegetarian stuffing, mashed potatoes and candied sweet potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts with a balsamic drizzle, homemade dinner rolls, corn bread, and just for kicks, a side of sloppy joes.
That was for the twins. He wasn’t sure what they’d like from the spread, so he’d made something he knew they’d enjoy.
To top it off, he crafted a fall-inspired sangria and covered half of the kitchen island with an extensive charcuterie spread with various cheeses, meats, nuts, and dried fruit. The twins had their own charcuterie board with crackers, mozzarella cheese, and bites of chocolate.
It was enough food to feed the fire station, but he couldn’t help himself. Before dinner, he sent Bella down to help Annie pack up the twins, their highchairs, and her mom.
Miles stayed back, putting on the finishing touches as he transferred the sides to their fancy new dishes, soft music playing in the background.
The door opened and a flurry of noise poured into the peaceful kitchen.
“Okay, okay,” Clara repeated loudly. “Noel, I will pick you up after Leon’s turn is done.”
“NO!” she screamed.
“Mom, you’re not supposed to be picking them up anyway. They’re too heavy,” Annie said.
“Nonsense. I feel great.”
Miles filled two glasses with sangria, making sure to throw in a few cranberries, and walked out to greet them.
“Happy Thanksgiving!” he called.
Annie looked up, catching his eye as she took off her coat. She wore a velvet red dress, the fabric catching the light with her every move, clinging to her curves like liquid silk.
Miles’ breath caught in his chest.
Luckily, Bella was able to speak. “Hey, everyone! Let me take your coats. Leon, Noel, I have a surprise for you.”
She took Noel by the hand and led her to a large, wooden chest labeled TOYS. Clara followed, carrying Leon.
If Miles had his wits about him, he would’ve realized the chest was new, and that Bella had filled it with toys.
Instead, his eyes were on Annie. He handed her a glass of sangria, his hand brushing hers, his skin burning at her touch. She whispered a thank you before turning her attention to the toy scene unfolding before them.
Clara took her glass of sangria out of his hand without a word.
Bella popped the chest open, pulled out a set of large Lego blocks, and dumped them all over the floor. “Ta-da!”
Noel immediately forgot her claim on Clara and dropped to the floor. Leon watched suspiciously from his grandmother’s arms.
“Whenever you’re ready, Leon, we can build a tower together,” Bella said in a sing-song voice.
He hid his grinning face in Clara’s hair.
Annie stepped closer, her gray eyes twinkling with a smile. “It didn’t feel right coming empty-handed, so I got this bottle of wine and a bottle of sparkling cider for Bella.”
Miles accepted them, willing himself to find words. “Thank you. You’re – that’s lovely.”
Uh oh. That was a close one. He’d almost bumbled like the fool he was.
“It smells amazing in here,” she added.
He forced himself to not stare. “I hope you came hungry. I’ve got a charcuterie board on the kitchen island for the grown-ups and,” he turned and grabbed the small plastic tray, “a small charcuterie board for little hands.”
Annie’s mouth dropped open. “That’s adorable! Kids, look!”
They did not look, but her eyes drifted up to him.
Warmth spread through his chest. He wanted to show her the rest, the urge tugging at him like an overeager terrier.
“I don’t want them to make a mess in your living room,” she said, frowning.
He waved a hand and put the tray on the ottoman. “I’m not worried about it.”
Leon, now on his own two feet, walked over to investigate and selected a piece of mozzarella cheese before taking a bite.
Bella tried to entice Noel to have some chocolate, but she was completely focused on building a Lego tower.
Miles nodded toward the kitchen. “Shall we?”
They followed him, and both Annie and Clara exclaimed when they saw the charcuterie board.
“Is this dinner?” Clara asked, a grin on her face.
“Of course not,” he said, handing them each a plate. “We’ve got two turkeys to eat.”
“Two?” Annie stared at him. “You’re joking.”
“They’re small,” he clarified. “The big ones dry out too much.”
“Come on Annie, relax!” Clara said, taking a seat at the kitchen island. She jerked her thumb in Annie’s direction. “This girl never relaxes.”
“I relax,” Annie said, still standing.
Clara went on. “What better time than when someone else is cooking for you?”
“You cook for me all the time.” Annie leaned on the doorway, glancing at the twins.
“Of course I do! I’m your mother. But you know this is special. It’s not every day that a – ”
Annie cut her off. “Can I help with anything, Miles?”
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. What was Clara going to say? That a what? Neighbor? Firefighter? Decent guy cooked for her?
He had a tendency to go overboard with these sorts of things, but this time maybe he’d gone extra overboard. Maybe there was a part of him that was trying to show up her ex-husband. Maybe he wanted Annie to know the sort of treatment she deserved.
Maybe he needed to keep that to himself. “The turkeys are resting, so we can sit down to dinner in about twenty minutes. Or later. Whatever you want! You’re our honored guests!”
The evening evolved into a wonderful chaos, first with fitting all the food onto the table, then getting everyone into their seats. The twins sat in their highchairs for a full sixteen minutes, eating bits of cheese and globs of sloppy joe before working their way back into the living room.
With Bella by his side, Leon wasn’t frightened at all. She became a magician, pulling out new toys every time one of the twins threatened to lose interest.
“When did you get all of these?” Miles asked.
She shrugged. “When you gave me your credit card, I reasoned it should be an investment into my business.”
He nodded. “I see that.”
“An unwilling investor,” Clara said, snorting a laugh.
Miles grinned. There was nothing unwilling about it. Unknowing, maybe, but not unwilling.
After dinner, there was far too much food left over.
Miles had planned for it. He’d bought containers to make meals for Annie and Clara to freeze.
“If you don’t have room in your freezer, I’ve got a chest freezer in the garage.” He paused, carving knife mid-air. “Unless you didn’t like the food. Then I won’t force it on you.”
“We like the food,” Clara said, pointing a finger at him. “Pack it up!”
“Mom!” Annie hissed, but even she couldn’t help but smile. “Thank you,” she said. “That’s very thoughtful.”
Focused on his work, he almost missed Clara’s announcement ten minutes later. “The twins are getting tired. I’m going to take them home and put them to bed.”
Annie, who had insisted on helping clear the table, set down a pile of dishes. “Let me finish up in here and we can go.”
“Nonsense!” Clara said. “Bella, you’ll help me, won’t you?”
Her answer was instantaneous. “I’d love to!”
“But – ”
“And you, young lady,” Clara said, scowling at Annie. “Try to imagine how differently this night would go if you were all the way over in Seattle.”
Annie couldn’t get a word in before her mother disappeared.
Miles pretended to focus on packing the rest of the leftovers as the twins were dressed and ushered outside.
When the door shut, it was quiet enough to hear the music again.
“Well, I am going to stay to help you clean up,” Annie announced.
He sighed. “Always the cleaning with you.”
She caught his eye and he winked as a laugh burst from her. He felt his chest swell. He needed more of that laugh.