“You were in school,” Rachel told her. “I’ll make sure you have a flower on the piece I cut for you. Should we sing to your aunt?”
Jess again seemed uncomfortable when all the focus shifted to her, though she smiled while the children cheerfully sang the birthday song at the tops of their respective voices.
“Thank you.”
“What are you going to wish for?” Ava said.
To Nate’s astonishment, Jess’s gaze flickered to him and then quickly away, so quickly he didn’t think anyone else even noticed.
“After this perfect night, I don’t think there’s anything else I could ever need.”
“You have to wish for something,” Grace insisted. “That’s the rule.”
“But she’s not supposed to tell or it won’t come true,” Sophie said.
“That’s right,” Rachel said. “And you can wish for whatever you want. Go ahead and blow out the candles.”
“Cake,” Silas said again, which made everyone marvel again.
“Cake coming right up, young man,” Jess said. She quickly blew out the candles.
The cake was delicious, white with raspberry layers.
But for some reason, Jess only ate a few bites. Rachel must have noticed, too. “Is something wrong with the cake?” she asked, sounding defensive.
Jess blinked, looking down at her plate as if she had only just remembered the cake was there. “No. It’s delicious.”
“So why are you only eating a tiny bite at a time?”
“Maybe I want to savor every bite.”
Rachel frowned, clearly not believing her. “Is it the raspberries? I always thought you liked them.”
“I do. The cake is fabulous.” She took another bite, bigger this time, and made a big show of eating it then scooping up another bite.
“I should have called you first to find out what kind of cake you wanted,” Rachel said. She blinked rapidly, as if trying not to cry.
“Rach. It’s a fantastic cake,” Cody said. “One of your absolute best.”
“Everything has been perfect,” Jess said. “I could not have asked for more, honestly. I’ll remember turning thirty for a long, long time.”
“I’m glad we could share it with you,” Cody said gruffly.
Again, Nate had the sense that all wasn’t perfect between Rachel and Jess...or between Cody and Rachel, for that matter.
He wanted to fix it for her. Whatever was wrong, he wanted to sweep in and make it all better.
He remembered that moment when he was almost certain she had looked at him.
What are you going to wish for?
The low ache of hunger that seemed to have taken up permanent residence inside him since she came to town seemed to sharpen.
Unfortunately, Nate knew even the best-tasting cake in the world wouldn’t assuage it. Only one thing would do that and Jess had made it clear they would never be together.
26
Jess
Why did she feel as if she always had to walk on eggshells around her sister?
Maybe because Rachel right now seemed as fragile as an entire bushel of eggs.
Her sister was obviously still upset about the mess Silas had made with the garden hose. Though Rachel tried to be bubbly and happy with the Whitakers, Jess still knew her sister well enough to see it was an act. Beneath that crackly facade, Rachel was on the edge of tears.
Her sister seemed desperately unhappy and she didn’t know how to fix it.
After the cake, Rachel insisted everyone leave the dishes for now so Jess could open presents.
She didn’t want gifts but loved them all anyway. Cody had made a beautiful wooden frame lined with magnets to go on her refrigerator and the girls had each drawn pictures of themselves that she could hang in it.
“I love it. Thank you so much.”
She hugged her nieces and nephew. The girls hugged her back while Silas mostly tolerated it.
“You’re welcome. Hopefully, it will help you remember you have a family while you’re on the road,” Rachel said.
“Thanks,” Jess said cheerfully.
“We kind of had a similar idea,” Eleanor said. Jess unwrapped their gift and was astonished to find a small watercolor she had admired at Whitaker House.
It had been painted by a friend of Jack Whitaker’s years ago and was an overview of Cape Sanctuary, with Sunshine Cove in the distance.
“I can’t accept this. It’s an original.”
“Nate and I both want you to have it. Don’t we, darling?”
Her son nodded. “Absolutely.”
“We want you to have something to remember us by after you leave. I thought it was small enough you could hang it inside your trailer so you have a little piece of Cape Sanctuary with you wherever you go.”
She was immeasurably touched by everything. “Thank you. I’ll treasure all of these gifts.”
The Whitakers stayed for a while longer as Sophie and the children were enjoying an impromptu soccer game on the grass.
After helping to clear the dishes from the patio, they then said their goodbyes with a flurry of hugs.
“I’ll take care of bedtime then come down and help you clean up the dishes,” Cody said after they were gone. He started corralling the kids up the stairs toward their rooms.
“That’s a great guy you have there,” Jess said.
“Sometimes.”
A glimpse of that unhappiness flashed across Rachel’s expression before she turned away and headed into the kitchen.
Jess followed her and started filling the sink with soapy water.
“It’s your birthday. You don’t have to help me clean up. I am perfectly capable of cleaning my own kitchen,” Rachel snapped.
“I never said you weren’t,” Jess said carefully. “I don’t mind helping. It’s the least I can do to pay you back for such a great party.”
“You don’t have to repay me. That’s the whole point. There’s no scorecard in families. And anyway, you hated the party. You don’t have to lie to me, now that we’re alone.”
She tensed. “Why would you say that?”
“Admit it. You didn’t want a party in the first place. I forced you to have it. If you had your way, you’d be holed up in your trailer by yourself.”
Had it been that obvious? She thought she had done a pretty decent job of hiding it.