“You made it!” Rosemarie released her and smiled. “I knew you would get him to come. You’re a good influence.” She clung to her hand in an unbreakable grip. “Come with me. I want you to meet the girls.”
Maggie looked back as Rosemarie dragged her away from Ryan. Her first thought was never go to the second location. Her second thought was help.
“Maureen, Col, stop and meet Ryan’s Maggie.”
Two women, about the same age as Rosemarie turned from the counter and smiled widely. One had red hair just like Rosemarie. The other was thinner and blonde.
“Welcome to our home,” the redheaded woman said, startling Maggie with another hug. “Can I get you something to drink?”
Maggie vaguely recognized her from the day after Ryan’s birthday. “You must be Mrs. McCullough.”
“Oh, will you listen to that? Call me Maureen, love.”
The blonde sister shouldered her way closer. “It’s nice of you to get Ryan back for us. I’m Colleen, his favorite aunt.”
“Get the hell out of here, Colleen.” Maureen shoved her sister aside. “Everyone knows I’m the favorite.” She took Maggie’s hand, much like Rosemarie had done, and dragged her toward the table. “Colin, get up so Maggie can sit.”
A man with dark black hair and familiar blue eyes stood and offered his seat. Maggie flushed. “Oh, you don’t have to get up—”
“Of course, he does,” Maureen insisted. “You’re our guest.” She shoved her into the vacated seat which pushed up to an enormous wood carved farm table. “I’ll get you some tea.”
“Bring the whiskey, too, Maureen.” Alec winked.
She folded her hands in her lap. Every man gathered around the table sat a foot taller than her.
“Well, look who it is.”
She sucked in a breath at the sight of Ryan’s cousin Kelly. The man looked perfect in every setting. Even that time when he caught her sneaking into the loft, thought she was a raccoon, and tried to hit her with a broom, he still looked perfect.
He flashed a heart-stopping smile at her. “Did you sneak in, or is this visit on the up-and-up?”
“Leave her alone, Kelly,” Ryan said, coming to stand behind her. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Doing okay?”
She nodded.
Maureen returned with a pitcher of iced tea and a bottle of whiskey for Alec. He subtly filled his glass, topping it off with a hefty splash of booze and then switched cups with Maggie. She was immensely grateful. The whiskey helped her relax enough to breathe normally.
She recognized Sammy from the bar and recalled she was married to the black haired man who gave Maggie his seat. She’d tried to say hello several times, but children kept interrupting, so eventually she gave up and sipped her whiskey and tea.
Ryan made sure to introduce her to all the adults, but there were too many to keep their names straight. Some Maggie recognized and some she didn’t.
When dinner was served, the children crowded around two folding tables in the corner, and the adults took up the seats in the dining room and kitchen. Maggie purposely tried to position herself between Ryan and Alec. Alec kept the conversation moving around casual topics whenever Ryan was pulled into a discussion with someone else. She appreciated him going the extra distance to make her more comfortable.
A man named Giovanni sat across from her, beside Mariella, the stunning woman from the café. She was more beautiful than Maggie remembered. But this time she didn’t feel as threatened by the other woman’s striking good looks.
“They’re siblings,” Alec whispered. “Colleen’s children. Paulie, their father, is a Mosconi. That’s where the olive skin and old Italian Mary come from.”
“Italian Mary?”
He pointed to the wrinkled little woman with the severe black hair sitting in the kitchen. “Paulie’s mother. I think she’ll outlive all of us.”
The food was delicious. There was pork roast with fluffy mashed potatoes and string beans with butter. But what Maggie really adored was watching them interact. It was like an exhibit at a zoo, an entire species of people reaching over each other, chatting, poking, cohabitating. She’d never witnessed such evident love in such a widely assorted group of people.
By the time coffee was served, she no longer felt the need to top her glass with whiskey. Or the whiskey had already done the trick. Either way, she felt much more at ease.
The kids disappeared with popsicles to the front porch and the volume dropped substantially. The older men and some of the younger ones went into the den to watch television and digest. Maggie was happy to see at least one of the males stayed back to help with the dishes.
“Which one’s that?” she whispered to Ryan.
“That’s Tristan. He lived with my family when he first moved here. Like a surrogate brother. He’s married to Luke.”
She was beginning to put names to faces, but Luke and Finn were tricky on account of them being twins. Mariella’s cell phone rang, and she excused herself from the table.