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Logan successfully disarms me with an easy smile. “I knew you two would be fast friends.”
Tonight, there are no shadows over him, and his unfiltered joy takes me back to all those promises that we would have something just like this one day. A family, a purpose, something that was beautiful, meaningful, and ours.
“I can see why you keep Ida a secret,” I say quietly. “It’s obvious she loves you, and I’m genuinely happy you have her.”
His eyes are gentle, if not somber, when he says, “She reminded me of you—her spirit, her quirks, and everything in between.”
He takes the first step into the pit before looking back. “Being around her kind of felt like you were back in some ways. Like I could pretend I never lost you in the first place.”
My heart bangs against my sternum when he turns away from me, and with each step I take after him, I feel the last of my bitter defenses quaking, ready to fall.
We’re a well-blended mix, with Declan and my sister near the head of the table, the kids sprinkled in between Ida’s friends, and Dorthea, Ricardo, and Tarra taking up space on the end closest to me and Logan.
“Will you guys give them a damn minute to get settled?” Ida asks, face wrinkling with amusement when the group immediately hounds us with questions.
The man in suspenders makes room for her while the storyteller reaches for the food in my hands. “Here, sugar, I’ll take that for you.” He flashes a set of white teeth when he introduces himself. “Name’s Agán.”
“Penelope,” I say as he sets the tray in the center of the table with the rest of our meal.
“We’re glad you’re here, Penelope.”
The sincerity in his words swells my heart as I shuffle to the spot Tarra saved me at the end, next to her and Dorthea. Logan takes the spot across from me, beside Mable, and we go around the table, exchanging introductions before serving the kids first.
Ida double checks each child’s plate is filled to the edges, while the rest of us help ourselves, and I bask in the sense of safety and acceptance I feel being here with all of them. It’s the same kind of peace Logan and I only ever found in each other, and it hits me then that he’s probably been deprived of this sort of thing most of his life.
Except for that summer.
I always saved him a seat at our table back then.
“Well,” Ida says once we’re all settled in, “I’m not much for praying, and I’m not very poetic, either. But I do know how to give thanks, and I can’t think of a better night to do just that.”
She raises her water glass, and we follow suit.
“Damn straight,” says the woman sitting beside her with neon green hair and a face full of piercings.
The one holding her hand beside her snorts. “No, you’re not.”
The table erupts with laughter, and when Logan’s playful eyes catch mine, I smile.
Tarra nudges me under the table, and I nudge her back.
Across from us, Mable tries to pour herself some water from a pitcher. Her tongue pokes out in concentration when she raises the lip to her glass, but it’s too heavy for her wrist to hold.
“Here, I’ve got you,” Logan says, reaching to steady her hand.
Dear god. My insides go all buttery when she beams up at him and he winks at her.
Ida sets her glass down on the tablecloth. “I want our new friends to know how special you are to all of us just by being here. Anywhere you find me, you’ll be welcome, no questions asked. There will always be room for you at my table.”
Agán waves his hand through the air, the thin gold bangles jingling on his wrist. “Now, you better stop before you get us crying.”
Ida blows him a kiss before sweeping at hand at our dinner. “Let’s eat!”
The sun has set now, and the lights hanging through the canopy cast the table in a cozy, romantic glow. And with every bite, my body relaxes.
“So, how did all of you meet?” I ask the group, nibbling my lip when Logan’s foot finds mine in the sand beneath the table.
“Ida collects various trinkets and antiques, but she’s a friend collector at her core,” Agán says with a gleam in his eye. “She’s roped each of us into her circle one way or another over the years, but we met during my time as a belly dancer.”
