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We arrive at Mabel’s vacation care room which is now transformed into a party zone. Balloons are scattered over the floor and stuck to the walls and corners of the room. Colored streamers go from one side of the room to the other.
“Wow,” Rylee whispers and runs off through the room of balloons and right to Ruby, sitting in a highchair that has streamers dangling from the ends of the tray. Olive sits in one right beside her.
“Don’t they look adorable?” I gush at the girls. Both squeal with delight as Rylee dances in front of them and throws balloons in the air around them.
“They are,” Sebastian says, almost in a whisper.
To the left of the room, there’s a table full of food. Tally has been busy. “Come get some of these cookies I just spotted. They’re delicious… Tally makes them.” I hook my arm in his and pull him to the table of goodies.
We load up some little pink party plates, head to our girls, and stand beside them, feeding our faces. “Gee, my sisters know how to throw a party,” I say.
He nods, taking a bite of a cookie. “They really do.”
“Smile,” Sybil says as she stands in front of us with a camera. “Get closer and smile.” We shuffle closer, our arms touching. Sybil holds the camera up and snaps a few pictures. “Now, go stand with the girls so we can get Sebastian, Ruby, and Rylee, and then you can get a photo with Olive if that’s okay?” We both nod and set about getting the images she wants.
When she walks away, Sebastian has become noticeably quiet. After we put the girls on the floor to crawl around and play, I face him. “Are you okay?”
Clearing his throat, he says, “I just need a minute.” And then he walks out of the building. I stare after him.
Mabel comes up beside me. “Is he all right?”
I shrug. “I’m not sure. Things were fine, and then just now, he’s changed. Perhaps it has something to do with his wife… that’s all I can put it down to. I’ll go talk to him, and then we can get ready to do the cake if that’s okay. He’s got to get back to town to sort out his racing.”
“Yeah, not a problem. I get it. I’ll get things sorted in here. You go to him.” Mabel walks toward the table, and I head in Sebastian’s direction.
Outside, I find him sitting on the bottom step of the building. I make my way to him and drop down beside him. “Want to talk about it?”
He’s silent for a beat, and when I chance a glance at him, tears glitter in his eyes that he quickly wipes away. “Sorry,” he mutters and keeps wiping the moisture away.
I wrap my arm around his shoulders and pull him against me. “It’s okay.” I comfort him. We remain like this for a couple of minutes while I wait for him to speak.
“Anna-Beth should’ve been here for this. She’s been gone a year, and as much as I don’t want Ruby’s birthday to be a constant reminder of our loss, I’m worried I’ll be horrible at making Ruby’s day special because of my own feelings.” He pauses, clearing his throat. “I know it’s not Ruby’s birthday today, but when it comes, I’m not sure what to do about my feelings of loss while trying to enjoy Ruby’s happy moment.” His eyes meet mine, and tears pool in mine.
I do the one thing I can think of at this moment—I pull him into a hug. As we hold each other, I say, “It’s okay to have those feeling and to miss Anna-Beth. You should celebrate Ruby and mourn Anna-Beth, though I know both of those are complete opposites. But it’s also good for the girls to remember their mom. Not that I ever think you’llnottalk about Anna-Beth. Oh, I’m messing this up.”
We release our hug, but he keeps a hold of my hand. “No, you’re not. I get what you’re saying.”
“You could celebrate Ruby’s birthdays along with Anna-Beth’s life, not her loss,” I say when I finally get my words to work better.
Lifting my hand, he presses a kiss on the back of it. “Thank you. I know this may not be a comfortable conversation for you to have with me, but I appreciate it.”
“Hold on. Did you happen to miss my suitcases of baggage coming in hot behind me?” I joke, and he laughs, squeezing my hand. “I’m the queen of not unpacking baggage.”
“Perhaps I was brought here for a reason, and meeting you was that reason.”
I grin, unable to settle the swirling of happiness in my stomach. “Maybe we’re here to help each other.”
“I think there’s more to this than just being there for each other.” He gestures between us.
“I have to agree with you. Things happen for a reason, and I’m glad you came because you’ve helped me, even though you may not realize it.” Leaning over, I press a kiss to his cheek, and we sit there a moment.
Finally, he says, “Should we go back in before they send a search party?”
“Probably. Knowing Mabel, she’ll have one of the girls looking for us shortly.”
We get up from the step, and I start to head inside when he takes my arm, pulling me against his chest. I wrap my arms around him and listen to the sounds of the birds and horses in the nearby stalls.
“Thank you for everything. You have no idea how much just being near you has helped me, and I want to stay, but I know I need to do this for me,” he says into my hair, his breath tickling my neck.
