Sue laughed as she stirred the gravy.
Clara stood and held out her hand. As always, Tricia was perfectly put together and stunning with her sparkling blue eyes and dark, almost black hair. She yanked Clara into her arms. “No handshakes here. Hugs for family. I’m so thrilled to see you again. You must come quilting. I need another newbie. I’m hopeless.”
“I’ll think about that quilting thing. It might be fun to learn something new.”
“Don’t do it,” Amy chimed in from the doorway. She flipped her long blonde braid over her shoulder. “I’ve heard that once they draw you into their quilting group, you can never escape. You’ll be trapped for life.”
“How are you, Amy? How are the wedding plans going?” It seemed like everyone was engaged. Tricia and Riley. Justice and Amy.
“No date yet. We’re not going the traditional marriage route. We’ll get married. Quietly. Without a lot of fanfare.” She cast a sly eye at Sue’s back. Sue huffed as if she saw the look. “We’ll have a small, quiet wedding. Family only.”
Sue whirled around. “You are both important figures in town. You need a public marriage.” She slammed another pot on the stove and dumped corn into it.
“Come on, Mom. Let’s not fight about this again. You have three daughters and way too many sons still unmarried. Justice has been married already and I have no desire for a big production. It’s not my thing. I love your son, more than life itself, but I’m not having a huge shindig.”
Clara watched the mostly one-sided exchange in amazement. Clearly this was an ongoing battle.
“I cannot believe my son is living in sin.” Sue sniffed dramatically. “I raised them better than that.”
Amy and Tricia rolled their eyes in unison.
“Let’s table this discussion for another day,” Tricia suggested with a grimace. “It doesn’t seem right to argue at a family dinner. I’m starved. What’s for supper, and what can I do to help?”
“Fine. Tabled, for now. We’re having turkey and roast beef. The Yorkshire pudding is nearly ready. Can you get Riley to slice the meat for me, please? And if you ladies would set the dining room table, that would be great. I’ve set up a folding table in the living room. We’ll put the kids and whoever else fits in the dining room.”
“Good grief,” Clara blurted. “How many of us are there?” She looked down at her toes. She hadn’t meant to say that so loudly.
Sue laughed. “When Tricia’s friend Jo gets here and Riley’s friend Houston arrives, we’ll have seventeen adults and six kids. Honey and Ira are in the basement with the men.”
Clara made a mental tally of all the Flints. Robert had five sons from his first marriage. Sue had three daughters. Robert also had a newly discovered son, Ira. Clara wanted to hear that story but wasn’t sure how to ask about it. Ira was married. Justice engaged and Riley set to marry. Quite the brood.
“I can’t believe how well you cope, Aunt Sue. A family this huge would drive me crazy.”
“That’s the thing about family,” Sue said, pivoting around to smile broadly at Clara. “They make you crazy, but they always have your back.”
“I suppose so.” She wanted to be optimistic about it, but her doubts showed in her voice.Family had your back, unless they were Clara’s father who was all about putting her down and sucking back booze. She wondered when he’d run out of money and come looking for her as he’d done in the past, only this time, she hadn’t told him she was moving, or that she’d changed her name. He was going to be angry.
“Mark my words, my dear niece. Someday you’ll love this family as if you were born into it, and you’ll adapt to the chaos. Silverware is in there.” Sue jabbed her fork toward the appropriate drawer. “I’m so glad you could join us. I’m particularly joyful that you’re part of our family now. When you came to town, I gained another daughter.”
“Thank you.” Clara blushed, but her heart filled at the lovely sentiment. How could this family be so different from her own? They were warm and welcoming, and all her father had ever done was put her down. It had started with the drinking after her mother passed away. Lord, she missed her mother.
On impulse, she threw her arms around Sue, hugging her from behind. “Thank you.” She stepped away and Sue turned around. Clara ignored Sue’s startled grunt and pleased expression, Clara grabbed the silverware tray and bolted into the dining room.
Dinner was a loud, boisterous, and fun affair. People chatted, teased, joked, and shared serious discussions. Clara missed half of the conversations; her attention skipped from one conversation to another. Adapting to large gatherings like this one would take a while. How in the world did Sue keep track of everything and everyone?
The most impressive thing about dinner, the thing that warmed Clara’s heart, was the open loving atmosphere between the entire family and their guests. Clearly these people loved each other, even when they bickered and teased. Their warm welcome chased away a chill she hadn’t known she’d had in her heart.
