Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
Faith smoothed down the front of her floral dress and grinned at her reflection in the bathroom mirror.
Past the swinging door that led into the women’s restroom in The Lighthouse Grill, she could hear the sounds of people talking and laughing.
The air was filled with delicious smells that wafted across the whole restaurant from the kitchen.
I’m so excited this day is finally here, she thought, doing a twirl in front of the mirror. So far this has been a great success. Everyone has been having a wonderful time.
She made her way out into the dining room, feeling as though she’d stepped back out into some kind of enchanted world.
Candles had been lit all across the dining room, adding a magical quality to the already cozy restaurant.
Two long tables placed along the far wall of the dining room had been laden with various trays of delicious food, and another table set near the windows had been covered in games for children and adults to play.
The dining tables and booths of the pub were filled with townspeople, all of whom were either eating or talking or laughing.
Faith could hear snatches of conversations, and her heart warmed to hear friends and neighbors catching up and making sure that everyone was doing okay after the craziness of the storm.
She saw Vivian approaching her, and she hurried toward her for a hug.
“This is fantastic,” Faith gushed. “It’s everything I hoped it would be. Everyone looks so happy. Thank you so much for hosting it, Vivian.”
“Oh, of course.” Vivian gave Faith’s shoulders a squeeze as they separated. “I’m having a marvelous time. It’s so wonderful to see how much good it’s doing everyone.”
“Do you need help with anything? How’s everything going in the kitchen?”
“You mean since you left it five minutes ago?” Vivian laughed.
“Great. We’ve got backup charcuterie boards all ready, a backup crock-pot of Swedish meatballs, a tray of the mini quiches, and about five plates of cookies and brownies all waiting to be whisked out once the food tables are in need of refilling. ”
“Perfect.” Faith grinned. “I’m so glad everything’s been going so well.”
Vivian put an arm around Faith’s shoulders. “It couldn’t be going any better. This was truly an incredible idea. Thank you so much for suggesting this, Faith.”
“You’re so welcome. I’m thrilled that the gathering is going well, but there’s another very important part of tonight that I need to attend to.
” She grinned at Vivian, and made her way to the beverage table, where she poured herself a glass of lemonade.
Then, taking a fork in hand, she stood in the center of the room and tapped her fork against the glass.
The room quieted, and all heads turned expectantly in her direction. Faith smiled warmly at them, loving being surrounded by all of her favorite faces, and then she took a deep breath.
“I wanted to organize this party for everyone in town,” she began, her voice soft.
She hadn’t spoken to a whole room since her days as a lawyer.
As she continued to speak, her volume grew, as if she was settling into the use of a skill that would never really leave her, although she was now putting it to a very different use.
“I think everyone needs it after the storm. We need a chance to come together and celebrate what makes this town so unique and special.”
Murmurs of agreement flickered around the room, and Faith smiled. She noticed Hazel grinning at her and nodding, and Alexis beaming at her as she cuddled a sleeping Cash in her arms.
“At first, my thoughts were on the Owens family only,” Faith said.
“I feel so lucky to have been taken under their wing. I do want to celebrate them specially tonight—I don’t think there’s anyone in town who hasn’t been positively impacted by Julia or Cooper, Alexis or Grayson, Hazel or Jacob, Dean or Noelle, or Vivian.
” This time some people cheered, and many people lifted their glasses.
Faith made eye contact with Vivian and saw that she was crying.
“They’re a huge part of what makes this town so special.
I’d thought about having a celebration with just them at first, a reason to get our whole family together, but I realized that our whole family gets together every week anyway. ”
Faith’s eyes misted slightly with gratitude.
“How many families with adult children get to be together more than they are apart? The Owens make it a point to share what they have with each other regularly. Their food, their recipes, their care, their hearts, and their time. And I realized after thinking about it for a little while, that the constancy and the love of the Owens family is a glowing example of the heart and spirit of Rosewood Beach as a whole.” Faith blinked back a few tears as she continued, noticing that Julia was crying with happiness as Cooper wrapped an arm around her and Quinn squirmed in her arms. Dean grinned at Faith from across the room, looking as happy and proud as a man could be with Noelle holding onto his arm.
“This gathering,” Faith said, holding up her glass as her voice became even stronger, “is a celebration of our entire town and the home that this community creates for anyone who enters here. Tourists feel it, but I know that no one feels it more than those of us who have come here needing a place of refuge and finding ourselves welcomed with open arms into the heart of this community.”
She shared eye contact with Delilah, who looked as emotional as she felt over the accuracy of those words. They smiled at each other through misty eyes.
Faith lifted up her glass higher. “I would like for us all to toast together to Rosewood Beach.”
Every person in the room lifted up a glass.
“To Rosewood Beach!”