I had no idea who she was talking about. “I don’t know. Who’s Linda’s daughter?”
“Willow Johnson,” she said, as if I should have known. “You remember.”
I didn’t, but she didn’t give me a chance to say that, either.
“Are you ready for this?” She clasped her hands to her chest. “South Carolina. Isn’t that serendipitous? And that’s not all. She’s in town for the holiday, and I already set up a date for you on Saturday.”
I opened my mouth to reply, then glanced at Penelope. The poor thing looked like she wanted to crawl into a hole.
Putting my arm around her, I drew her against me. “Aunt Louise, I haven’t had the chance to introduce you to my girlfriend, Penelope Fallbrook.”
Louise gasped and she put her fingers over her mouth. “Oh dear. Oh my. This is…?”
With a big grin, I nodded.
“Goodness, Theo, you should have told me. Here I am making a fool of myself in front of your lovely new friend. My dear, I am so sorry. I didn’t realize. But you can’t blame an auntfor trying. I have their best interests at heart, I assure you. And here I thought for sure I’d found the one.”
“It’s okay, Aunt Louise,” I said. “You didn’t know.”
She let out a heavy sigh. “I suppose I’ll have to tell Linda to cancel. Maybe it’s for the best. I’m not actually sure if Willow agreed to the date, but of course I assumed she would.”
“I’m sure Willow will be fine,” I said.
“She will, although she won’t do better than one of my nephews.” Louise gasped again. “I’m fresh out of nephews. Except for…you know. But there isn’t much I can do about him.”
“I guess you’ll have to find a new hobby.”
“Nonsense. There are plenty of eligible bachelors in this town. My gift won’t go to waste.” She smiled at Penelope. “So lovely to meet you, dear.”
“Nice to meet you, too.”
“George, honey!” she called as she made her way back to the kitchen. “Time to go!”
Leaning down, I placed a soft kiss on Pen’s lips. “I am so sorry about that.”
“It’s all right. I wasn’t worried or anything. I just didn’t know what to say.”
“Most of us don’t know what to say when Aunt Louise puts on her matchmaking hat. But that was a new level of awkward, even for her.”
Aunt Louise and Uncle George left, and the hustle and bustle in the kitchen continued. I caught part of Dad and Josiah’s conversation about the size of our growing family and whether they might be able to extend the dining room. It was a log home, so that wouldn’t be an easy feat. Josiah suggested an addition—a big gathering space off the kitchen, extending into the back. Dad seemed excited about the idea, and I had a feeling I knew what I’d be doing next summer.
Mom emerged from the kitchen and seemed as if she was about announce that dinner was served—or at least ask for more help—when her phone rang, the chiming ringtone carrying over the noise of clattering dishes and multiple conversations. She picked up her phone from a side table and a look of alarm crossed her features.
Something about her reaction caught everyone’s attention. The room went quiet, and we all stared at her, as if an unspoken signal had clued us all in to who it was.
Reese.
“Hello?” she answered, then paused. “It is you. Happy Thanksgiving.”
My brothers and I cast glances at each other. What were we going to do? He’d never called when we were there before.
“Actually, we’re all here,” Mom said, and looked around at every-one watching her. “Yes, I think they do.”
Penelope squeezed my hand. Anger pulsed through me, followed by something else. Sadness, maybe. I was mad at my brother, sure. But I also missed him.
“No, I know you can’t,” Mom said. “That’s okay, I’m just so glad to hear from you. How are you? Is everything all right?”
We waited in silence while she listened.
