Page 122 of Dancing in the Rain

Mrs. Sellers smiled as they were joined by another man, definitely an older version of Drew. “You can call me Janet,” Mrs. Sellers said with a smile. “Someday if you want to, you can call me Grandma, but I know it’s weird right now.”

“And I’m Jim.” Mr. Sellers stepped toward Chloe and extended a hand. “Happy to meet you, Chloe.”

She shook his hand and gave him a nervous smile.

“And this is Peyton,” Drew said. “Chloe’s aunt.”

She shook hands with Janet and Jim.

“Well,” Janet said. “I’m glad we’re all here together. We can get to know each other a bit better. But first we have to get that turkey in the oven.”

Peyton had never cooked a turkey by herself before. She and Sara had attempted it together after their parents had died, with one spectacular failure of raw turkey and another dried to a crisp. “I’m not very good at turkey,” she said to Janet.

“Well, I’ve done it a few times,” Janet said with an easy smile. “I’d love some help, though.”

They moved into the kitchen where Janet already had the turkey sitting in the kitchen sink. “Did you have plans for stuffing it?” she asked. “I didn’t want to take over.”

“I was just going to make the basic bread stuffing my mom used to make.”

“Perfect.”

The day passed quickly. Jim and Drew argued over football, Jim shaking his head at the “American football” games on the television in between serving drinks and snacks and helping in the kitchen. Janet was so easy to talk to and lovely; by the time they sat down for dinner Peyton felt she’d known her all her life. Chloe was more at ease and was telling them all about her latest cause—shark finning.

“They cut off the fins of sharks,” she explained earnestly. “And toss the body back in the water. But the shark can’t swim without its fins and it sinks to the bottom of the ocean and suffocates. It’s very cruel.”

Peyton winced at the unfortunate dinner conversation, even though she was proud of Chloe.

“Thatisawful,” Janet agreed.

“What the hell do people use shark fins for?” Jim asked.

Peyton bit her lip on a smile. Ah, well, Drew swore in front of Chloe and it hadn’t seemed to corrupt her.

“Shark fin soup,” Chloe said. “It’s very popular in China. They also use it in some traditional Chinese medicines, and it’s used in some cosmetics and pet foods. The shark fins can be worth thousands of dollars, so even though it’s illegal, some fishermen still do it.”

“That’s terrible.”

Chloe nodded. “There are thirty-nine species of sharks that are endangered.”

“How do you know all about this?” Jim asked.

“I did a project on it at school. And I’m working on a fund-raiser to raise awareness about products that contain shark fins so that people won’t buy them, and so we can send money to Shark Heroes. It’s an organization that works to protect sharks.”

Peyton watched Jim and Janet exchange glances. For a moment she thought Janet was going to cry, but the older woman blinked a few times then smiled. “That’s amazing, Chloe.”

Chloe smiled and shrugged. “I like doing things like that.”

Peyton sipped her wine, her own chest full of pride and love for her niece. She glanced at Drew, and the look on his face seemed to reflect her own feelings, his eyes warm and admiring on his daughter. Then, as if sensing her looking at him, he turned his gaze to her and they shared a connection of spirit, joined by their love for Chloe. And then the warmth in his eyes changed, sparking hotter, and her lower belly did a little flip.

She dropped her gaze to her plate. “This turkey is so good. Thank you for helping, Janet.”

“Oh, my goodness, it’s my pleasure. This is certainly a different holiday for us, but I have to say, it’s…wonderful.”

And Peyton agreed. She was still sad and missing Sara, but thiswaspretty wonderful.

Chapter 28

Peyton turned to Drew in her living room to set her hands on his chest, Chloe having gone up to get ready for bed after he’d driven them home. She rubbed through his sweater and, damn, it felt good. “That was a lovely day. Your parents are great, and I could see they really liked Chloe, too.”

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