Page 126

Soren gave him a brief smile and went outside.

The restaurant seemed enormous once it was empty.

In the kitchen, water ran and dishes clattered. Jack and Ivy argued cheerfully over who’d made the bigger mess. Holly and Rhett carried in trays while Madeleine checked for abandoned belongings.

Grant found a broom. I took a damp cloth and started wiping tables.

Under one chair, I discovered half a grilled cheese sandwich.

“Treasure?” he asked.

“Depends how hungry you are.”

“I’m good.”

For a while, we worked beside each other. He moved chairs out of my way, and I collected the glasses he found beneath them.

I finished the table and dropped my cloth into the bucket.

Grant swept the last crumbs into a pile. I held the dustpan, then straightened with a hand against my lower back.

“Tired?” he asked.

“Very.”

“What do you want to do when we’re finished?”

“Sit down with you. No shoes. No trays. Nobody gets to ask me for soup.”

“I can arrange that.”

He put the broom aside and drew me close.

I slid my arms around his waist. His shirt smelled faintly of the kitchen, and there was a little flour or bread dust near his cuff.

“Thank you,” I said.

“For what?”

I shook my head and kissed him.

From the kitchen, Jack called, “We can still see you.”

I smiled against Grant’s mouth.

“Then quit looking,” I called back, and kissed him again.

By the time we finished cleaning up, I wanted nothing more than to sit down and let someone else bring me a drink. Grant obliged on both counts.

We joined the others around the fire pit, where Jack had added enough wood to get a good blaze going. I settled into a chair beside Grant and accepted a mug of hot buttered rum.

“Oh, thank you.”

“Careful. It’s hot.”

I took a small sip, then stretched my legs toward the fire. Grant pulled a blanket across our laps.

Across from us, Ivy leaned against Jack while he rubbed her shoulder. Holly and Rhett were snuggled up together in one chair. Madeleine had her eyes closed, her mug resting between both hands.