“Will there be enough food?”
“Yes,” I answer. “Rowan always cooks more than enough.”
“Okay,” she says. “Yeah, I’ll just stay here. Raincheck?”
I nod, looking at Lucy. “Ready to go eat dinner with the boys?”
She looks between my eyes and nods, so I put out a hand and pull her off the couch with me. I turn to my sister.
“I love ya.”
“Love ya, too. See you later.” She looks at Lucy. “Lucy?” Lucy looks at her. “I love you, too.”
Lucy smiles, releasing my hand. She walks over to her and hugs her.
I get the front door.
The back door of Hawthorne is unlocked. I push it open with my hip because my left hand is holding Lucy’s hand, and my right has her bags.
The kitchen smells like onion and garlic and something seared. Stanley is at the island with a piece of Camdend, trying to scoop something out of a small pan Rowan has on the back burner that Rowan is, by every visible signal, trying to protect from him.
“Stan. Hell, I need two minutes, man. Two minutes!”
“I’m starving. Come on.”
“I’m still cooking.”
Rowan has two pans going — one cast iron with chicken Camdensts in it, one smaller stainless-steel with something pale and flaky — and he is moving back and forth between them with a pair of tongs in his left hand and the kitchen towel over hisshoulder. Percy is at the kitchen table setting plates down. Blue is at the corner of the table, dripping sauce into a bowl.
The whole room looks up when we come in.
Rowan looks over. “The captain returns.”
Stanley raises his Camdend. “And he hasbrought a woman.”
Blue says, “Hi, Lucy.”
Rowan calls out, “Lucy.”
“Hey, Lucy,” Stanley says.
Percy nods. “Bonsoir, Lucy.”
“Hi,” she says shyly.
Rowan asks from the stove, “Lucy, you want chicken or fish?”
“Oh.” She turns to me. “Uh, fish sounds great. Thanks.”
“Fish it is.”
I nod my head at her. “I’m going to put this in my bedroom.”
She nods. “I’ll come with.”
“Aw,” Stanley says as we walk away.
When we reach my bedroom, I put her bags down and pull her into me.
