forty-eight

It was five o’clock in the afternoon when Peyton backed the Skidaddle into a slip at Cubano’s. The dock manager inspected the boat and handed Peyton his pay. He and Lisa took turns drying off in the cabin before gathering their belongings and taking the kids to the fish camp café.

Once inside, Peyton immediately began looking for Gina. He saw her coming out of the kitchen with a tray of beer glasses for the bartender. She emptied the tray and was about to head back to the kitchen when she spotted him and stopped in her tracks.

“Hermanito!” she shouted, tossing the tray onto a table and throwing her arms wide. “You made it!” She ran to him and gave him a big hug, kissing him on both cheeks before stepping back to look at him. “You have changed, little brother. For one thing, you have children. Is this your beautiful Lisa?”

Peyton was beaming. “Yes. This is my beautiful Lisa. And I am her lucky Peyton.”

Gina held out her arms and Lisa gave her a hug. “You can’t imagine how much Peyton’s told me about you and your family, Gina,” she said.

“Likewise,” Gina said. “And the bebés—who might they be?”

“This is Bonnie and Jasper,” Peyton said. “Let’s just say they were in a bad spot and needed some help, so we brought ’em with us.”

“And your bike?”

“That’s kind of a long story. It’s gone, but I don’t mind.”

“Well, where is it? How did you get here? How are you getting to St. Augustine? Why—”

“Hang on, hang on. Let’s feed the young’uns and I’ll tell you all about it.”

“You know what today is, don’t you?” Gina said.

Peyton was confused. “You mean the date?”

“No, silly, the day. It’s Saturday!”

“Oh, man, are we in luck!” he said to Lisa.

“You will all stay at my mama’s—no arguments.” Gina waved her hands in the air as if to swat away any objections they might raise. “This time, Peyton, you do not have to work the bar. We are under new management.” She motioned for them to follow her into the kitchen, where Peyton saw Mama Eva stirring a huge stockpot of what smelled like her ropa vieja and giving orders over her shoulder to three cooks.

“Hey, Mama Eva,” he said.

She whirled around and threw out her arms. “Peyton, mi bebé!” she cried as he hugged her tight and kissed her.

He introduced her to Lisa and the children. “What’s all this, Mama Eva?” he asked, waving his arm around the kitchen.

“My new kitchen!” she exclaimed, raising her hands and looking skyward. “Gracias a Dios!”

“Papa says Mama seemed sad with all the children grown and no crowds to cook for except on Saturdays,” Gina explained. “So he bought her the café just a few days after your visit. Now it is spotless, the food is fresh and fantastic, and business is booming. In less than a month, my mama is famous for her cooking. All the fishermen from Jacksonville to Miami find an excuse to get here whenever they can. We screened in the back porch to seat more people.”

“Can I get you all a bowl of my ropa vieja?” Mama Eva asked.

“No, ma’am,” Peyton said, “not till the whole family’s here. Wouldn’t seem right.”

Mama Eva dabbed at her eyes with a dish towel. “You such a dear boy, Peyton,” she said as she hugged him so tight he couldn’t breathe. “Don’t you worry. I fix you children some good food to hold you till the family comes after closing. We put the little ones to bed in a booth if they get tired.”

He kissed her on the cheek. “I thought about your family every day that I was gone. Thank you for feeding us, Mama Eva.”

Gina led them to a breezy table on the porch and called for another waitress to deliver Cokes. “No menus from now on. Mama decides what everybody eats.”

“Hey, Gina, how’s Rolando?” Peyton asked.

“I can’t wait for him to see me in my wedding dress!” she said with a big smile. “And thank you for giving me your tips, Peyton. You did not have to do that.”

“You didn’t have to take me home with you, but you did. He’s still in the Philippines, right?”

“That’s right. He has rented a little house for us by the water. Can you believe that? My own house. I will not know what to do with so much room.”

“I guess you’ll have to fill it up,” Peyton said with a grin, nodding to the children.

Gina threw her dish towel at him. “You are trouble. I have always known it. Keep an eye on him, Lisa, while I check on your food.”

“What’s that big smile all about?” Peyton asked Lisa after Gina had gone.

“These people love you,” Lisa said. “You only stayed with them for a little while, and they treat you like family.”

“I’m pretty sure they treat everybody like family.”

“Maybe so, but I still think you’re special to them.”

“You will be too.”

“What about me and Jasper?” Bonnie asked. “Will we be special too?”

“You two will be super special,” Peyton said.

By the time Gina’s family closed the restaurant, enjoyed their Saturday night gathering, and started home, it was nearly one o’clock in the morning. Bonnie and Jasper had long since fallen asleep, tucked into makeshift beds in one of the booths just like all the other children in the family. Gina’s brother Ramone helped Peyton carry them to Mama Eva’s house and put them to bed. Lisa slept with them so they wouldn’t awake in a strange place and be afraid, while Peyton took an empty bed in the brothers’ room.

Before he fell asleep, Peyton said a silent prayer of thanks for this family’s warmth and hospitality, for Gina’s friendship, for Jasper and Bonnie’s safety, and for Lisa’s love—for that most of all.

“Promise me you will write,” Gina said to Peyton. “You too,” she said to Lisa.

“We promise,” Lisa said with a smile, hugging her goodbye. “Oh, Gina, your family is amazing. I hope we have a family like that one day.”

“Ah, so you are thinking about it!”

Lisa blushed, but Peyton couldn’t have been prouder.

“Come here, little brother,” Gina said, hugging Peyton and kissing him on both cheeks. “The little ones already on the boat?”

“Jasper’s a little shy,” Lisa said.

“Well, you give them both a kiss for me. Here is a sack filled with more of Mama’s food than ten people could eat. You know where you are going?”

“We do,” Peyton said. “And thank Ramone for putting in a good word with the dock manager. We’ll get the boat to Daytona.”

“You might have trouble getting ferry work from there.”

“That’s okay. Got a backup plan for Daytona.”

“Alright then. Safe journey to you.”

Gina waved goodbye from the dock as Peyton and Lisa untied the boat and pulled out of the slip. They waved to her one last time before they left the harbor.

Bonnie and Jasper, who had been playing below deck, came back up once the boat began moving. They took their usual spots—Bonnie on Peyton’s lap and Jasper on Lisa’s.

“I feel sad, but I don’t know why,” Bonnie said.

“It’s always sad to leave a happy place behind,” Peyton said. “And it’s hard saying goodbye to people you love.”

“You love all them people back there?”

“I sure do.”

“You love me and Jasper?”

“Absolutely.”

Bonnie thought for a minute. “Well, what about Lisa? Do you love her?”

“You better believe it.”

“You sure got a bunch o’ love in you, Peyton,” Bonnie said with a sigh. “It’s a wonder it don’t spill out all over the place and make a big ol’ mess.”