Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
Jess
Jess sat at the kitchen table, her laptop open and a steaming mug of coffee beside it. The early morning sun filtered through the open doors off the back patio. She sipped her coffee, eyes scanning the analytics dashboard of her latest social media post.
The solstice party was just a week away, and her promotional efforts were paying off.
Engagement rates were soaring, with reels showcasing past events, behind-the-scenes preparations, and historical tidbits about the Vineyard’s traditions.
Her inbox was flooded with messages from locals and tourists alike, all eager for more details.
“Mommy, can I help with the next video?” Maisie asked as she peeked over the edge of the table, her eyes wide with anticipation.
Jess smiled. “Of course, sweetheart. Your last dance in the fairy wings was a hit!”
Maisie giggled, twirling around the kitchen in her imaginary costume. Jess laughed.
Claudia entered the room and observed the scene with a raised eyebrow and a grin before she turned her attention to Jess’s laptop. “You’ve been at this since dawn, haven’t you?”
Jess nodded, her fingers still flying over the keyboard. “There’s just so much to coordinate. But it’s worth it. The community’s response has been incredible.”
Claudia leaned over to glance at the screen, her eyes scanning the colorful graphics and enthusiastic comments. “You’re really good at this, Jess. Have you considered offering your services to other businesses on the Vineyard?”
Jess paused, considering the idea. She had a Google document filled with notes and strategies for various local establishments, but she’d been so focused on the solstice party that she hadn’t pursued it further.
“I’ve thought about it,” she admitted. “But right now, I want to make sure this event is perfect.”
Claudia nodded approvingly. “Well, people are raving about your work. The fliers, the social media posts, everything. It’s bringing a fresh energy to the Vineyard.”
Jess felt a surge of pride. She’d always loved the island, and being able to contribute to its vibrancy meant the world to her.
Later that afternoon, Jess sat on the porch, her laptop balanced on her knees. Maisie played nearby, arranging flowers into makeshift crowns. Jess’s fingers danced over the keyboard, updating the event’s Facebook page with a new teaser video.
Maisie sat beside her, diligently coloring a flier mock-up with crayons. “Mommy, do you think people will like my rainbow sun?” she asked, holding up her artwork.
Jess smiled, taking a moment to admire her daughter’s creativity. “I think they’ll love it, sweetheart. Your rainbow sun is the perfect touch.”
“You’ve really outdone yourself this time,” Claudia remarked. “The buzz around the solstice party is incredible. Everyone’s talking about it.”
Jess felt a surge of pride. She had poured her heart into this project, blending her passion for social media with her love for the Vineyard’s traditions. The positive feedback from the community validated her efforts, fueling her motivation to make the event unforgettable.
As the day progressed, Jess continued to fine-tune the event’s online presence, responding to inquiries and sharing behind-the-scenes glimpses of the preparations. Maisie remained her enthusiastic assistant, offering ideas and helping to arrange decorations.
She had told her mother numerous times that she didn’t feel this was the right time for the party, but the more she got into the marketing of it, the more excited she got. And the more excited she got, the more she forgot about her divorce and business failure.
She wasn’t about to tell her mom she was right about any of it, though.
* * *
Friday morning dawned warm and breezy, the kind of June day the Vineyard did best. The early light poured through the sheer curtains in Jess’s childhood bedroom, golden and gentle.
She sat cross-legged on her bed, her laptop balanced on a stack of old magazines, fingers flying across the keyboard as she scheduled the final batch of social media posts for the solstice party.
Her iced coffee sat sweating on the nightstand, and Maisie’s glittery stickers were scattered across a stack of paper fliers that still needed folding.
Her phone buzzed.
“Grandma’s making pancakes,” Maisie called from the hallway, clearly energized by the scent of vanilla and butter wafting through the house. “She said come down now or you miss the fresh batch!”
Jess smiled, then called out, “Tell her I’ll be there in five!”
It was a lie. She still had at least a dozen messages in her DMs to answer and a few more videos to upload before she could even think about breakfast. She was right in the middle of crafting a witty caption about the historic solstice celebrations from the early 1900s, one of her favorite posts to date, when her mother’s voice rose up the stairs.
“Jessica Lynn!” Her mother was all brisk cheer. “I need you down here, now!”
Jess groaned softly and saved her draft. She closed the laptop, scooped up her coffee, and made her way down to the kitchen, still wearing pajama shorts and a stretched-out T-shirt that read “Support Local Bookstores.”
Claudia stood at the stove, her perfectly pressed white linen blouse already starched for the day, a spatula in one hand and a commanding glint in her eye. Maisie sat at the breakfast nook, giggling as she poured extra syrup over her stack of pancakes.
“Morning,” Jess mumbled.
“You’re lucky you caught the last round,” Claudia said, sliding a plate toward her daughter.
Jess picked up a fork and dug in without fanfare, grateful for the food if not for the early interruption. “What’s up?”
Claudia wiped her hands on a dishtowel and leaned against the counter, arms crossed with unmistakable purpose. “I’ve invited everyone over for dinner tonight. Family only… well mostly. Casual. Early evening.”
Jess paused mid-bite. “Everyone? And what do you mean mostly?”
Claudia nodded. “Lily, Anna, the kids. Cody, too, if he’s around, Margot. I even invited that nice man, Tom, and his daughter. He seems to have taken a liking to Lily.”
Jess blinked. “Is this about the solstice party?”
Her mother gave her a look that said Don’t be obtuse. “Yes and…” She grinned back at her. “…it’s about getting together as a family, but it’s also about getting everyone together to help me with the last of the decorations and things.”
Jess set down her fork. “Mom, I really don’t think it’s a good idea to rope them into helping. Especially not Lily or Anna. Not after the week they’ve had.”
Claudia waved her hand in that infuriating way she did whenever she believed herself the most right.
“Oh, please. A little activity will do them good. And it’s not as if I’m asking them to run the entire event.
Just some light help: flower arrangements, ribbon tying, maybe helping the kids set up the games. That kind of thing.”
Jess leaned back in her chair. “You’re not listening. Aunt Lily’s still barely functioning. And Anna, she’s holding it together for the kids, but barely. They don’t need more on their plates right now. They need space.”
Claudia poured herself a fresh cup of coffee and sipped it like she hadn’t just steamrolled her daughter’s concerns. “I’ve been doing this for decades, Jess. Trust me. Sometimes what people need is a sense of normalcy. Something familiar to anchor them. This party is tradition.”
Jess shook her head slowly, unsure whether to laugh or scream. “That’s the thing, Mom. This party might be normal for you. But for them? Nothing is normal right now.”
“Exactly.” Claudia raised a brow. “So the party is a gift. It’s comfort. It’s community.”
Jess bit her tongue, knowing it was useless to argue further. Her mother had made up her mind. No amount of logic was going to sway her. She glanced at Maisie, who was now humming as she decorated her empty plate with whipped cream swirls.
“I’ll help you set up,” Jess said finally. “But if Lily or Anna don’t want to, I’m not going to pressure them.”
“Fair enough,” Claudia said, breezing out of the kitchen like a queen assured of her court.
Later that afternoon, Jess stood on the back porch, laptop balanced on the railing as she updated the party’s event page with new photos from the past year’s celebrations.
Her recent social media campaign had been more successful than she could’ve imagined.
Her inbox was flooded with messages. Reels of the Vineyard in the golden hour, historic solstice trivia, and behind-the-scenes shots of party prep had gone mini-viral in the local scene.
She was even getting DMs from nearby towns asking if the event was open to the public.
Maisie stood beside her, proudly holding a poster board that read “Solstice Party Tomorrow!” in bold glitter letters.
“Can we put this one by the ice cream shop?” Maisie asked.
Jess smiled and ruffled her daughter’s hair. “Yes, that’s a perfect choice.”
Inside, Claudia bustled between her planner and the stove, coordinating tonight’s dinner and tomorrow’s main event with the precision of a general preparing for battle. She stopped only to glance over Jess’s shoulder at the laptop screen.
“You’re so good at this,” she said quietly. “The social media. The promotion. All of it.” Claudia gave a small nod. “People are talking about it all over the Vineyard. Even the Larkspur Ladies’ Guild is impressed. It’s no wonder your business in California was so successful.”
Jess’s smile was hesitant but genuine. “Thanks, Mom.”
“I know I said this before, but you really should think about doing it for more people. As a business. You’ve got the eye for it. The voice.”
Jess looked back at her laptop, at the open Google file where she’d been sketching out business ideas for months. “Maybe.”
It wasn’t a no.
As evening approached, the dining room filled with the smells of roasted vegetables, rosemary chicken, and fresh bread. Claudia had outdone herself, as always. Jess set the table, Maisie flitted around with a stack of napkins, and Claudia arranged a vase of wildflowers at the center.
Lily, Anna, and the kids were the first to arrive. As soon as Maisie saw the kids, they were racing outside to play.
“Whoa!” Claudia called out. “You can wait to go outside. Stay close, once everyone is here, we’ll eat dinner.”
Maisie pouted, but Blaze and Nora nodded, and there was a chorus of “yes, ma’am.”
Margot came in next. Tom and June were close behind and then Cody walked in last. Jess hadn’t seen much of June yet, but tonight she looked a little more relaxed, her shoulders less hunched, her eyes not quite as wary.
Within ten minutes, everyone had a drink in hand and a plate of food in front of them.
Dinner was lively in that slightly chaotic way family meals often were.
The kids were noisy, Henry regaled the table with stories of him and David as kids on their father’s boat, and Claudia somehow managed to get through the first three courses while simultaneously assigning post-dinner party tasks.
“Why haven’t we gone out on the boat?” Blaze asked. “I want to go sailing.”
“That wasn’t a sailing boat, buddy,” Anna answered softly. “Grandpa and Uncle Henry were working on Great Grandpa’s boat back then.”
“What happened to that boat?”
“It’s still being worked, but not by any Hartmans,” Uncle Henry said. “We rent it out.”
“Oh, can we go on it, though?”
“You know, Blaze,” Tom interjected. “I do have a sailboat. You guys are more than welcome to come out on it.”
“You have a sailboat?” Lily asked in shock.
“Yes.” He smiled. “I’ve been sailing since I was a young boy.”
“Well, I think that sounds like a lovely time,” Anna interjected. “We might take you up on that offer, Tom.”
“Does Max sail, too?” Nora gasped.
“He does,” June replied with a laugh. “Dad got him his own life jacket. I might have dressed him up in a captain’s outfit and scuba gear before.”
The kids laughed at that, excitedly talking about what that must have looked like. Jess smiled as she looked around the room. Everyone was in good spirits and seemed to be engaged in the dinner. Maybe her mother did know what she was doing after all.
“Anna, if you’re up for it, I could really use your eye for symmetry tomorrow,” Claudia said, passing a breadbasket.
Anna blinked but nodded. “Sure. I can help.”
Jess opened her mouth to interject but stopped when she saw the grateful smile Anna offered in return.
“Lily, you have such a good eye, too. Would you be able to help as well?”
Lily’s eyes went downcast for a second, her entire body tensing. Jess was certain her mother had finally pushed too hard and that Lily would say no and then leave. But that’s not what happened.
“I would like that. David and I loved the solstice parties. I think it would be a great way to honor him.”
“I thought so, too,” Claudia said as she reached out and covered her sister-in-law’s hand with hers.
Jess turned to glance at Anna, who was cutting Blaze’s chicken into smaller pieces. There was a strength in her cousin that Jess had never fully appreciated until now. A kind of unbreakable steadiness that even grief hadn’t managed to topple.
“You can tell Mom no, you know?” Jess whispered.
Anna gave her a small smile. “I don’t think Aunt Claudia has ever heard the word. Besides, it’ll be nice for us to focus on something other than waiting for new news.”
“I get that. I’ll rescue you if I need to.”
Anna giggled. Claudia was animatedly explaining to Lily some of her additional ideas for the party. Henry and Tom were deep in conversation about Tom’s sailboat. June was watching it all unfold, and Cody looked like he’d rather be anywhere but here. Jess understood that feeling all too well.
An hour later, Claudia directed the cleanup like a conductor with a full orchestra. June stayed close to the edge of the room, helping without drawing attention, and Jess noticed how the kids kept gravitating toward her, like they’d decided she was part of the family already.
And maybe she was; she seemed to fit into the mix well.
By the time the house had quieted, and the last of the dishes were stacked in the sink, Jess returned to her laptop.
The solstice party was less than twenty-four hours away.
Her checklist was long, her nerves tight, but as she looked around the house she felt excitement and hope, not fear and overwhelm like recently. And that…felt nice.