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“Nana and Grandad want to see where Zara lives!”
“Do they? Is that what they told you?”
Chloe shook her head. “No, but I bet they would like to.Pleeeeeease?” She gave Zara a desperate look.
Laughing, Zara turned to me and Lucy. “I totally don’t mind. We can feed the girls pizza first, then I can put something else together for everyone else. I doubt I have the stuff for that many pizzas.” She shrugged, smiling. “Up to you, though, of course.”
Grinning, Lucy said, “Well, I’m not stupid. I’d never pass up such an opportunity. I’d love to come, thank you.” We all laughed at the girl’s shrieks of excitement.
“Let’s go!” Chloe grabbed my hand, dragging me along the pathway.
“I’ll text Elissa, just to make sure, but I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Okay,” I called over my shoulder as Zara, the girls and I made our way up the steep slope.
“If Auntie Lucy is coming, and Nana and Grandad, we should ask Auntie Claire and Auntie Jen too, so they don’t feel left out.”
“Chloe!” I stopped. “You can’t just keep inviting people to Zara’s for dinner like that!” I looked at Zara. Her eyes were dancing.
She looked at Chloe, whose little face had crumpled with disappointment. “You’re right, Chloe. We don’t want them to feel left out. It was very nice of you to think of that. Uncle Matt should text them and see if they want to come, too.” Chloe shot me a triumphant look that had Zara holding back a laugh.
“Are you sure it’s not too much? That’s seven people Chloe has invited to your house now.”
She tilted her head at me, one eyebrow raised. “Are you suggesting I can’t make dinner for seven people on short notice?”
I laughed. “Of course not, I just—” I shrugged, not sure what to say.
She stepped forward, pressing a kiss to my lips. “I like your family. It’ll be nice. Text your sister, see if she’s free.” I kissed her again, laughing against her lips as Chloe said,
“Oh yuck, more kissing!”
I pulled back, taking Bess off the leash so she could go for another run and reached for my phone. The enthusiastic reply came back in less than a minute. “You’re in for it now. They’d love to come.”
“Okay, then, we’d better get home so I can see what I’ve got. Might need a trip to the grocery store.” She linked her fingers through mine and lengthened her stride, walking as quickly as the girls’ legs could keep up.
When we rounded the curve in Zara’s drive we saw Ally, who had just pulled up and was at the trunk of her car, taking out a box.
“Hi! I wasn’t expecting to see you today, was I?” Zara closed the car door, moving to the back to let the girls and Bess out.
“No, I had to go to Charlotte to pick up some equipment, then to the farm to get some stuff for my folks. Thought I’d stop in for a coffee.”
Ally handed me the box when I went to take it from her . Zara looked inside. “What’s this?”
“Some herbs, passata, tomato paste, pesto, some salami. Can’t remember what else. I just threw in a bit of everything they had.”
“This is so perfect, thank you! Matthew’s family is coming for dinner and I was just wondering what I could make.”
I caught Ally’s appraising look and hoped she wouldn’t say anything. Zara’s relaxed acceptance of an impromptu Cooper family dinner felt like a big deal to me for some reason. I didn’t want anything to put her off, so I felt a rush of relief when she simply said, “Nice!” Then she crouched down. “And who are these little angels?” An uncharacteristically-shy Chloe was hiding behind my leg, peeking out. Mila was hiding behind the other leg. I introduced them both, smiling when Mila moved forward ever so slightly and reached out a tentative hand to touch Ally’s wild, curly hair. Ally kept perfectly still, not at all put off. “It’s pretty crazy, isn’t it?” Mila nodded seriously.
Chloe had clearly taken an instant liking to Ally. “Are you going to stay for dinner?” Ally looked up questioningly when Zara and I burst out laughing.
“She’s been doing that all afternoon. You gonna stay and help out?”
“Sure! What are we making?”
“The girls want pizza, so we’ll do that first.” They turned to head inside, but stopped as Gabe and Jake came around the corner of the house.
“Oh, there you are, Zara. We’ve just dropped off some pavers for around the pond.”
