Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 94624 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94624 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Finn whimpered and looked at me. “Are we all invited for sandwiches?”
“Of course. You’re always invited.”
“Since you’re not eating, come with me to meet my grandparents,” Kola prodded him, and Finn rose quickly to follow him, holding hands with my son leading.
“Is that his boyfriend?” Alex asked Jake, who was drawing with him.
“Yes, it is,” he answered.
“My friend Toshi, he has two dads.”
“That’s cool,” Jake commented.
“Yeah. My uncle Tommy has a boyfriend, but Mom says if he doesn’t get his act together and give him a ring, he’s gonna lose him to the damn manwhore who lives above them.”
Jake snickered, and we all looked at Shelly.
“Oh God,” she groaned.
“They hear everything,” Sam teased her. “Except when you tell them to stop doing something or pick up their toys.”
She put her face in her hands as Tallulah decided she wanted to play a game on her tablet, only to find it dead.
“I have games on my phone,” Hannah told her, and moments later, the little girl was on her lap and they were playing something with cute birds.
As the dinner plates were being picked up, Shelly looked over at me. “You have wonderful kids,” she said, and glanced at Jake, who was now playing Go Fish with Alex. “And they have lovely boyfriends as well.”
“We got lucky,” I told her.
She shook her head. “Good parenting is not lucky. It’s work. I know.”
Sam, Hannah, Jake, and I went to find his parents and saw that Sandra’s were at the same table with his, along with Jen and Doug and Rachel and Straub. Sandra’s brothers, Chip and Buck, were there as well. I refused to read anything into that. Sandra had originally put her kids at our table with us, after all.
Still, Sandra’s parents seemed surprised that Sam had a husband, not a wife, but they were subtle about it, and both stood to shake our hands. I noted that both Chip and Buck stayed quiet, eyeing Sam warily. It made sense; the last time they saw him was in Vegas.
There were speeches after that, and I saw people begin to trickle out. At nine, they finally cut the cake, and then there came the band.
The Grangers had to take their kids home, and Tallulah wanted to hug Hannah, and Alex wanted Jake to carry him to the car.
“That sounds great, buddy,” Jake told him and then turned to me. “We’ll see you at home. We’re not coming back in here.”
“See you there,” Hannah told us. “We’ll try not to eat all the meatloaf.”
“Don’t you dare,” Sam threatened his daughter.
She shrugged and then shot him a smile that looked guilty.
“Let’s go,” Sam told me.
Hannah gave Shelly her card so she could call if she needed a babysitter, and Shelly was so happy, she hugged Hannah and then me. Finding someone you trusted to care for your kids was, I knew, like having a fairy godmother.
We said our goodnights to Sam’s family, then went to the main table and said goodnight to Sandra and Michael. I realized then that the dancing hadn’t even begun. It was the never-ending wedding.
Kola went to say goodbye to Luna, told her to call, and again she hugged him long and tight. I understood. Not only was Kola kind and gentle and smart, but with his jet-black mane now hitting his shoulders, and dark-blue eyes, he was very handsome as well. For a time, they had been an item, and I was certain she missed him. But at the moment, the only person Kola saw was Finn. And how they stayed close when they walked, held hands, and how Finn steered him through the crowd, there was no mistake that they were very much together.
Once Sam and I were outside, Hannah went by and beeped at us with Jake waving wildly from the passenger seat with both hands.
“We’ve got to get out of here and get home,” Sam ordered, grabbing my hand.
Together, we jogged to Sam’s SUV, and once he got me in, he was around to the driver’s side fast.
“It was a good wedding,” I told him as he made the tires squeal getting us out of the parking lot.
“It was fine,” he replied. “I mean, I’m glad they’re happy, but I much preferred our backyard one.”
“I know.”
“But I’m glad we went, and even happier that it’s done. Now we can focus on Kola’s birthday next weekend and, even better, tomorrow, getting all those Mabon candles out of the basement.”
“Lucky that we didn’t tell Sandra that Hannah is a witch.”
“She’s a good witch,” he replied as he honked at Kola and Finn on the sidewalk.
I made sure to wave at them with both hands as we went by. When I checked the rearview mirror, they were running toward the parking lot.
That’s it, all, until next month, when I tell you about Kola’s birthday, Halloween, and Samhain candle making. Have a lovely rest of October. Stay safe out there, and happy Halloween!