Julie reached into the refrigerator and pulled out the chilled watermelon. Setting it carefully on the counter, she retrieved a large knife from the drawer and handed it to Dawson.
“Have fun,” she said as he started cutting. She couldn’t believe that it was already Sunday dinner again. Now that they were married, everyone came to the inn for Sunday dinners, and it was always a fun time since guests often joined them. Of course, those were the Sundays they were all on their best behavior, hoping for repeat business.
“Need help with anything?” SuAnn asked as she walked into the kitchen.
“Nope. I think we’re good. Is Hen coming today?”
“No, she had to go to some rope cutting ceremony with that boring husband of hers,” SuAnn said, taking a piece of the watermelon before Julie could stop her.
“Mom, don’t say that.”
“She says it herself all the time!”
Everyone had been surprised at what fast friends Henrietta and SuAnn had become. After the whole pie contest debacle, Hen had graciously let everyone know that there was a discrepancy she found in the tally and then stepped down so SuAnn could have the limelight. From then on, the two had spent a lot of time together, always causing a ruckus about something in town. Julie had never seen two women more meant to be best friends than SuAnn and Hen.
“So, William, I hear that you’re getting a second boat?” Julie asked as she breezed into the dining room.
“Yep. We’re running at least one charter a day, so this could double my business pretty quickly.”
“My boyfriend is going to be a gazillionaire and buy me a yacht,” Janine joked as she leaned over and kissed his cheek.
“Calm down there, yogi. I think we’ll just stick with two fishing boats for awhile.”
“Well, I went on one of his charters last weekend, and it was amazing. Caught some huge redfish that day. Dixie grilled them up real nice,” Harry said.
“I sure did, and he ate so much he couldn’t button his pants!”
Julie walked to the kitchen window and opened it. “Dylan, come in for dinner!”
Dylan, whose adoption was in process, was always running around the property doing this or that. Dawson had taught him a lot about water safety, fishing and even started teaching him to surf. The Department of Children’s Services had allowed Dawson and Julie to foster Dylan while the adoption was processing, for which they were very thankful.
Dylan came running through the door, dirty as usual. “I saw a huge crab on the beach!”
“Go wash up, young man,” Julie said, rustling his hair. Dylan ran down the hallway to the bathroom.
Julie loved Sundays for this very reason. The house was always full of the people she loved. Vivi, who is now walking, was into everything, so Meg was chasing her all over the living room, trying to keep her out of Dawson's grandmother’s priceless antiques.
Colleen and Tucker were sitting on the sofa chatting with Christian about the latest toy that Tucker had invented. It was taking off, and it was poised to be one of the biggest toys of the Christmas season.
“Everybody ready to eat?” Lucy called, popping her head out of the kitchen. If there was one thing that Julie loved, it was having Lucy around. She reminded her of Agnes, her old housekeeper in Atlanta. She had become part of the family, and for that, Julie was grateful.
Everybody sat down around the table as Julie and Lucy brought the food out and set it on the long table. The family was getting bigger and bigger which meant that they had to put the leaves in the table. That was okay with her. She hoped she would need two tables before it was over with.
“Before we get started eating today, I would like to make an announcement,” Dawson said. Julie didn't know what he was talking about, so she was eager to hear this secret announcement of his.
“Everybody quiet down,” Janine said, patting the chair next to her for Dylan to sit down. She had been a wonderfully calming force for him and had taken on the role as his aunt with gusto, even teaching him some yoga to help him focus at his new school. Thankfully, he’d made plenty of friends there and was no longer being bullied.
“As you all know, we are in the process of making Dylan an official part of this family,” Dawson said. Everybody clapped, and Janine rubbed Dylan’s back.
“Julie doesn’t even know this, but on Friday, I got a call from the attorney that the adoption is now finalized. You are officially our son!”
Dylan's mouth opened wide and he jumped from his chair, running over to hug Dawson and then Julie.
“Why did you keep this a secret from me?” Julie said, walking over and pinching Dawson on the arm.
“I wanted to see the look on both of your faces."
“So does this mean that I am officially Dylan Lancaster?”
Dawson smiled. “Well, technically, I suppose so. We just have a few papers to file to get your name changed.”
“I’m so excited!” Dylan danced around the room, a huge grin on his face.
“Not nearly as excited as we are to have you as our son,” Julie said, pulling him over and squeezing him. Being his mother, even for the last few months, had been one of the great joys of her life so far. Tucking him in at night, taking long walks down the beach and reading him stories on the porch were some of her favorite memories so far, and she knew there were thousands more memories to be made.
“Not all families are built by blood, but by love. Here's to family!” Dixie said, holding her glass of sweet tea in the air. Everybody followed and clinked their glasses together.
As the conversations flowed, Julie looked around at all of the people in her life and felt such an immense sense of gratitude. For her husband. Her sister. Her daughters. Her mother. Her friends. And now, for her new son. Life just didn’t get any better.
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