Page 29 of Reuniting with Lucy
Jack raised his eyebrows, questioning why she’d need to involve her father.
“Nana’s had a little issue with collecting things that aren’t hers lately,” Lucy explained, putting the word “collecting” in air quotes. “At first, it was small things—spoons from the coffee shop, a wine stopper from The Drop, stuff like that. Mom would find the evidence in Nana’s pockets while doing the laundry. I just hope she hasn’t moved on to non-familial victims and more valuable items.”
“Yeah, I guess your dad would want to know about that.”
“I think she’s doing it for attention, but if she ramps up her game too far, she’s gonna get attention she doesn’t want. In jail!”
He huffed out a laugh. “Well, if it helps, I’ll keep an eye on her. Probably stick my wallet in my front pocket too,” he said with a wink.
“Not funny,” Lucy said, but smiled despite her words.
Her smile gave him a warm, gushy feeling. He’d built a fortress of rock around his heart after his divorce, but Lucy was quickly chipping away at the barrier. He’d have to tread carefully. Both to avoid getting hurt and to ensure he didn’t hurt her.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
In the couple of weeks since Halloween, Lucy and Jack had spent as much free time together as possible. Days were busy with her remodel, but they dedicated the nights to getting to know one another. And the more time they shared together, the harder Lucy fell for him.
Today was her twenty-ninth birthday. She and Lizzie sat, surrounded by family at their parents’ dining room table to celebrate. Their mother had fixed two dinners, as she always did on their birthday—enchiladas for Lizzie and homemade pizza for Lucy.
Per usual, dinner was loud and long. Everyone was a couple glasses of wine into celebrating.
“Have you ever celebrated your birthday without Lizzie?” Jack leaned over to ask Lucy.
“No,” Lucy said. “Why would I?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Seems like it’d be nice to get some special attention. Just for you.”
“You’re talking crazy right now. That would be too weird.”
“All right, well, keep that in mind when you open my present later.”
Someone dimmed the lights, and her parents entered the dining room, each holding a different cake—cheesecake for Lucy and ice cream cake for Lizzie—both ablaze with candles. Lucy and Lizzie sat side-by-side in the middle of the table and smiled as everyone joined in to sing “Happy Birthday.” They made a wish—Lucy’s was easy. He was sitting right beside her—and blew out the candles.
“Dang, that’s a lot of fire,” Lizzie said. “Maybe one of us should hook up with a firefighter. Just in case one of these parties gets out of control.”
“I’m game,” Nana said with a coy laugh.
“That’s all you, Lizzie,” Emma said.
“Ha. Can you imagine?” Lizzie asked.
Everyone nodded. “Why not? You’ve dated every other profession,” Kate said.
Lizzie mulled it over. “Actually, yeah. And they’re known for being hot. I’m surprised I’ve never tapped that resource.”
“Hey,” their dad said. “You’re twenty-nine now. It’s time to think about settling down.”
“Don’t hold your breath, Dad,” Lizzie said.
“Lucy, when is The Drip 2.0 opening?” Emma asked.
“Ask Jack,” Lucy said.
“We’re about two months out,” Jack said. “Should be around Christmas. Maybe the first of the year.”
When it came time to open presents, Lucy and Lizzie each took a seat of honor on the living room couch. They opened gifts that were, as always, something identical, but in different colors or styles. Nana gave them each a set of hand towels. One set had funny sayings about coffee, and the other, jokes about alcohol. Lizzie held up one that said, “Shut up, Liver. You’re fine,” and everyone laughed.
Kate gave them matching scarf/hat/mitten sets—Lucy’s in red, Lizzie’s in black. And so it went. Matching pairs of this and that. Only Jack’s gift was unique.