Now
VIOLET
THANKSGIVING DAY
“Hey, are you ready to go?” I ask Grayson.
He’s standing in front of his truck in a gray button-up shirt, dark gray pants, and black dress shoes with his dark brunette hair all gelled up.
I opted for my halter baby pink flowy above-the-knee dress that has a floral pattern on it with a pair of my white, strappy high heels. I chose to wear my hair half-up and half-down with a natural makeup look.
I swear his eyes pop out of their sockets like a cartoon character. His gaze starts at my feet and works its way up to my face. “You look absolutely beautiful.”
“And you look very handsome.”
“Why thank you, ma’am.” He grabs my hand, guiding me into the truck.
“You’re welcome, sir.”
He walks behind the vehicle and plops down on the driver’s seat. “Please don’t call me that when we’re in public.”
“Why?”
“I won’t be able to keep my hands off you.”
Goddamn.
“What if I want your hands all over me?”
“Don’t tempt me, Angel.”
I rest my elbows on the console. “You love me.”
“More than you know.”
We pull up at the Kaplan family house around 3 p.m.
Grayson wanted to leave a little earlier in case we ran into holiday traffic, which we did, but it wasn’t too bad. It could’ve been worse.
Holiday traffic in Sunset Cove is a nightmare. Most of the time, we’re sitting there for hours and waiting for cars to move. On an average day, we sit in traffic for up to an hour.
Last week at Sweet & Salty felt like we were on overdrive every day until Wednesday. I don’t work on Tuesdays, but I heard from Willow that we had a line out the door.
I’m a firm believer that our social media presence is why we’ve been so busy so far this holiday season.
We’ve grown a community of around 50,000 followers on Instagram, which is our main method of communication with everybody besides our website.
Laura says this is all because of me, and I’m happy I had the opportunity to help us be discovered by readers in town, out of state, and who are from different countries.
After a busy week at the store, I can’t wait to unplug and do nothing for a little while.
Today, I get to spend Thanksgiving with some of my favorite people: Laura, Noah, Lizzie, Dani, Celia, Dana, and Grayson.
Lizzie is Noah’s older sister that I haven’t seen in several years. I do remember how she helped Grayson with the annotated copy of Shatter Me he gave me for my sweet sixteen.
Celia is Dani’s mom. I don’t remember if I’ve met her before because I wasn’t friends with Dani back in high school.
Dana has been living here with Laura. She seems really happy here from what Grayson has told me. I couldn’t be more thrilled for her.
On the flip side, Willow is spending Thanksgiving with her dad because it’s an annual thing she’s done since she started college. Bella is spending the holiday with her family, and so are Sage and Xander.
When we walk up to the front door, Grayson rings the doorbell. Eventually, I hear a dog barking. Once the door opens, Sammy comes running out to Grayson and waits to be pet. Sammy is the Kaplan family’s golden retriever.
Grayson pets Sammy’s head. “Hey buddy, have you been behaving?”
Sammy comes over to me, and I pet the sides of his face with both of my hands. “Hi Sammy, do you remember me?”
Noah walks out the front door. “Of course he remembers you, Violet. You have a memorable face.”
“Thanks for that one,” I say.
“I wasn’t trying to be funny. I was being serious,” Noah says.
Grayson puts his arm around Noah’s neck. “Okay, give us the low down on who’s here so far.”
“Literally everybody is here. It’s mostly my family, so they’re all here. Lizzie got here this morning. Your mom is here because she lives here.” He laughs. “Dani and Celia got here a couple of hours ago. C’mon, follow me.”
We all walk inside the house, and I don’t know how I forgot how pretty it is. There’s so much light coming through the windows. It’s so cozy in here with the way the living room is set up.
“Mom’s in the kitchen,” Noah says.
Grayson salutes Noah with two fingers and heads into the kitchen with me trailing behind him.
“Who’s ready to stuff a turkey?” Grayson asks, his tone light.
“Yay! I’m so happy you’re both here.” Laura walks over to both of us, hugging us one by one. “I didn’t know if you were coming, Violet.”
“I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” I say.
She faces Grayson, leaning on the marble island in the middle of the kitchen. “Alright, so the turkey is already stuffed and roasting in the oven. Do you think you can take on the stuffing and the green bean casserole? I’m working on the mashed sweet potatoes right now.”
“Yeah, definitely.” He walks over to the counter closest to the stove.
There’s a half a pound of fuji apples with the skin peeled off. They’re sitting there along with a large bowl with pieces of ripped bread, vegetable broth, and various herbs and seasonings.
On the other side of the kitchen, there’s a colander of green beans sitting in the sink. A can of mushroom soup, a carton of fat-free milk, and a bag of crispy onions are in a horizontal line next to each other.
“Have you been in here all by yourself?” I ask Laura.
She shakes her head. “No, not at all. Lizzie, Dana, Celia, and Dani have been back and forth, helping me prepare and cook.” She throws the mashed sweet potatoes into a foil tin, smoothing them out on the top. “You should go say hi to everybody if you haven’t already.”
“Okay. Let me know if you guys need help with anything.”
I don’t get an answer from either of them because they’re too focused on making some of the sides for dinner.
I find my way into the living room where Lizzie, Dani, Celia, and Dana are.
“When did you get here?” Dani asks.
“Maybe ten minutes ago.”
Dana’s face lights up when she sees me, and I can feel the tears bubbling up at the inner rims of my eyes.
“Hey, stranger,” she says as she hugs me tightly.
“Violet, this is my mom.” Dani points to Celia.
Celia delicately shakes my hand. “Hi, Violet. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Dani and her mom could not look more alike if they tried. They both have dark brunette hair, dark brown eyes, similar skin tones, and various other physical attributes.
Lizzie gets up from the sofa chair. “Damn, I remember when you were a kid. You’re all grown up now.”
“Yeah, time flies when you’re having fun.”
“I’m sure.” Lizzie smiles at me, rubbing the top of my shoulder.
“Where’s your brother?” I ask her.
“He’s playing Frisbee with Sammy in the yard behind the house.” She guides me to the back patio. “So, Noah told me you’re the assistant manager at Sweet & Salty now. What an awesome accomplishment.”
“Yeah, it’s been amazing so far, and your mom is the best boss I could ever ask for.”
“Oh, I’m not surprised. She’s one of the best people I know. You’re in good hands with her.”
“What have you been up to?”
“I’m in the process of finishing up my time at Sunset Cove Police Department as a detective. I got a job offer in Crescent Falls in their police department’s Special Victims Unit as a detective, but it doesn’t start until next year.”
“Wow, that’s impressive. I know you’ve worked really hard to get to that point.”
“Mm-hm. I’m looking forward to getting out of Sunset Cove because I see my dad everywhere I go, and it doesn’t help with the healing process.”
“He’s always going to be a part of you. I’m sure he’s proud of you. Just like your Mom and Noah are proud of you, too.”
“Thank you for saying that. You’re sweet.” Lizzie stands by the screen door, watching Noah. “Hey, dipshit. Someone wants to say hi to you.”
“Hey.” Noah tries to get the Frisbee out of Sammy’s mouth, but the dog’s grip on it is too strong for him.
“I’ll see you back inside,” Lizzie says and leaves us alone.
When Noah finally gets the Frisbee, he comes back inside the back patio where I am with Sammy. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your company, Violet?” He opens the sliding glass door, so Sammy can go inside.
“Lizzie told me about her job offer in Crescent Falls.”
“Yeah, I’m proud of her.”
“How could you not be?” I lean against the wall next to the sliding glass door. “Sometimes I wonder what my life would’ve been like if I had the dynamic you and Lizzie have with my brother, but I think going through all those things I went through with him made me stronger as a person.”
“I’ve told you this so many times, but you’re one of the strongest people I know. I’m going to be honest, I’m surprised you came given your situation with Grayson.”
If only you knew the half of it.
“Mm, yeah.”
I keep my answer as nonchalant as possible because we agreed we’d tell everybody together. It wouldn’t be fair if I told his best friend that his best friends are dating again. I want Noah to find out from the both of us.
All I know is I can’t wait to eat all this delicious food I’ve been smelling.
“Alright, everybody. Dinner is ready!” Laura raises her voice.
The majority of us have been hanging out and chatting with each other in the living room for the past few hours. Celia and Dana have been back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, helping Laura and Grayson with making dinner.
Glancing at the lockscreen on my phone, I read the time, which displays 6:15 p.m.
I make my way over to the dining room table along with Dani, Noah, and Lizzie.
“Is there assigned seating?” I ask Lizzie.
“No, you can sit wherever you want.”
Grayson comes out of the kitchen and sits down next to the head of the table, Laura. I decide to sit across from him on the other side of her. Noah and Dani sit across from each other, as do Dana and Celia. Lizzie sits next to Celia.
“Are you sure it’s a good idea for you two to sit across from each other?” Dani asks me, her face frozen.
“I think it’ll be fine,” I say.