“What are you going to get?” Julia asked Hazel, who was also peering at the menu with interest.
“I’m not sure—it’s either going to be the pasta with mushrooms and Swedish meatballs, or the beef stir-fry. It all looks so good.”
“I’m going to get the beef stir-fry,” Jacob told her. “Why don’t you get the pasta and then we can share each other’s food?”
“Ah! Yes.” Hazel grinned. “The perks of being married.”
She and Jacob shared an adoring look, and Julia chuckled. She was overjoyed for her sister, who had recently eloped with Jacob just before they finished renovating their new home together. Although Julia had initially been disappointed that she and her family hadn’t been at the informal courthouse wedding, they’d all celebrated the marriage at Ocean Breeze Café in a casual but well-attended after-the-fact reception. It had been a beautiful evening, and many people in Rosewood Beach had been there to celebrate the couple, both of whom were very popular because of their kindness and helpful attitudes.
Julia hadn’t had much time to talk to her sister since Hazel and Jacob had gone on a two-week honeymoon the month before. She was looking forward to catching up and hearing about their trip, as well as how things were going in their new home. Since their house was an older one, every once in a while an unexpected issue came up, and Julia was hoping that Hazel and Jacob hadn’t had to deal with any more leaky ceilings or surprise ant nests.
Their waitress came by to take their order, and they ordered their food along with glasses of sparkling water for Hazel and Julia, a whiskey and soda for Cooper, and a craft beer for Jacob.
As soon as their waitress stepped away, Julia turned to Hazel with a smile. “Okay. Tell us all about the honeymoon.”
“It was amazing,” Hazel said, looking dreamy-eyed. “You wouldn’t think that a cabin in the woods would be so romantic, but it was.”
“It was a very nice cabin,” Jacob pointed out. “There’s this big deck overlooking the woods and we would go out there in the morning and watch the sun come up while we drank our coffee.”
“And there was a fireplace and a hot tub and a big, beautiful kitchen—I loved cooking in it whenever we weren’t getting dinner in town.”
“We explored a couple of caves in the area and did a lot of hiking,” Jacob said, “but we mostly just spent time together and relaxed. It was really good to get a break after all the work we’ve been doing.” He laughed.
“Sounds lovely,” Julia said, feeling reminded of her own honeymoon with Cooper and how wonderful it had been. She shared an affectionate glance with her husband.
“We want to go back for our next anniversary,” Hazel said. “And we want to stay there as a family with Samantha sometimes too—you guys could even come with us. There were four beds and a pullout couch, so we could make a little family vacation out of it.”
“That sounds like fun! Speaking of Samantha, how is she liking the new house?” Julia asked. She’d always been fond of her niece, but Samantha had lived with Vivian some days and Julia and Cooper other days during the honeymoon, and she felt closer to the vivacious young preteen than ever.
“She’s just ecstatic about it, as are we,” Jacob said. “She loves the reading nook we made her, and we’ve all really been enjoying watching movies together in the living room since Hazel made it extra cozy in there. Sam keeps wandering around saying, ‘Can you believe we live here?’”
Everyone chuckled, since it was easy for them to imagine Samantha’s enthusiasm.
“Have you had any more issues with the house?” Cooper asked.
“None, thankfully,” Hazel said, “but I do keep thinking of projects I want us to do.” She laughed. “We’ve added bookshelves in the front hallway, and we’re planning on putting in a new bathtub upstairs.”
“We’ve learned that we bond over DIY projects,” Jacob said, grinning at his wife. “We both like doing them, and we make a great team.”
Their food arrived a few minutes later, and after exclaiming over how delicious everything was, they were quiet for a little while as they enjoyed their food. Finally, Julia thought of a new topic that she wanted to discuss with the group.
“You know, Faith’s birthday is coming up,” she said, sounding a touch sly. She felt excited about her schemes for throwing Faith a big party and she hoped that the others would be on board with her plans.
“Oh, that’s right!” Hazel lit up. “I almost forgot. Thanks for the reminder, Julia—you’ve always been so good at remembering everyone’s birthdays.”
“Aw, thanks. I talked to her about it the other day at The Lighthouse Grill, and it sounds like she really hasn’t celebrated it in years, not since her parents passed away.”
“Oh, that’s so sad,” Hazel said. “It must be really hard for her.”
“I can’t even imagine,” Jacob said, shaking his head sympathetically.
“She said she got drinks with friends in the city sometimes, but some years she didn’t even tell them it was her birthday,” Julia continued. “And I know that this year will be different no matter what since she has us and Ryan now, and I’m really glad about that, but—well, I was thinking.” Her eyes sparkled, and Hazel laughed.
“Uh oh.” Hazel shook her head, teasing. “Julia wants to plan something. Watch out, world.”
Julia was famous for the way she loved to plan things, which she did very well as a highly organized, imaginative person.
“No need to panic,” Julia quipped. “I was just thinking that since Faith is a part of our family now, we should make sure tothrow her a special, memorable party. I want to try to give her some good, new memories surrounding her birthday.”
