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IT WAS A SATURDAY EVENING, five days after the funeral.
Mary had decided that, after everything, it was time to have a big family dinner. Even the twins and Gabriel were home from school for the weekend. The timing couldn’t have been better.
Mary had also invited Ciara. Ciara thought she might be intruding, but Mary had assured her she was almost like family. After all, she was Henry’s best friend.
Ciara arrived early, before any of the other guests.
“Ciara!” the twins squealed when Mary let her in. The girls were thrilled to see her after so long. Somehow, they had heard about Jesse and they were dying to hear more.
Ciara tried to tell Polly and Poppy that Jesse was just her friend, but neither twin was buying it.
“Ciara and Jesse sitting in a tree—”
Ciara rolled her eyes, and the twins started giggling.
Ciara had also caught sight of Gabriel and Ray briefly before they had left outside to fly a magical kite that they had built the evening before.
After talking with the twins, Ciara went to help Mary in the kitchen. She stayed away from the oven, but she helped with setting the table.
“You still hate cooking?”
Ciara smiled and glanced at Mary. “I wouldn’t call it hate. I just prefer not to burn anything.”
Mary chuckled. “Oh, Ciara.”
Ciara smiled, setting the plates on the table.
“But I don’t see why you’d have to cook,” Mary said, smiling. “You’ll just have to get yourself a man that can do it for you.”
Ciara grinned. “Well, from now on I’ll ask about cooking skills on every first date.”
“You’re not seeing anyone?”
Ciara shook her head. “No.”
“But you’re looking for someone to date?”
“Not really.”
“What about Jesse? You’re not interested in him, either?”
Ciara chuckled slightly. “It’s not like that with him. He’s a good friend, but that’s it. We’re just friends. Although, I’ll admit, he has matured a lot since school.”
“Is it odd being friends with him?” Mary asked.
“Not really.” Ciara shrugged. “It’s sort of like with me and Liam.”
Mary nodded with a hint of a smile on her face, the amusement reaching all the way up to her eyes.
Ciara tilted her head to the side. “What?”
“So you and Liam are friends.”
Heat rushed to Ciara’s cheeks, and she prayed Mary didn’t notice. “I suppose so.”
Mary smiled and nodded, looking at Ciara, before she turned back to the oven. “I think he still cares about you a lot. Whether it’s platonic, I can’t tell.”
“He’s happy with Iris,” Ciara said, setting down the glasses.
Mary turned to glance at her, eyebrows raised. “So you still love him?”
Ciara sighed. Denying her feelings, even from Mary, would be pointless. “Love is a strong word.”
“But?”
Ciara trusted Mary. Even if she was Liam’s mother, she wouldn’t tell Liam—or Iris. After all, Mary was like a second mother to Ciara.
Ciara turned to look at her and smiled. “I’m happy for him.”
Mary looked back at Ciara, and her face twisted into a sad—almost pitying—smile. “I’d call that selfless love.”
“It doesn’t matter. Everyone’s happy now.” Everyone but me. But Ciara couldn’t be happy after all the loss. She needed time to heal.
“I suppose so.” Mary nodded. “But even if you won’t be officially part of the family, I’ll want to see the next guy to win your heart.”
Ciara smiled. “I’ll bring him over once I find him.”
Mary smiled warmly. “Oh, you’d better.”
The two women heard the front door open and close. A moment later Liam stepped into the kitchen, lingering in the doorway. “Hi, Mum,” he greeted his mother and then turned to face Ciara. “Hi, Ciara.” He smiled at her.
Ciara smiled back at him. “Hi,” she said, folding the light green napkins.
“It’s so good to see you, dear!” Mary said, beaming at her son. “I’d hug you, but this cooking won’t wait.” She gestured to the stew she was stirring.
Liam smiled. “I’d hate for it to burn.”
Mary smiled and tried to peer behind Liam. “Did you come alone? Where’s Iris?”
“She should be here later. She has some errands to run, but she promised to come.”
Mary smiled and nodded. “Good, good.”
The twins walked downstairs and spotted their eldest brother in the kitchen doorway. “Liam!” Poppy squealed and rushed to hug Liam.
Then it was Polly’s turn.
“How’s school?” Liam asked the twins after the greeting hugs.
“Polly has a date in a week,” Poppy revealed with a triumphant grin.
“Poppy!” Polly screamed at her twin, her eyes growing wide. “It was supposed to stay a secret!”
“Polly has a date?” Mary shrieked with both surprise and excitement—and perhaps a bit of worry.
Poppy grinned at Polly and shrugged. “Too late now.”
Liam crossed his arms. “So, who is the guy? Do I need to give him a few rules before or—”
“Please, don’t!” Polly cried out. Her cheeks were glowing red, and she looked mortified.
Liam couldn’t help but chuckle.
“I’m sure Poppy will make sure he’s a decent date. Right?” Ciara turned to look at Poppy.
Poppy smiled and nodded. “Of course!”
“I hate all of you,” Polly muttered, crossing her arms. She pouted and glared at her family members.
“So, when will we get to meet this guy?” Mary asked.
“Mum!” Polly shook her head. “Stop teasing!”
“Alright, alright,” Mary said and smiled at her daughter. “Just wait until your father hears.”
Polly, who had just relaxed a little, looked mortified again. “No! No, no, no.”
To Polly’s luck, the front door opening interrupted the moment.
“Hello, everyone!” came Henry’s voice before he and Jenna walked into the kitchen.
“It’s so good to see both of you here!” Mary said and smiled at them. “How are you two?”
“Almost running late because of this one,” Jenna said, nudging Henry.
Mary sighed but smiled. “Oh, it’s always the men we have to wait for.”
Henry rolled his eyes.
“So, you two still haven’t killed each other now that you’re living together?” Liam teased the freshly arrived couple.
Henry and Jenna had decided it was best for them to live together, even though they hadn’t been dating for long. Neither one of them saw any point in Henry looking for a new flat when they would spend most of their time together in one place anyway.
“We haven’t even fought once,” Henry revealed and smiled proudly. “You can’t top that, I bet.”
“Oh, just wait,” Liam said.
Soon Gabriel and Ray came inside from flying their magical kite—which had been a success. It was just in time for the dinner.
Iris still hadn’t shown up, but there was a seat saved for her at the table. Ironically, the empty seat was between Liam and Ciara.
Everyone continued to eat while chatting until Mary asked Liam about Iris. Liam excused himself to call his fiancée. When he returned to the table, it turned out she hadn’t answered his call. Liam tried to come up with an excuse, saying Iris’s phone was dead or she had lost track of time.
But Ciara feared it wasn’t that.
She turned to look at Henry and Jenna. Henry looked uneasy and slightly pale.
He had never got the chance to tell Liam about the cheating. The day he had been planning to tell, Iris had been with him and Liam the entire time. Then there had been the attacks, Doherty’s death, and the funeral.
Henry had eventually forgotten to say anything.
Ciara had tried to make sense of the cheating. But none of it made any sense, considering how in love with Liam Iris was. Their wedding was nearing, too.
Liam kept shifting in his seat. He seemed uneasy, but not for the same reason as the others. He was worried about his fiancée.
Worried enough to leave right after dinner.
“I hope everything’s okay with Iris,” Mary said, her forehead wrinkling with worry.
Ciara was cleaning the kitchen with her. Henry was outside with Gabriel. Ray was taking a nap. And Jenna was braiding the twins’ hairs. Everyone had something to do.
“Liam will call soon if something’s wrong, I’m sure,” Ciara said, trying to comfort Mary.
“Unless someone attacked their flat.”
“There are strong protection spells guarding it,” Ciara reminded her.
After the attacks, every member—or former member—had put up guarding and protection spells around their homes. None of them felt safe, and none of them were safe. But the spells helped, and they were made to last for weeks, if not months.
Mary sighed. “You’re right. Perhaps I shouldn’t worry so much.”
“It’s okay to worry about your children. After everything that has happened, I would worry, too.”
Mary nodded.
“I think Iris might have been running some errands for the wedding,” Ciara said, trying to reassure Mary. “I mean, she’s so excited. It would be no wonder if she lost track of time.”
Mary smiled and nodded, feeling relieved. “You’re right.”
Ciara smiled back and set a pile of plates in the sink.
“It’s quite surprising that the two of you are friends.”
Ciara looked up at Mary. “I have nothing against Iris. She seems like a wonderful person.”
The moment those words left Ciara’s mouth, she wanted to take them back. Her thoughts drifted to the shirtless man who had walked out of Iris and Liam’s shared flat.