“I’m sure it will.” Eden stepped into the house. It was fancier than she’d expected, but then again, Anna had mentioned that her mom owned a restaurant. Eden couldn’t name the architectural style, but it felt modern, with plenty of decorative touches in the woodwork. The paint was a warm beige, and she saw lots of family photos on the walls.
She stepped closer to one of them, smiling at the adorable blonde girl in the photo, striking a silly pose in red overalls. Anna had been colorful even as a child. There was a blond boy next to her, a little bit older, sticking out his tongue at the camera. “You and your brother?”
“Yep,” Anna confirmed. “That’s John. He’s coming to the show tonight.”
“Oh, that’s fun.”
“I can’t wait to see him.” Anna chattered happily as she pointed out various photos, and Eden was thrilled for this peek at her childhood.
“There you are,” a woman’s voice said.
Eden turned to see an older version of Anna walking toward her. Anna’s mother was tall and slim, with an air of authority about her, buther smile was warm and welcoming. Eden extended her hand. “You must be Mrs.Moss. I’m Eden.”
“Please call me Bev. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Eden. Anna left to answer the door, but then she didn’t come back.” Bev gave Anna a slightly reproachful look, but there was no malice behind it, only affection, at least as far as Eden could see.
“Sorry, Mom. That’s your fault for putting all these family photos just inside the door. Eden got sidetracked looking at them.”
“It’s true,” Eden said apologetically as she followed Bev toward the living room. “Little Anna was very cute.”
In the living room, she met Anna’s father, George. He was a tall but unimposing man in jeans and a well-worn Metallica T-shirt who immediately set Eden at ease by asking questions about the tour. She sat on the sofa beside Anna and accepted a glass of lemonade from Bev.
“So what do you get up to while you’re on the road?” George asked, sipping his own lemonade. “Sightseeing? A chance to visit out-of-town friends and family?”
“A lot less than you’d imagine, honestly,” Eden told him. “Sometimes—like today—we’re only in town for a day, and we need to be at the arena by six for sound checks, so I usually don’t see much of the city except the view from my hotel room.”
“Well, we’re glad you made it out today,” Bev said.
“So am I,” Eden said, and she meant it. She almost never visited someone’s home when it wasn’t for an industry event or an interview. It was nice to spend time with Anna’s family and talk about regular things.
After a few minutes, Bev left to prepare lunch, refusing Eden’s offer to help. “No one’s allowed in the kitchen with me when I’m cooking.”
“She takes her kitchen very seriously,” Anna told Eden.
“That she does,” George chimed in. He was leaned back in his chair, one foot propped against the opposite knee.
“I guess that comes from being a chef,” Eden said. “And what do you do, George?”
“Oh, a little of this and that,” he told her. “These days, I mostly enjoy puttering around the house.”
“He builds model ships,” Anna said, pride gleaming in her eyes. “They’re so detailed, it’s incredible.”
“I’d love to see them,” Eden said, and that was how she found herself in the basement a few minutes later, walking around George’s workshop as she admired the ships he’d built. Most were about two feet long, made from real wood, and the level of detail on everything from the sails to the rigging blew her mind. “These are amazing, George. I’ve never seen anything like them before.”
“Just a hobby.” He shrugged, but she saw the way he seemed to come alive here in his workshop, the twinkle in his eye and the affectionate way he spoke about the ships. She knew that feeling. It was the way she felt when she sang.
And to an extent, it was the way she felt when she was around Anna. She’d never had a connection like this with another person before, and while it was somewhat confusing, she felt happy and energized when she was with Anna.
She didn’t trust anything she was feeling beyond that basic knowledge. Probably, all the#Edannatalk was causing her to question herself, when that warm, tingly feeling she felt around Anna was just the joy of being around a new friend. Truthfully, it had been a long time since Eden had had a real friend.
After they looked at George’s model ships, Bev called them to the kitchen table for crispy sweet-and-sour tofu served with a side of kale salad.
“Are you both vegan as well?” Eden asked as she took her seat.
“Goodness, no,” Bev told her. “I didn’t learn to cook many meat-free recipes in culinary school that I actually liked, but vegan cuisine has come such a long way since then. I look forward to the challenge when Anna visits, cooking something we can all enjoy.”
“I’d say you’ve done it,” Eden told her as she sampled the tofu. “This is delicious.”
“Thank you. Now,” Bev said, looking from Eden to Anna and back. “I want to hear more about the tour.”