Almost Home (20 page)

After they’d served up the last of the ice cream, she said, “Thanks, Jesse. I never would have asked a friend to pitch in, but I’m really glad you did. Otherwise, there’d still be a line and I’d still be wondering when it would end.”

She looked beyond Jesse to scan the crowd, wondering if Wade was around, but didn’t see him. Cody and Logan had come for ice cream earlier—chocolate mint—but they’d been in Tina’s line and she hadn’t seen them since.

“I was happy to give you a hand.” Jesse stood with his hands on his hips. “Looks like you had a great turnout for the run.”

“It exceeded every one of our expectations. We never would have guessed that so many people would show up. Not just people from St. Dennis, but a lot of day-trippers came. I’ll bet my mom and dad were pleased to see how many were wearing these T-shirts
today.” She pulled at the front of her own red shirt. “I’m sure we raised a record amount of money for research, and that’s the bottom line.”

“You must be exhausted,” Jesse said as he gathered his things from under the table.

“I admit I’m a bit tired.”

Steffie heard her name called and turned to see her parents making their way toward the shop.

“Oh, damn,” she told them when they drew near. “I’m just about out of ice cream.”

“Not to worry,” her mother told her. “We’ll just sit inside while you make more.”

“Oh. Okay,” Stef replied almost feebly.

“Just kidding, sweetie.” Shirley Wyler kissed her daughter’s cheek. “What a wonderful day you and Grant put together. We’re so proud of you.”

“Very proud,” her father, George, greeted her with a bear hug.

“Don’t give us all the credit, please,” Stef protested. “We had a committee this year, and Grant did most of the organizational work. And remember that you two started this whole thing years ago.”

“Well, I’m betting you raised a much bigger bundle than we did back then. And love the shirts, by the way.” Shirley turned to Jesse. “So, it looks like you ran today, too.”

“I did,” he told her.

Shirley took her husband’s arm. “Dear, this is Jesse Enright. He handled Cousin Horace’s will for us.”

“George Wyler.” Stef’s dad extended his hand. “Good to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you.” Jesse shook the older man’s hand.

“I made dinner reservations tonight at Captain Walt’s for all of us, but Grant can’t make it. He just found out that he’ll be getting a van full of dogs from Georgia for the shelter and he and Dallas will be tied up most of the night with them.” Shirley turned to Jesse. “Our son runs an animal rescue shelter in addition to his veterinary clinic and apparently last-minute deliveries are quite common.”

“I don’t know if that’s accurate, Shirl,” George noted. “I think he said something about the place they’d intended to take the dogs had an outbreak of kennel cough and they didn’t want to expose them.”

“Whatever the reason, he just found out and he and Dallas have had to cancel dinner.” Shirley dismissed the matter with a wave of her hand. “I still find it hard to picture Dallas MacGregor working alongside Grant with all those dogs. I always picture her as that delicate flower in
Silver Mornings
.”

“Mom, Dallas made that movie about fifteen years ago,” Steffie reminded her.

“I know, but there was something in her performance that stayed with me,” her mother told her. “It’s one of my favorite films of all time.”

“I hope you told her,” Stef said. From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Wade standing on the boardwalk in conversation with Clay Madison. Dallas had just joined them with Austin in the stroller, though that appeared to be temporary, as he was busy climbing out.

“I did.” Shirley turned to Jesse. “So it seems we have two extra seats at our table tonight. Why don’t you join us if you don’t have other plans?”

“Great idea, Shirl. Hope to see you then, Enright.”
George looked over his shoulder and waved to someone. “Oh, there’s Hal Garrity. I want to say hello before he gets lost in the crowd. Excuse me for a moment …”

“So, we’ll see you tonight, Jesse?”

“Ahhh …” Caught off guard, Jesse appeared unsure as to how to answer. He glanced quickly at Steffie.

“What a good idea, Mom.” Stef sensed his discomfort and turned to Jesse. “If you’re free, of course.”

“I don’t have other plans,” he told them, “but if you’re sure I won’t be intruding …”

“Nonsense.” Shirley smiled. “We’d love to have you. The reservations are for seven. If that fits your schedule, we’ll see you then.”

“Seven is fine. Thank you.”

“Stef, we’ll see you then as well.” Shirley hugged her daughter. Her voice lowered, and she added, “And thanks again for putting so much time into this. I’m sure wherever she is, Natalie is very proud of her little sister.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Stef whispered.

“Well, then, I think I’ll go and try to catch up with Grace. I want to thank her for all the ink she’s given to this project and to her thoughtful, personal remembrance of Natalie.”

“I didn’t see that.” Steffie frowned. “Where did you see that?”

“She sent us a copy of the paper that came out on Wednesday. Didn’t you see it?” her mother asked.

“I haven’t seen much of anything over the last three or four days. I think I still have the paper, though.”

“Make sure you read it, Stef. Grace wrote about
how difficult it was to explain to her own child why she wouldn’t be seeing her friend anymore.”

“How who …?”

“Oh, Grace’s daughter. Of course you were just a baby then, but Lucy and Nat shared a birthday. They were in the same play group together and became fast friends from the first day. They really were best buddies. Grace would bring Lucy over on days when Nat was feeling up to company, and the two girls would play with their dolls.” Shirley swallowed a lump and looked away. “When Natalie was too sick or too weak to play, Lucy read to her. She was inconsolable when Natalie died. For years after, Grace said, Lucy didn’t want to celebrate her birthday because she couldn’t celebrate it with Nat.” She blinked several times as if to blink away the tears that welled in her eyes. “Anyway, Grace wrote a piece about the girls and their friendship and it was very touching. And now”—she looked around—“where did your father get to?”

“He’s over by the walk talking to Hal,” Steffie told her. And closer to the water, she noticed, Wade and Clay had been joined by Clay’s sister, Brooke, who was chatting with Dallas.

“No doubt giving Hal a full report on the condition of the Bay, environmentally speaking. I should go save Hal.” She turned to Steffie and Jesse. “I’ll see you both at dinner.”

“My dad’s working on an environmental study of the Chesapeake,” Steffie told Jesse as her mother rushed off. “He’s concentrating on the Susquehanna Watershed, what pollutants the river dumps into the Bay, and how best to combat them. He’s become quite militant.”

She looked back toward the water, where Dallas was just walking off with Austin in the stroller.

Jesse followed her gaze. “Isn’t that your friend from the other night? Wade?”

Steffie nodded. “The other guy is Clay Madison.”

“Who’s the woman with him?” Jesse’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Clay’s sister, Brooke Bowers.”

Jesse stared for a moment, then turned back to Stef and said, “Listen, I know your mother put you on the spot, asking me to join your family for dinner. It’s okay if you don’t want me to do that. I mean, I won’t be offended.”

“Don’t be silly. Of course I want you to join us.” She smiled. “But if I’m going to make it by seven, I need to get to work now.”

Wade, Clay, and Brooke began to make their way toward the marina.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you there.” Jesse started to walk away. “Unless you want me to pick you up?”

“No, but thanks.” She shook her head no. “I may run a little late. If you get there before I do, just ask my dad how his efforts to clean up the Bay are going. That should keep everyone busy until I arrive.”

“Will do.”

Steffie went into the shop through the back door. Surprised at the number of customers awaiting service, since the ice cream they’d given out earlier had been free, she grabbed an apron and went to work.

“So, how’s your new helper working out?” Vanessa came up behind her. Along with Grady, she’d stopped in to see if Stef needed any help cleaning up outside.

“What new helper?” Stef frowned.

“I noticed Jesse Enright helping you dish a while ago. Very cozy, you two.” Vanessa leaned in to whisper in Stef’s ear.

Stef smiled, handed over her customer’s order, and turned around. “He was here when the crowd built up and my wrist was giving out. He offered to help, and I was desperate, so I let him, since my wrist was killing me.”

“Did he ask you out?” Vanessa asked. “And what’s wrong with your wrist?”

“We’re having dinner tonight with my parents, but no, it wasn’t his idea. It was my mother’s. Grant and Dallas had to cancel, so there was space at the table,” she explained. “And my wrist just got a bit overworked today. It’ll be fine.”

“Hmm …”

“ ‘Hmmmmm’ what?” Steffie asked

“Oh, nothing.” Vanessa retied the strings of Stef’s apron in the back, where they were coming undone. “Just that, well, could be a coincidence, or, it could be because of—”

“Do not even pretend it has anything to do with your …” Stef lowered her voice, eyeing Grady who was on the other side of the counter talking to his sister, Mia, who’d just come in the front door. “Does he know that you’re practicing spells? Or pretending to?”

“No, and do not tell him. He’ll think I’m flaky.”

“Gosh, ya think?”

“And don’t be so smart-alecky about it. Had he asked you out before I …” Vanessa stole a glance at Grady. “Before … you know.”

“I hadn’t even met Jesse … 
before
. And,” Stef reminded
her, “he didn’t ask me out. This is not a date. I repeat. This is not a date. My
mother
asked him.”

“Same difference.” Vanessa walked to the other side of the counter and checked out the ice-cream flavors. “I don’t suppose there was any of the mint left over.”

“There was, but I put it aside for Clay. I promised I’d save some for him, but I didn’t see him after the race.” She scanned the containers, then put two scoops of pineapple coconut into a dish.

“He and Wade were talking outside for a while,” Vanessa told her. “And Brooke. The three of them took off together a while ago.”

Steffie put two spoons into the dish and passed it over the counter to Vanessa. “On the house.”

“Thanks. I suppose the two spoons means I’m to share. And I will, as soon as I can get Grady’s attention.”

“Clay and Wade are old friends,” Stef told her. “Brooke’s all right. She had the hots for Grant for a long time, but now that she’s worked that out of her system, she seems okay. I don’t know if she’d dating anyone, but Jesse sure did give her the once-over.”

“Why wouldn’t he? She’s really pretty.”

Stef nodded in agreement. “Her son, Logan, is a doll. He and Dallas’s son are BFFs. They do everything together. Two peas in a pod, Miz Berry always says.”

“I know. Dallas had both of them with her one day last week when she stopped in to pick up a top she’d ordered.” Vanessa leaned on the counter. “I still can’t get over the fact that Dallas MacGregor buys her clothes from me.” She paused. “Well, not all of them, of course, but some.”

The bell rang and a new group came into the shop.

“I’ll get out of your way. Thanks again for the ice cream. One day I’ll come in here and actually buy something from you.” Vanessa stepped away from the counter.

“And one day I’ll let you. As soon as you stop giving me those fabulous discounts in Bling.”

Vanessa smiled. “What are friends for?”

“Ice cream and deep discounts on cool clothes.”

“Exactly,” Vanessa said before making her way through the crowd to Grady.

At five thirty, Steffie hung up her apron and tapped Tina on the shoulder. “If you and Claire are all right here, I’m going to head home. I’m meeting my mom and dad for dinner at seven, and I’m a mess.”

“Go,” Tina told her. “The next few hours should be fairly light.”

“Call me if you need to.” Stef grabbed her bag from the back room and made her way to her car in the municipal lot. Lately she’d been walking to work more frequently, but today she’d driven. She’d had a feeling she’d be tired by the end of the day, and the long walk back to her apartment would have felt endless.

Fatigue tempted her to fall facedown across her bed, but she forced herself into the shower. By the time her hair was dry and she’d dressed and put on some makeup, she had just enough time to get to Captain Walt’s by seven.

She wasn’t sure how she felt about her mother’s invitation to Jesse. On the one hand, she almost wished he’d said no. Oh, he was a nice enough guy, and it had been so thoughtful of him to pitch in this morning.
She really had appreciated it. But frankly, she’d just as soon skip dinner and paint cabinets in her kitchen, which was, she had to admit, a sad commentary and a sure sign that her interest in him was nothing more than platonic. Now, if it had been Wade … well, that would certainly have put a little extra bounce in her step.

If it were Wade, she’d be obsessing over what to wear, how to fix her hair, and her palms would be sweating with anticipation of seeing him. She hadn’t been thinking about Jesse when she pulled a plain black knit dress from the closet, or when she decided to leave her hair down, or when she leaned over her makeup mirror to put on mascara. She barely thought about him at all until she arrived at Walt’s and ran into him in the parking lot.

“Hey, good timing,” Jesse called from the doorway.

“What?” She looked up. “Oh, right. Thanks for holding the door.”

Jesse followed her into the restaurant, through the short lobby, past the long horseshoe-shaped bar that ran along one side of the dining room. Seeing her parents, Stef turned her back on the bar and headed straight for them. It was only after she was seated that she looked across the table at her father and realized that she had a perfect view of the bar, and the two men seated directly in her line of vision.