“Now tell me!” Darcy’s eyes shifted to me. “Who seduced whom?”
My head suddenly felt ten degrees hotter. While we had told Laura, Dany, and Mila, we hadn’t officially announced our relationship to anyone else, neither to the public northe rest of the family. The label knew, too, but they didn’t want to distract from our music, so it wasn’t mentioned in any announcements. They hadn’t asked us to keep it a secret, but they didn’t want this to be the headline—at least, not yet.
Sebastian and I exchanged a look. Cold terror was written all over his face.
“I mean,” Darcy continued, “you said you were never going to make music again, so did Alex talk you into it?”
His chest rose, then he slowly exhaled with relief.
“It was mutual,” he said. “More like an accident.”
“Accidents can change the course of a life. Lucky for you, it was for the better! Well, I’m glad the two of you found each other. I’ve never seen you so happy and relaxed, despite the full schedule you probably have now.” She leaned in again. “And don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone that you two aren’t just musical partners.” With a sly grin, she spun around and moved on to her next victim.
Sebastian turned toward me, his eyes wide. “Of course, she knew,” he whispered. “Oh, man. I said it before, and I say it again: that’s exactly why I hate small towns. There’s absolutely no privacy.”
“But without Seastone, we wouldn’t have met. And eight months ago, you were all set to move back here.”
“Because of you!”
“Come on, you can admit it. You like it here,at least a little. I promise, we’re not moving back anytime soon unless things take another drastic turn.”
“Which can always happen, so no, I’m not admitting anything—even if you’re right.” He playfully threw his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into a headlock. We both giggled when Dany clapped his hands together to get everyone’s attention.
“Well, everybody,” he said. “It’s good to be back together, and you know what that means.”
He pointed to the basket of candles on the table next to him and took one out, making it clear that everyone had to pick one up themselves this year. One by one, each family member made their way over, and so did we.
When it was my turn, I paused for a second, but Dany, still standing beside the basket, nodded at me. “Come on, take one. I can’t wait to talk to you two.” He pointed to Sebastian, who stood right behind me in line. “And don’t even think I’ll talk to you at the same time. We’ll have proper one-on-ones this year.” He looked stern for another second before his lips couldn’t hide a grin any longer. He gently patted me on the shoulder. “It’s nice to see you back here. I can’t wait to hear all about your journey.”
“Thank you,” I whispered as I pulled a candle out of the basket, my heart still thumping from his little ruse.
The plastic wrap rustled in my hands, blending with the growing chatter—but this time, I was prepared for it. After our make-out session in our old room, I had put in the custom-made invisible earplugs I had bought for occasions like this, and as we walked away from Dany, Sebastian started quietly humming something for me to focus on.
I followed the sound of his hum to the table in the corner—the same one where we had met a year earlier—which was set a bit apart from the larger crowd. Mila was already sitting there with her candle burning.
“Come on, guys,” she said, waving us over. “It’s so rare that we get to see each other.”
We sat down on the bench opposite her, our backs to the rest of the family. Within a minute, our candles stood next to hers, burning brightly. The three of us stared into the flames.
“So, how have you been, Mila?” I asked.
“I’m doing well, thank you for asking,” she replied, glancing at Seb for a second before turning back to me. “I’m not as successful as the two of you, but I can’t complain. I’ve found my footing in New York. The magazine finally offered me a full-time position as an assistant editor, which is great.”
I drummed my fingers on the table in excitement. “Wow, congratulations!”
“Thank you.” Her eyes drifted to Sebastian again, who was still looking into the flames. She glared at him, her expression growing more and more irritated until she rolled her eyes. “What are you sulking about now?”
“I’m contemplating something,” he said, staring for another second before looking up. “Mila, I’m happy for you, too. And…” He paused, breathing heavily as if his thoughts needed time to settle. “I’m sorry I wasn’t the easygoing, fun little brother I was supposed to be.”
Her mouth fell open. “You?Apologizing?Where is this coming from?”
“I’ve had some time to think over the past few months, and thankfully, I had the right person by my side to help me see where my anger was justified, and where I took it out on the wrong people.” Under the table, his hand slid onto my knee, while he kept his gaze on Mila. “You were one of the people who didn’t deserve it. And… I want to thank you for still standing by me as best as you could.”
“That’s…” Her eyes flickered up, as if she were about to tease him, but then she let out a breath. “Of course. I’ll always kick your ass if you need it.” She looked at the candles. “But I knew you’d come around. And I knew you’d eventually find yourfooting. The magic of the candles always works. I used to think they were bullshit, but four years ago, I blew one out, wishing for you to be able to do what you always wanted. Just a month later, Alex showed up out of nowhere—and if that’s not proof the candles work, I don’t know what is! To be fair, I didn’t wish for the two of you to getthisclose, but…” She grinned. “I definitely should’ve seen it coming.”
Maybe she was right, and the candles really did work. Last year, I had wished the same for Sebastian, and he told me he wished I could find the love of a family again, too. That might not have worked out the way he meant it,but it still did. Here I was, a new member of the Drapers. I still wasn’t carrying their last name, at least not yet, but that didn’t change the warmth and compassion they had shown me, especially over the past year.
“Thank you,” Sebastian said again. “Your wish made my greatest dream come true.” He squeezed my knee. “Because I’m so fucking in love with Alex, it’s impossible to describe.”
