Chapter Twelve
Willow stood beside Jay Bird in the gravel parking lot and stared at the weathered building in front of her.
This was Bayside? She thought to herself.
The place looked like it had survived three hurricanes, two bar fights, and at least one failed health inspection.
Weathered gray siding covered the building; several shutters hung slightly crooked, and a faded wooden sign with “Bayside” painted across it swung lazily near the entrance.
An old fishing net had been draped over part of the porch, and there was even a rusty anchor half buried in the sand near the entrance.
Willow slowly glanced at Jay Bird.
He was already smirking.
“Don’t.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“You were thinking it pretty loud.”
She looked back at the building. “I’m just trying to decide if my tetanus shot is current.”
Jay Bird laughed. “Wait until you get inside.”
“That sounds ominous.”
“It's supposed to look like this.”
“Like it’s condemned?”
“Exactly.”
Willow stared at him.
Jay Bird shifted Lily higher on his hip as the little girl squirmed excitedly in his arms.
“Arianna’s dad designed it this way years ago. It keeps tourists moving toward the nicer-looking places.”
“You’re serious?”
“Mostly locals come here. A lot of military and first responders. People who know about it.”
Willow shook her head. “That might be the strangest marketing strategy I’ve ever heard.”
“It works.”
Lily bounced against him. “Down, Jay!”
“Nope.”
“Down!”
“You’ll make a run for the road.”
“No.”
“That’s exactly what someone planning to run for the road would say.”
Willow smiled as Lily gave him her pouty lip.
She had been excited from the moment Jay Bird told her they were going out for dinner.
Apparently, three weeks of buses, trains, hiding, and hotel rooms hadn't diminished Lily’s enthusiasm for going places now that she no longer had to be afraid every time they left the house.
Willow wished she could say the same, because ever since they’d pulled out of Jay Bird’s driveway, her stomach had been knotted tight in a way she couldn’t quite shake.
A restaurant meant people, noise, and strangers moving constantly behind her.
She knew everyone they were meeting tonight was connected to Jay Bird and the teams. She had even spent part of the week looking at pictures while Jay Bird patiently tried to help her remember names.
Still, knowing that didn’t completely silence the part of her that searched every crowded space for danger.
Jay Bird seemed to pick up on it without her having to say a word, and a moment later his hand found the small of her back, brushing there lightly in a quiet, steadying touch that grounded her more than she expected.
“You good?”
Willow looked up at him. He had promised before they left that he would stay beside her all night if she needed him to.
“Yeah.”
“If that changes, tell me.”
“I will.”
He nodded toward the door. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
The second they walked inside, Willow stopped. “Oh. Wow!”
Jay Bird chuckled. “Told ya.”
The interior looked nothing like the outside.
Warm wood covered the floors and walls, while nautical decorations mixed with military memorabilia throughout the large restaurant.
Unit patches, framed photographs, challenge coins, old Navy signs, and Coast Guard memorabilia filled one wall.
Another held fishing gear and photographs of boats.
The atmosphere was comfortable rather than polished, with large booths, mismatched tables, and wide windows overlooking the water.
“Okay,” Willow admitted. “This is actually really nice.”
“Say it louder.”
“Don’t push it.”
Jay Bird grinned and guided her through the restaurant toward doors leading onto a huge back deck.
A long table stretched across the back wall right next to the patio doors. Holy crap, Jay Bird hadn’t been exaggerating when he said there would be a lot of people.
Willow felt her nerves spike. But then she saw Riley.
Riley smiled and pushed herself carefully from her chair, one hand instinctively settling over her very pregnant belly.
“You made it!” Willow relaxed instantly as Riley pulled her into a hug. “I’m so glad you came.”
“Me too. I think.”
Riley smiled at Lily, who had suddenly abandoned all her earlier enthusiasm and was now clinging tightly to Jay Bird.
“Hi, Lily.”
Lily buried her face against his shoulder.
Jay Bird rubbed her back.
“Apparently, we’re shy now.”
Riley laughed. “Give her five minutes.” Then she took Willow’s hand. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to everyone.”
Thankfully, Jay Bird had already given her a head start.
Riley pointed toward the first couple. “Bear and Jocelyn. Their kids are Max, and the tiny tornado currently bouncing in her chair is Amira.”
Amira waved enthusiastically. “Hi!”
Willow waved back.
Then came Joker and Clover, followed by Duke and Hannah with baby Izzy, who was just a few months shy of her first birthday, and then Playboy and Gabby.
Aussie sat beside Ava with their son Christian, while Snow and Nova were seated farther down the table, and at the very end were Derek and his wife, Juliette.
Willow waved to everyone. Everyone greeted her warmly without making a big deal about her arrival, which she appreciated more than they could know.
Jay Bird pulled out a chair across from Bear and Jocelyn.
“Here. Have a seat.”
Willow sat, and Jay Bird took the seat beside her with Lily still firmly planted on his lap.
Amira leaned across the table, shoved a coloring placemat and crayons toward Lily. “Does she want to color?”
Jay Bird shrugged. “Ask her.”
Apparently, Amira took that as an invitation to conduct the conversation from approximately three inches away, because instead of simply asking from her seat, she practically climbed onto the table to get closer to Lily.
“Do you wanna color?” she asked, as if the decreased distance was somehow necessary for Lily to understand the question.
Willow bit back a laugh, though others at the table found it hilarious.
Bear reached out and caught the back of Amira’s shirt before she could make it all the way onto the table.
“Easy, Spider-Man. You can ask her without climbing the furniture.”
Amira looked over her shoulder at him. “I’m not climbing on it.”
“You’ve got a knee next to my crab dip. I think we’ve crossed that line.”
Amira huffed like he was being completely unreasonable, then slid back into her seat. “Fine. But she might not hear me from all the way over here.”
Jay Bird glanced at the whopping two feet separating them. “Yeah. It’s a real long-distance situation.”
Amira stared directly at Jay Bird. “Uncle Jay Bird?”
“What?”
Amira pointed at Lily. “When did you get a kid?”
The table went suspiciously quiet. Willow nearly choked on her water.
Jay Bird looked down at Lily, then at Amira.
“I found her in the parking lot and decided to keep her.”
Amira’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“No,” Jocelyn said quickly.
Laughter broke out around the table, and before she could even think to hold it back, Willow found herself laughing right along with everyone else.
“Don’t tell her something like that. Shit, now she’s gonna be scoping out every parking lot we pass, looking for a kid she can bring home,” Bear muttered.
Amira looked at Willow. “Is he keeping you too?”
That only made the laughter around the table grow louder, and Willow felt her face heat up as she tried and failed to hide how flustered she was.
Jay Bird leaned toward Amira. “Eat your food.”
“I don’t have my food yet.”
“Then go play a game,” he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out two dollars. He handed it to her.
Willow laughed again as Amira snatched the dollar bills from Jay Bird’s hand, looking as if she had hit the jackpot. Then she skipped off to the pinball machine.
Willow looked at Lily, who was watching everyone.
“Want to color, bug?”
Lily eyed everyone again, then slowly reached for a purple crayon and started to color.
Jay Bird leaned closer to Willow. “You okay?”
This time, when she answered, she meant it. “Yeah. I’m good.”
About two hours later, Willow was surprised to realize she was having fun and enjoying herself.
Dinner had been loud, chaotic, and full of overlapping conversations, but something about the group made it impossible to stay tense for long.
After eating, most of the men drifted toward the pool tables while the women remained at the table just talking.
Lily sat beside Willow now, happily coloring with Amira, who apparently had appointed herself Lily’s personal social coordinator.
Gabby leaned toward Willow. “Mia said you’re going to work at her clinic.”
Willow smiled. “I am.”
“That’s exciting.”
Juliette nodded toward Lily. “Anytime you need someone to watch her, call me.”
Willow looked at her. “You really wouldn’t mind?”
“Not even a little. The kids are in and out of our house constantly.”
“She’s serious," Hannah said. “Juliette collects children.”
Juliette shrugged. “Somebody has to feed them.”
Willow laughed. It still amazed her how quickly these people offered help without making her feel indebted.
Nova leaned across the table. “And when you’re ready, come see me at the gym.”
Willow glanced toward her. “Kickboxing?”
“Absolutely. It’s a great stress reliever, but I’d also be happy to work with you privately on self-defense.”
That caught Willow’s attention, and something quietly shifted in her at the thought of being able to protect herself better.
“I’d like that.”
“Whenever you’re ready.”
Willow nodded, happy she had agreed to this dinner.