He caught about half of what Sam was saying – basically complaining about being forced to listen to all the praise his cousin Mason was going to get once everyone arrived for dinner. It wasn’t even like Sam was exaggerating. It was completely true. And while normally Jake preferred to skip big family get-togethers of any kind – especially when it wasn’t even his own family – he was here out of respect for Ezekiel Coleman and the fact that he was celebrating such a milestone birthday. He respected the hell out of old Zeke and often wished his own grandfather could have been so kind and nurturing.
Issues for another time.
“Tell me there’s something going on in town tonight that we can use as an excuse to cut out of here early,” Sam said pleadingly.
Laughing softly, Jake placed the last chair around the massive dining table before looking at Sam. “Dude, we’re a beach town and the summer just started. What do you think?”
Grinning, Sam said, “I think my fake ID is going to get a workout tonight.”
That made Jake laugh a little more. He remembered the days of sneaking into the local bars when he was underage and more often than not, everyone there knew he wasn’t legal. Fortunately, no one said a word. Sam could easily pass for being over twenty-one. Now if it were his twin sister…
No, dammit! Don’t think of Mallory! He chided himself. There was no way he would encourage her to follow her brother for a night on the town. And that thought bothered him more than his earlier ones. What did he care what Mallory did? She was the great-granddaughter of a neighbor – a family friend. And more than that, she was four years younger than him – practically a kid. If she wanted to go out and do…whatever, it was her business.
And yet his fists were clenched at his side at the thought of her going into one of the local bars and letting some frat boys buy her drinks.
“You okay, Jake?” Sam asked, sliding the last of the chairs around the table.
“Uh…yeah, why?”
“You look really pissed right now. Like you want to hit someone.”
Pretty accurate.
Not that he was going to admit to it.
“Nah. My mind just wandered for a minute. That’s all.”
Sam didn’t look fully convinced but didn’t have time to comment because people started arriving and milling around. He didn’t often believe in divine intervention, but he did right now.
And he was thankful for it.
Uniformed servers walked around with trays of hors d'oeuvres, a small bar was set up in the corner of the dining room with a bartender, and all around him were members of Zeke’s family – mainly his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Sure, there were some friends and neighbors present – his own family included – but primarily this was a family event and he suddenly felt a little out of his element.
The Colemans were old money. They were the founding family of Magnolia Sound and everyone knew who they were. Jake’s family had moved here when he was a baby and his father had worked for Coleman Construction – just as Jake had as soon as he was old enough. He still worked there, at least until the end of the summer when he was finally going to go away to college for engineering. It was something he wanted to do for years, but the timing was never right.
And the finances hadn’t always been there.
Old Zeke had offered to pay his tuition, but Jake always turned him down without even discussing it with his parents. Why? Pride. Plain and simple. Zeke had spent a lot of time with Jake over the years, teaching him everything he knew and that was more valuable than any fancy college degree he could get. Unfortunately, if he was going to get ahead in this world and make a serious living for himself, there were things he wanted to learn and do on his own.
And paying for his education was one of them.
It wasn’t going to be easy and Jake was more than a little self-conscious about starting college at twenty-four, but that was the hand life had dealt him. And he was okay with it.
Even as he stood in a room of people who’ve had it much easier than him.
Georgia and Beau Bishop walked in with their three kids – Mason, Peyton and Parker. All three were younger than Jake and lived extremely privileged lives. Beau was a very prominent attorney here in Magnolia Sound and also came from old money. They weren’t a particularly warm couple, but their kids were basically nice.
Well, except Mason.
He was kind of a prick.
The thought made him smile because he remembered Sam’s comments from earlier. No doubt it wouldn’t be long before old Beau would be making some long-winded speech about something amazing his son had done. Then everyone would smile while internally rolling their eyes.
Yeah. It happened all the time.
Grace Coleman – another of Zeke’s granddaughter’s – walked in with her three sons and Jake could tell she was already tense and worried about their behavior. Barely in their teens, Garrett, Jackson and Austin were already developing reputations of being hellraisers here in town.
His heart gave a little kick when the kitchen door swung open and Mallory walked in, followed by her mother Susannah. The Westbrooks were the only members of the family who didn’t live in Magnolia full-time. Sure, they came for a visit every summer and sometimes over the holidays, but New York – Long Island, more accurately – was their home. Susannah was a single mom and had been for more than a dozen years. Raising twins Sam and Mallory had to be rough on her, he thought, especially with her ex having no part of his children’s lives.
What kind of man did that?
That thought didn’t stay with him long as he watched Mallory weave her way through the group – hugging her aunts and uncle, laughing with her cousins. At one point she turned and their eyes met and…damn. She gave him a shy smile that was the perfect mix of sweet and sexy and he felt himself begin to sweat.
When had she changed?
When had the girl he’d known become a woman? She was four years younger than him and even though they had essentially grown up together, the only time they saw each other was during the summers when she would come and vacation on Magnolia Sound while visiting her great-grandfather. And in all that time – even up until last summer – she’d been a kid to him. Their age difference seemed vast.
Not so much right now.
“Jake! So glad you came tonight!” Zeke’s hand came down on his shoulder and a big smile played on his face.
“I wouldn’t have missed it,” he said, returning the smile. And he meant it. This was an amazing milestone and it deserved a grand celebration.
“Well, I know this lot can make things a little less than festive,” he said with a nod toward the roomful of relatives.
Jake knew he meant it with both love and frustration. Didn’t all families have their share of petty grievances and disagreements? Although, this particular family seemed to have more than most. Still, he hoped everyone got along this weekend, for Zeke’s sake.
“Either way,” Zeke went on, “I managed to convince everyone to let me eat what I want, drink what I want, and even have a cigar or two.”
Laughing, Jake shook his head. “You know you were supposed to give those up years ago, right?”
“Nonsense. I’m ninety years old, son. No one lives forever.”
But for some reason, Jake always figured Zeke would. He couldn’t imagine a world without his kindness, his wisdom, and his laughter. It would be a lesser world, that’s for sure.