Page 105 of Look on the Bright Side

And here came everyone. Addie, Nicole and the girls. Harlow; her boyfriend, Grady; his daughter, Luna; and Rosie, Harlow’s best friend, who was visiting for a couple of weeks. Robbie was with them, having been crushing on Rosie since he was, oh, ten years old. Harlow’s dog, Ollie, was here, too, and immediately began romping and tussling with Connery in case there wasn’t enough chaos. Winnie, stone-faced, had driven Frances and Grandpop, who was wearing a blue seersucker suit and panama hat.

Lark could always sneak off to her little guesthouse to hide.

But no. The Santinis came right on their heels, piling out of a huge SUV like it was a clown car. Dante wasn’t with them, she noted. She was relieved and disappointed at the same time. Mostly relieved, she told herself. They poured into the yard, the house, onto the deck, and Lark greeted and kissed and hugged and stuck bottles of wine in the appropriate places, took a cake from Anita, showed Izzy where to park Noni.

“Where’s the alcohol?” Izzy asked. “I’ve been in the car with the Crypt Keeper for almost an hour here.”

“Lorenzo! Honey, there you are!” Anita cried.

“He came in his Maserati and wouldn’t even let me ride shotgun,” Izzy muttered.

“Hello,” Lorenzo said, accepting a hug from his mother. He looked sullen and gorgeous, like an ad for a very expensive cologne.

“That’s him?” Nicole said. “I can see why she’s with him. That’s a Patek Philippe watch.”

“Tone it down, Nicole,” Winnie said.

“Hello,” Lorenzo said to Lark, his voice grim.

“Hi,” she said. “I…yeah.” Since they were being watched, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. He didn’t visibly recoil, so points for that. “Sorry,” she whispered. “I had nothing to do with this.”

“And yet here we are.”

“I’m simply a tenant.” She turned to her family, who stood on one side of the large kitchen. “Mom, Dad, meet Anita and Silvio Santini. This is Lorenzo, my…boyfriend, and this is Noni, Silvio’s mom. This is Isabella, who’s a nurse—Izzy, my dad is also a nurse, I’m sure you two can swap horror stories—and this is Sofia, the bride, and her handsome fiancé, Henry Chang, and his mom, Jocelyn.”

A chorus of hellos rose up.

Lark took a deep breath. “Santinis, meet my parents, Gerald and Elsbeth—”

“Call me Ellie, please,” Mom said.

“Our wonderful hostess, Joy Deveaux, my landlady and friend. There’s Grandpop, his girlfriend, Frances—”

“Hello, hello!” Grandpop said.

“And these are my siblings, in birth order. Harlow; her best friend, Rosie; her partner, Grady; and his adorable little girl, Luna.”

“I’m five,” Luna said.

“Five is awesome,” Izzy said.

Lark smiled and continued. “This is Addison, my twin, obviously, and her wife, Nicole, and their gorgeous daughters, Esme and Imogen. That’s my sister Winnie, and that’s my brother, Robbie, and did I leave anyone out?”

Everyone seemed to speak at once. Lorenzo gave her a dark look, then took the handles of his grandmother’s wheelchair and pushed her into the dining room, away from the din of conversation. Lark followed, and Winnie drifted in as well.

“Hi,” Winnie said. “I’m Lark’s youngest sister. Nice to meet you, Mrs.Santini.”

Noni raised her head—she’d gotten a new wig—and eyed Winnie. “You,” Noni said in her whispery voice. “I no like you. Your face, it’s not nice.”

“Okay,” Winnie said, straightening up. “Well, based on that, I no like you, either, ma’am.”

“Excuse me,” Lorenzo said, his voice like a knife. “She’s an old lady.”

“Yeah. Rude, too,” Winnie said, unimpressed.

“How about some respect?” he said.

“I called her ma’am,” Winnie retorted, and Lark smothered a laugh.

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