Page 13 of The Glass Dolphin

“I could’ve done it,” Eloise said.

“I didn’t know Aaron was here.” Julia kept her head ducked as if Aaron and Eloise were still making out. They hadn’t even been doing that.

“He comes to the feast.” Eloise stepped out of the way and let Julia remove her sizzling, bubbling, ooey-gooey, sugary cocktail sausages from the oven. With the door still open, she slid her crock of artichoke dip into the oven.

“Tables are up,” Julia said. “Kristen and Jean just arrived.”

Of course they’d be early. But an early Jean meant a baby girl, and Eloise shot a glance over to Aaron. “I’ll go see if they need help,” he said, and he slipped away out the same door he’d entered.

Eloise sighed and reached for the pastry bag he’d brought while Julia removed her sugary sausages from the pan before they could stick. “Oh, that man,” she murmured when she saw the double chocolate mint brownie inside the bag.

“Something good?” Julia asked.

She pulled out the brownie. “He knows me too well.”

Julia grinned as Eloise took a big bite of the brownie, not even caring if frosting gathered in the corners of her mouth. “You two are sweet.”

Eloise chewed and swallowed while Julia laughed, and then she asked, “How are things going with you and Liam?”

Julia didn’t flinch. She didn’t stop working for even a moment. “Well enough,” she said. “To keep going out with him.” She lifted her head long enough to give Eloise a smile that said so much more. Julia wouldn’t, Eloise knew that. She’d never met someone as vaulted as Julia, and that only made Eloise like and trust her more.

“Can I use the stove in here?” Robin asked, drawing Eloise’s attention to the swinging plastic door as she pushed through it. She carried two casserole dishes in her arms, and Eloise went to help her.

“What’s this?” It better not be ham and potatoes, or Robin would be disobeying her own rules. Eloise felt the need to step in front of the oven to hide the fact that her spinach and artichoke dip was the same thing she brought every year.

She didn’t really care; she could handle Robin’s wrath. Everyone would do what they wanted anyway, Robin included.

“Roast beef,” she said as she slid the casserole dishes onto the table. “Cheesy mashed potatoes.” She wiped her hair off her face, a smile finally appearing. “Phew. How are you?” She stepped into Eloise. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in a while.”

They didn’t see each other as often in the winter months, to be sure. Eloise’s job kept her plenty busy, and she was absolutely determined to put her family high on her list of priorities.

“Deviled eggs,” Alice said, which elicited a sigh from Robin. She put her tray of beautifully filled egg halves on the table and met Robin’s eyes. “Sorry,” she said. “This is what my tradition is, and it’s theFriendship Feast.” She beamed at Robin, and Eloise quickly faced her too.

“I made the artichoke dip,” she said.

Robin cocked her head to the side. “So I’m going to be the only one who brought something different.”

“No,” Eloise said quickly. “I know Kristen brought cookies.”

“Yeah, but Clara brought the potato rolls.” Robin rolled her eyes. “I know Kristen made those for her.”

“They worked on them together,” Eloise said. “This isn’t a big deal. Your food will be the best anyway.”

“I’m pretty sure AJ isn’t bringing pumpkin pie,” Alice said. “And Jean brought an amazing ice cream cake I can’t wait to dig into. So that’s totally new and different.”

Eloise wanted to tell Robin that not everything had to be new and different to be wonderful. They had new people at their Friendship Feast today, and that alone made it different.

“I had a feeling the kitchen would be hopping this morning.”

Eloise turned to find her evening manager, Rhonda, entering the kitchen. “I brought clam chowder.” She wore a big, bright smile, as she usually did. Eloise loved her, and she moved to give her a hug.

“Let’s get the food outside that can be taken there,” Robin said, and she started directing traffic in the very Robin-like way she had. Even that didn’t bother Eloise, because she’d rather have someone else take charge than be the one to do it.

Her artichoke dip came out of the oven, and she took it outside, where a spot had been kept for it. The patio buzzed with friends and cheer, and Eloise didn’t care that she’d eaten Alice’s fancy deviled eggs before. They were good, and she’d eat them any day of the week.

She glanced around at all of these people she loved. Laurel had brought her husband, Paul, and their baby, James. AJ and Matt and Asher stood in a trio. Alice and Robin were there alone, but Jean and Reuben had brought their baby girl, Heidi, whom Kristen held.

She’d come alone today, which gave Eloise a moment of pause as she’d been dating Theo Sands pretty seriously lately. At least seriously enough to have met his children when they’d come for Thanksgiving.

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