Page 108 of The Scars We Heal

Tugging me into his arms, Jake leaned in and whispered against my mouth, “You’re the best mom there is.”

“I know that now.” My lips curved up before I pressed a gentle kiss to his. “You helped me see that. You helped me get there. To know I’m enough, that I’ve always been enough.”

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

jake

Plates and silverware clanked as we all flitted around each other in Reid and Isa’s kitchen. After last year’s Thanksgiving at Colter and Ellison’s house, we decided to make Silver Creek Friendsgiving dinner a yearly tradition. With Levi only being three months old, Reid and Isa offered to host. It was an adults-only celebration, so the kids were over at Maggie’s place.

“Can someone hand me a pair of oven mitts?” Isa asked over the hustle and bustle of our crew.

Mikey reached across the counter to hand her a pair, but Reid snatched them out of her hands before she could put them on. “Oh, no you don’t. That turkey is going to be fucking heavy when it comes out of the oven.”

Isa pouted, putting her hands on her hips. “I can handle it.”

He lifted her chin with his pointer finger, planting a kiss on her lips. “I know you can, Honeybee, but you shouldn’t have to.”

“Aye, keep the lovefest out of the kitchen!” I teased, pretending to gag. “What’s next? Who needs help?”

“Someone needs to drain and mash the potatoes.” Ellison pointed to the pot on the stove.

“On the potatoes,” Sierra replied.

“Can someone set the table?”

“Got it, boss.” I gave Ellison a salute then grabbed plates and silverware.

Caitlin jumped in beside me, grabbing some napkins and silverware I had missed. She gave my shoulder a light squeeze as we set the table together, a brief moment away from the chaos.

Neither of us needed to say a word, just comfortable in each other’s presence.

“This is perfect, isn’t it?” Caitlin flashed me a smile.

Before I could answer, a loud crash and a scream from the kitchen cut us off. Caitlin and I rushed into the kitchen to find mashed potatoes splattered all over the floor and jaws dropped all around.

“What happened? Is everyone okay?” Caitlin asked, frantically checking all of our friends.

No one answered, and then in perfect timing, the oven with the turkey inside started smoking.

“Shit, shit, shit!” Reid mumbled, quickly pulling the oven door open. Smoke billowed out, and he swatted it away with his oven mitt. He pulled the pan out of the oven, the turkey completely charred.

I pursed my lips, surveying the shocked expressions all around the room. Silence settled over the kitchen, but then Colter snorted, immediately covering his mouth with his hand. A snicker from Mikey followed, and soon our entire friend group was erupting into laughter at the situation.

“Maybe an annual Silver Creek Thanksgiving isn’t the best idea,” Ellison muttered.

“Well, what are we going to do now?” Isa worried her lip.

“First we need to clean this up. But, unfortunately, the turkey is unsalvageable and we won’t have potatoes,” Reid said.

“I wasn’t going to say anything, but I forgot the pie at home… I was hoping no one would notice,” Sierra admitted, covering her mouth to suppress a laugh.

“Pizza, anyone?” Mikey suggested, which received a resounding yes from everyone.

“That seems more like our speed, anyway,” I added.

“We can go to Rudy’s,” Reid suggested. “He’ll be happy for the company.”

Caitlin’s brows furrowed. “Isn’t the bar closed today?”