9. Chapter Nine
Chapter Nine
S he hadn’t slept well.
Lily had disturbing dreams all night. Every time she closed her eyes, it was like she was back in the elevator. To make matters worse, she’d been all alone. The walls felt as if they were closing in on her.
She’d tried to get out, but there were no doors. The car had shuddered when the cable broke. A terrified scream had clawed at the back of her throat, but she couldn’t get it out.
And then she was being plunged downward—toward what could only have been her death.
She’d woken up with a gasp. The blankets were twisted around her legs. Her T-shirt was soaked in sweat. And her heart had been pounding.
It was not a good way to start her day. As a result, she’d been dragging all day—to the point of putting off the festival planning until the next day. So when her mother invited her over for dinner, she’d welcomed the distraction.
Lily pulled up to her parents’ house—even though her father was gone, it would always be his house too. She pulled into the long driveway behind a long line of golf carts. It appeared all of her siblings were also invited.
A family gathering that included everyone didn’t happen that often—only for special occasions.
Although, since her father’s death, they’d been attempting to get together more often to help support their mother as she adjusted to her new normal.
The dinners also helped Lily and her siblings because they were all grieving for their father in their own way.
Lily sat there for a moment as memories of her father played in her mind. She stared straight ahead at the roof of the garage—her father’s favorite hangout. If he wasn’t working at the market, he was puttering around out there.
Her heart squeezed with a mix of love and grief. As the wave of emotions swept over her, it stole her breath away. Tears pricked the backs of her eyes. She wondered if it was always going to hurt this much when she thought of him.
“Lily?”
She blinked repeatedly. She quickly swiped beneath her eyes before forcing a smile. Then she turned to find Tony standing there.
It was the first time she’d seen him since their harrowing experience.
He looked a little rough around the edges.
There was a bruise on the side of his face and a bandage over the cut on his forehead.
There was now a navy-blue sling hanging from his neck.
His left hand was peeping out from the sling and appeared to have a cast on it.
Her gaze returned to his face. “How are you feeling?”
“Happy to be alive.”
“Tell me about it.” She got out of her cart. When she stepped in front of him, her gaze returned to his left arm. “Is it broken?”
“Yes, but I don’t need surgery.”
“That’s good.” When she realized how that might sound, her cheeks warmed. “Not that it’s broken but that you don’t need surgery.” She rushed on to ask, “What are you doing here?”
He shrugged. “I got a call from your mother. She invited me to dinner. When I tried to politely get out of it, she used the mom voice on me.”
Lily cracked a genuine smile. “It’s hard to say no when she does that.”
“Tell me about it. Do you know what this dinner is about? I asked Neil, but he didn’t have a clue.”
Lily shook her head as she led the way to the back door. “Sometimes, Mom just likes to have the whole family home.”
“So, then why include me?”
“You’ve been a part of this family since we were kids.”
“Until I moved away from the island and then things, well, they changed.”
She nodded in understanding. He was gone for a number of years. “But you’re back now. Things can go back to the way they used to be.”
“Can they?” He had a faraway look in his eyes as though he was remembering something.
“Come on. Let’s go inside before all of the food is gone.”
He nodded. “I hope she made her stuffed shells. I haven’t had those in forever. Then there’s her beef roast with carrots and baby potatoes. Or maybe—”
“Tony, is there anything she makes that you don’t like?” Lily stopped just outside the kitchen door to look into his handsome face.
He tilted his head to the side, as though giving the question serious consideration. “No. I don’t think so.”
“That’s what I thought.” She could already hear the murmured voices and the occasional laughter coming from inside. She opened the door and stepped inside.
The large kitchen was done in shades of light gray, seafoam green, and white. With lots of big windows, it was bright and airy. A large island with four stools was at one end.
At the other end of the room was a large kitchen table with eight chairs. How many times had she sat at that table and done her homework? This whole house was filled with all of her childhood memories.
She felt Tony’s presence right behind her. His closeness had her heart beating faster than normal. It felt awkward to walk in with him.
Jenna stepped into the kitchen. “There’s the hero of the day.”
“What?” Lily was confused. “I’m not a hero.”
“Not you, sweetie,” her mother said. “Tony. After all, he rescued you.”
“Rescued me?” Wait a minute. Her family needed some clarification.
But before she could utter a word, her family was calling out “thank you” and “great job” to Tony. Lily’s back teeth ground together. She couldn’t believe her family was lavishing him with praise like she was invisible.
They didn’t even know what happened in the elevator, and yet they’d jumped to the conclusion that Tony must have been the one to get them out of there. They hadn’t even considered that it might have been team work that freed them.
She turned to Tony. The smile on his face looked stiff, like he wasn’t sure what to do. If someone needed to be rescued, it was him in that moment.
“Hey,” Lily said. “He wasn’t the only one in the elevator.”
“We know,” Myra, her quieter sister, said. “Are you okay?”
Lily nodded. She hadn’t spoken up to get sympathy.
“We were worried about you,” Jenna said.
“Will you ever ride in that elevator again?” Caleb asked.
“Nope.” Lily’s voice carried over Tony’s response, “Of course.”
Both she and Tony stopped talking and looked at each other. Was he serious? He was standing there, looking like the walking wounded, and he was ready to ride in that elevator again? Did the man have a death wish?
He stared into her eyes, making her stomach dip. “Was it really that bad?”
She opened her mouth to say yes . It was a horrific experience. One she had no intention of repeating. But before she could get the words out, she recalled the way they’d connected in the elevator—the way he’d helped her with her claustrophobia.
It had been embarrassing for her, but he’d shown her nothing but compassion.
And then she thought of the way they’d held hands—how much she hadn’t wanted to let go.
The vivid memory caused heat to swirl in her chest. As her heart picked up its pace, it sent warmth to her cheeks.
At that point, she lowered her gaze to the floor.
“Okay,” her mother said. “They’re barely in the door. Leave them alone. It’s time to eat. Everyone, wash up and carry the food to the dining room.” When no one moved, she used her mom voice, “Now.”
That put everyone in motion. Her mother rarely pulled out the mom voice now that everyone was grown up, but Lily was grateful she’d chosen that moment to use it.
Lily wasn’t ready to reveal everything that had happened in that elevator car.
Maybe she never would. Maybe it was just a fleeting moment of desperation that didn’t have a greater meaning.
On his way toward the kitchen sink, Neil passed by them. He gave her a quick hug. “Glad you’re okay.”
“Thanks.” She pulled back. “Me too.”
Then Neil moved on to Tony. He gave him a quick once-over. “You’re looking worse for wear. I’m thinking you definitely did something wrong.”
Tony’s brows drew together. “You mean because I picked the elevator over the steps.”
“No. Because my sister doesn’t have a scratch on her, and you look like you took a beating.” Neil paused for a moment. “Seriously, thanks for taking care of my sister. I always knew I could count on you.”
Tony nodded, but he didn’t say anything. There was a shadow of something in his eyes, but before she could decipher it, he blinked, and the look was gone.
Neil moved onward toward the sink, and Lily followed him. Her other siblings had already moved to the dining room where the long table had plenty of room for all of them to be seated comfortably.
And when she finally made it to the dining room, she saw the roast beef and vegetables, one of Tony’s favorites, on the table, but that wasn’t all—one of her favorites was there too—spaghetti and giant meatballs. There was a large tossed salad and garlic toast.
Her gaze moved to her mother. “You must have been in the kitchen for hours to make this much food.”
Her mother smiled. “It was a labor of love. Just wanted you two to know how much you are loved. And please don’t scare me like that again.”
“We won’t.” The words passed by Lily’s lips before she realized she was speaking for both of them.
When she glanced at Tony, he nodded. “We won’t. Promise.”
Her mother visibly breathed a relieved sigh. “Good. Now let’s eat.”
Lily’s gaze moved around the table. Her mother was seated at one end.
Caleb, Myra, and Darby were seated on one side.
Her gaze moved to the other side where Jenna grinned at her.
It took her a moment to realize why her sister had such a goofy smile on her face, but then she saw the only two available seats were conveniently placed between Jenna and Neil.
Lily inwardly sighed. Seriously?
She moved to the left while Tony went to the right to get around the table. When Tony reached the head of the table, where there was one other vacant chair, he sent her a questioning gaze. Lily gave a quick shake of her head. No one sat there. It was her father’s seat.
Tony continued around the table and slipped into the chair between her and Neil. When Lily glanced up, she noticed everyone was staring at them. And suddenly she was transported in time back to high school.
She recalled the first time she’d brought home a boyfriend to a family dinner. His name had been Frankie Wadsworth. He’d been the star quarterback, and she was so proud of herself for having the most popular boy in high school interested in her.
But bringing him home had been a big mistake. Her brothers didn’t do much more than grunt when Frankie had spoken to them. And her sisters had been all giggles.
That left her parents to make the bulk of the conversation with things like “Frankie, do you think you’ll win Friday night’s game?” or “Frankie, where are you going to college?”
The following week Frankie had dumped her for a cheerleader. It had crushed her in the way teenage relationships could do. After high school he’d left the island for college. She hadn’t seen him since. She had no idea what had become of him.
But as she looked around at her siblings, she reminded herself that a lot of time had passed since that uncomfortable dinner. There was also the fact Tony wasn’t her boyfriend. So, why was she letting herself get all stressed out?
She just had to relax and enjoy this delicious meal that her mother had painstakingly prepared. Lily filled her plate and hoped there would be some leftovers for her to take home.
She twirled the pasta around her fork before glancing over at her mother. “Thank you. This is amazing.”
Her mother smiled, and her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “I’m so grateful you two are safe.”
“Me too.”
Then her siblings started talking at once. The volume rose as each tried to speak over the other. And suddenly, it was just another family dinner.
Lily felt herself relaxing. She enjoyed the delicious meal. Her gaze strayed to the left, and she noticed Tony speaking with Neil. As though Tony sensed her looking at him, he turned his head. Their gazes connected. The company wasn’t so bad either.