Page 103 of 11 Cowboys
“Exactly.”
Conway arrives back from early duties in time to hammer some stakes into the ground to hang the lights from.
Cody and Nash have found time to set up blankets and pillows around the fire pit, and surprisingly, it doesn’t look terrible.
Back inside, the cake has cooled, and Corbin carefully spreads cream cheese frosting over the top. We decorate it with a sprinkle of chopped pecans, and he digs out some candles from the junk drawer.
The kids practice their rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ in the den, and McCartney uses the hairdryer to cure hispainting so it can be framed. We make platters of sandwiches and fruit and trays for the s’more ingredients.
Brody’s on his way back with Grace, so I corral everyone outside. It’s strange for the whole family to be dressed up at this time of the day, and I make a mental note to set up the camera so we can take at least one photograph of us all together. Junie makes me laugh, prancing around in a floral dress, holding the hem like a lady. Levi cues up Grace’s favorite country songs, and I twirl Hannah while Dylan twirls Eli, and we wait for Grace’s return.
The truck’s the first thing we hear, rumbling over the low music, which Levi quickly turns off. Matty covers his mouth and giggles. Eli leans close to her dad, now clutching the bunch of flowers Harrison helped her tie with pink ribbon. Junie jumps up and down, and Rory wiggles in his father’s arms, clapping his pudgy hands even though he has no idea what’s going on. Caleb is holding the framed painting, supported by McCartney. Around me, my brothers and cousins wait, hope and trepidation tensing their expressions and posture.
Did I do the right thing? Is this going to make Grace happy, or remind her of something from her past that’s left her feeling that birthdays are a fuss she doesn’t want or shouldn’t expect?
When they round the corner, Brody, my big, gruff cousin, has his hand resting gently on Grace’s lower back. The man is never nervous about anything, but his eyes dart around at everything in front of him like he’s checking for an unexploded bomb.
Grace’s eyes widen as she takes in the whole scene of our rough little setup with mismatched blankets and mason jars, paper lanterns and fairy lights strung between posts, and this strange, cobbled-together group of dusty cowboys and their kids hoping to make her feel like she belongs.
The kids begin singing tunelessly but sweetly, and she covers her mouth with her hands and stares at the setting, the flowers, the cake, and the smiling faces.
We all join in the singing to help the kids along, and Corbin approaches with the cake, cupping the flame with his hand so the wind doesn’t extinguish it. Grace’s wide-eyed shock softens as she smiles broadly as Eli shyly hands her the flowers.
“These are beautiful,” she says softly, voice catching as she crouches to hug Eli tightly, blinking quickly. Junie launches into her side and nearly knocks her over, giggling. Grace laughs and kisses both girls on the tops of their heads, cheeks flushed, eyes glassy.
Corbin’s palm still guards the flickering flame patiently. “Make a wish, birthday girl.”
She turns to him, then slowly.
“Don’t take too long,” Levi calls. “Or the frosting’s gonna melt.”
Grace huffs out a watery laugh and closes her eyes for a second. Leaning in, she purses her perfect scarlet lips and blows out the candle. The flame dies in one soft breath, and everyone cheers like she won a blue ribbon at the state fair.
McCartney steps forward with Caleb at his side, carefully balancing the painting. He doesn’t say much as he holds it out to her with a quiet, “Happy birthday, Grace.”
She takes one look at all of us painted there, standing in front of the barn like a real family, with her right in the middle, and her hand flies to her mouth again. “You painted this?”
He shrugs, but his ears turn red. “It’s no big deal.”
Grace blinks down at it and then at all of us. “You didn’t have to do all this.”
I step in beside her to hand her a boozy fruit punch. “We wanted to.”
She smiles shyly, and her gaze sweeps across all of us again, from the kids playing tag at the edge of the blankets to the smiles and picnic setting. Her eyes settle on Brody, then flick to Conway, Jaxon, Corbin, and finally back to me.
“I don’t know what to say,” she admits.
“You could start with thank you,” Jaxon grunts. “We’vebeen working on this all morning.” He earns himself a round of laughter.
Grace laughs, too, clutching the flowers and drink like a lifeline. “Thank you,” she says, softer now. “This is… this is the best birthday I’ve ever had.”
We crowd around, handing out sandwiches, slices of cake, and drinks. Levi turns up the music, and Brody gets the fire pit started. Dylan, Cody, Nash, and Harrison help the kids turn the marshmallows and assemble the s’mores. Grace is given the first one, which is a sticky mess that she ohs and ahs over like it’s a Parisian pastry.
When she finds a moment to speak to me, she touches my arm gently. “I know it was you behind all this,” she says. “You overheard me talking with my mom.”
I shrug. “I had a lot of help.”
“You’re always the detail person,” she says softly. “Thank you for planning this surprise for me.”
