Aidan cast a glance over his shoulder. His scowl twisted into a sneer, and he turned his back on her to kick at his soccer ball. Debra’s hands clenched into fists; the knot in her chest hurt so badly she had to fight the urge to dig her fingers into it.
“No one’s coming,” Aidan said, his young voice matter-of-fact.
“I’m sorry, Aidan. Maybe Sunday’s not a good day to have a party.”
“All my other friends have parties on Sundays.” Aidan grunted. “They don’t invite me.”
“I’m sorry,” Debra whispered, wishing there was something else she could say, something else that would make sense to her lonely child.
“They don’t like me.”
“Sometimes, it just takes longer for people to get to know you.”
“It’s because of Daddy, isn’t it? They think Daddy is a bad man.”
Debra sighed. “Aidan, come here.”
He trotted over and sagged down on the steps beside her. “Is that why he stays away? Because he’s a bad man?”
Debra slid an arm around Aidan’s shoulders. “Your daddy and I made a mistake when we were much younger. Some people are still angry about it because we hurt a lot of people, including you.”
Aidan’s eyes widened. “Me?”
Debra stroked his tousled head. “Yes.”
Aidan pulled away to stare up at her. “But you’re not a bad person. You’re here.”
Debra’s throat clogged with tears. “Yes, I’m here. I did something bad once, but I’m staying and trying to do something good now, with you.”
Aidan seemed to ponder her words for a moment. When his eyes met hers, they had narrowed. “So why isn’t Daddy here too?”
Sean rushed to the firehouse where the celebration was just starting. Jack looked up as Sean stepped into the large community room. “What are you doing here? Didn’t you say you had to stop in at Aidan’s birthday party for an hour or so?”
“I did. There’s no one else there.”
“What?”
Jack’s exclamation was loud enough to draw all attention. The low buzz of conversation around the room ceased as the eye of every fireman, every partner, and every child was drawn to Sean. Sean cleared his throat. “None of the kids Aidan invited showed up. Debra prepared a feast, and—” He sucked in a deep breath of air. “I thought we could all go over, just for a while. For Aidan. It’s his birthday, and the kid deserves a party.”
Uncertain glances flashed across the room. It seemed as if everyone was waiting for someone else to speak.
Patti Friedman broke the silence. “I do have to talk to Debra about her catering proposal.”
Jack chimed in, “You had me at ‘Debra prepared a feast.’”
Patti glanced at the table laden with snacks and drinks. “We have lots of food here too. How about we pack everything up and have the party at Aidan’s house instead?”
Sean looked around the room, his heart pounding in his chest. Patti, the wife of Hank, the fire chief, had clout, and when she moved toward the table to pack up the boxes of pizza, the other wives followed. Within five minutes, the room cleared—firemen were capable of moving quickly when needed, especially where food was involved—and the children were ushered into cars.
Ten minutes later, Sean pounded on Debra’s door. She opened the door and stared at him, her eyes swollen and red. Her glance flicked to the cluster of people behind him. He grinned. “If you don’t have enough cake for everyone, I can run to the store.”
Her jaw dropped. “I…” A smile—dazzling, beautiful—spread across her face. “There’s a lot of cake. Come in, please.”
“Where’s Aidan?”
“Out back.”
Sean headed out through the backdoor, allowing it to slam shut on the murmur of conversations as families gathered around the table, rearranging plates to accommodate the additional food.
Aidan squatted at the far corner of the garden, plucking dry blades of grass. He looked up at Sean and then looked away.
“Hey, buddy.”
“Where’s Jewel?”
“At home. She gets too excitable in crowds; you know that.”
Aidan snorted. “Ain’t no crowd here.”
“It’s pretty crowded around the table. You won’t get any cake if you hang out here.”
Aidan shook his head. “No one came.” His voice cracked.
“Lots of people came. The ones who care about you came. They’re just not the people you expected.”
“People came?” Aidan looked past Sean’s shoulder. He could probably make out the shapes of people moving through the house. “They came for me?”
“You’re missing the party. Come on.” Sean held an arm out to Aidan until the boy came over to him. He made no mention of Aidan’s moist eyes. With a friendly pat on Aidan’s back, he ushered the boy in through the door.
“And there’s the birthday boy!” Patti’s voice rose above the lively conversations. Applause broke out. “Happy birthday, Aidan.” Multiple voices took up the chorus, filling the room with the familiar tune of the happy birthday song.
Sean stood beside Aidan, feeling the subtle tremble of the boy’s body against his. He hoped it was the quiver of happiness, and when he looked up and met Debra’s eyes and saw the smile of gratitude on her face, he knew it was.
Aidan’s birthday party lasted two hours longer than anticipated, and ended in the early evening when Jack and Hank returned from their surreptitious visit to the toy store with a new bike for Aidan. The party dissolved as the children darted home for their own bikes so that they could roam the neighborhood with Aidan. The plates were cleared and guests went home with leftovers. Patti was the last to leave, but she offered Debra a warm smile as she said goodbye.
“We didn’t get a chance to talk about the catering, but I’m very interested. The sample meal you sent around last night was amazing. I’d like to tweak the menu a bit. How about you call me tomorrow when you get a chance, and we can chat?”
“Yes, of course.
