Page 32 of The Glass Dolphin

Robin let herself get swept up in Jean’s embrace, and then she joined the others in the kitchen, making a space for herself between Julia and Maddy. “So.” She exhaled. “What’s going on?”

“They’re talking men,” Alice said, leaning toward them, her smile more impish now. “Jean and Clara and I are talking about the inn; Kelli had to go to the bathroom—”

“Again,” Jean said with a grin.”

“Again,” Alice echoed. “And believe it or not, AJ won’t come out of the kitchen, where Kristen is currently hiding too.”

The cottage wasn’t big enough to hide, though Robin had seen Kristen try to do so before. AJ too.

“So only Eloise isn’t here?” Robin asked, glancing around. “No, wait. And Tessa.”

“Oh, she can’t make it now,” Julia said. “She came down with a nasty cold, poor thing.”

“Eloise’s car is outside,” Robin said, hooking her thumb over her shoulder. She watched Kristen in the kitchen, but the older woman kept her back to everyone. She hadn’t greeted Robin, which made her stomach thunder in the most uncomfortable way.

“We drove it,” Clara said. “Julia and I, from the ferry station. She said she’d get a RideShare when she came.”

The door opened again, and a wind-blown Eloise got swept in. Her hair had started to grow out again, but it still sprouted from her head in curls, and she huffed as she wiped them out of her eyes. “Sorry I’m late,” she said, which had become a mantra for Eloise lately.

Robin had hoped that she’d find some relief by hiring more people, and perhaps she had. Maybe Robin hadn’t asked her. There was so much she’d missed out on in the past couple of weeks, and as she met Alice’s eye, they both raised their eyebrows.

Alice actually smiled, but Robin felt like bursting into tears. “Who’s gonna call it?” she asked as Jean went to greet El too.

“You better,” Robin said. “No one wants to hear me do it.”

“Call what?” Maddy asked, looking from Robin to Alice and back.

“All right,” Alice yelled into the small space. The smaller two-person conversations that had started dried right up. “I’m calling a Tell-All. I know people have things to say, and to quote Robin, these things keep us close. If there’s something you don’t want to tell us, you probably should.”

“I have never said that last part,” Robin said, shooting Alice a look she hoped was filled with pure venom. “I do think telling each other things keeps us close, and well, I feel far apart from some of you.”

“Only because you’ve been out of town,” El said, slipping her hand around Robin’s waist. She grinned at her. “We’re right here. You’re right here.”

A surge of love for Eloise moved through Robin. “Thanks, El,” she whispered.

“Do you want to get food first?” Kristen asked. She now faced the group as she leaned into the small peninsula that separated the tiny kitchen area from the small dining area. A big round table had been set up in what had once been the living room, and Robin sure did like that. She’d be able to see and hear everyone.

“Always food first,” El said, deciding for everyone.

“I would like to go last,” Kristen said, nodding to Alice. She couldn’t seem to look at Robin at all, and as Alice granted her permission to participate in the Tell-All last, Robin skirted around behind El, Maddy, and Clara to get to the kitchen.

She waited on the peripheral as Kristen and AJ laid out the food. Then chatter broke out as paper plates got picked up and people put food on them.

Robin edged into the kitchen and finally wrapped her arms around Kristen. She remained stiff for a long moment, and then she relaxed into Robin’s embrace. “How are you, dear?” she asked in that voice that had comforted Robin for nearly five decades.

She pressed her eyes shut and just held on, no words needed to convey how she was. She finally stepped back and met Kristen’s eyes. “I have a lot to tell everyone.”

Kristen smiled in that loving, matronly way she had. “Good thing Alice called the Tell-All then.” They laughed together, and with a happier heart, Robin filled a plate with a brownie, a roll, and plenty of salad. Then, she selected the Dijon chicken stew for her main dish and went to sit at the table.

Alice had kept a spot next to her, and Robin took it, assuming it to be hers. Alice side-hugged her, pressing her cheek to Robin’s. “I missed you so much. Never go to New York again.”

Robin laughed, because they’d talked every day. Maybe not verbally, but definitely through texts. “What are we going to do about our kids?” she asked almost under her breath. She even tried to hide the fact that she’d spoken by lifting her spoon to her mouth, as if a plastic spoon with a bit of soup on it would conceal anything.

“You know what?” Alice looked right at her. “I’ve decided they’re adults. Of course I’m going to worry about them. I’m going to counsel them the best I can. Butdoingsomething? There’s nothing I cando.”

“You’ve already done it,” Julia said from a few seats down. “That’s one thing I learned from my adult sons. I’m already the voice in their head.” She smiled at Alice and Robin. “Right, Maddy?”

“Usually,” Maddy said. “I was surprised at how much my kids had actually listened to me. There are years where you feel like you’re shouting at the walls.”

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