Adam. He grinned and gave me a small wave. "Can you believe they even invited me?"
I grinned but looked around some more. I relaxed as I saw most of the Academy Elite hadn't been invited, but Mark had been. I tensed a bit, just a bit, at the reminder that he thought his mom was going to marry David sooner rather than later. But then I tensed even more. They could've gotten married by now. David and my mom had been divorced, for…I wasn't sure. I hadn't asked either of them about the divorce. I didn't want to know.
Mark nodded his head towards me. "Hiya, Sam. I asked to tag along. I hope that's okay with you."
"Sure…" It wasn't like we were family…or were we? Was David still family to me? I wasn't sure anymore.
Then Lily gave me an excited wave with a smile that stretched from ear to ear. "Surprise! I bet you thought you didn't have to deal with me, but nope. Here I am. It's my night off and I'm ready for some birthday cake."
"You're welcome to my piece." Then I leaned back and asked, "Did Logan get cake?"
Mason's hand tightened around my hips. His thumbs started to rub up and down. "Of course. A birthday party without cake is a crime to Logan."
"Oh."
He grinned down at me. "You don't like cake?"
I shrugged. "It's an acquired taste."
He chuckled, shaking his head. "Pretend to eat a piece for him. I think he made it from scratch."
"I'll eat two pieces."
"Happy birthday, Sam," Nate called out as he started over.
"Hell no! I get her first." Logan shot forward and plucked me from his brother. He threw me over his shoulder and turned back to the group. "Everyone gets to spank her except Mason. He does that all the time."
He bounded to the kitchen and I looked up in time to see Nate and Mason share a grin, both shaking their heads. As Nate lifted a hand to put on Mason's shoulder, Logan turned the corner. I couldn't see anymore, but he deposited me in a stool at the counter. A large white cake sat in front of me with eighteen candles on top. None of them had been lighted, but then I peered closer.
"Logan!"
"What?" He'd been waiting for my reaction, brimming with excitement. "Don't you like it?"
Those candles didn't look right. "Tell me those are not joints." Please tell me they aren't.
He started laughing. As he continued, the laughing got louder and louder. Then Becky's boyfriend bounced to the cake and pulled them out. He wiped each clean and put them back in a baggie as he gave me a sheepish look. "He thought it'd be funny." He looked like he had more to say, but then he smiled and snuck back to Becky's side.
"I'm sorry," she murmured.
Logan was still laughing. "That would've been awesome."
"Too bad you haven't gotten tested for basketball season yet," Nate noted as he and Mason rounded to the other side of the counter.
A wistful sigh left Logan. "Tell me about it."
Nate flashed him a grin and for a moment, I didn't see the tension between the two anymore. What had changed? When I caught Mason's gaze, I made a mental note to ask him, but was distracted as he gave me a heated look, dark promises in his depths.
My eyes widened. A jolt of desire burst through me, and I clenched my legs together. It was my birthday party. A private party would have to wait a few hours. I licked my lips as I thought about it.
He smirked back at me, our gazes locked together.
Then Nate spoke up, "This is also a farewell party too, a small one. Since you three are moving back home."
Logan's smirk turned smug.
And I knew why the tension had been lifted between the two. Mason was now home, with Logan and me. Nate couldn't move in with us. Though, I bet he would've.
"Thanks for letting me stay here."
"Any time, Sam. I mean it."
His words sounded genuine so my smile turned genuine as well. Maybe the old fearsome foursome would come back with the move. I had missed it.
Lily moved next to me as Logan started to cut the cake. She gave me a small hug. "Heather and the rest of the staff are coming after closing."
"That's late. Are you sure they want to do that?"
She shrugged with a delighted spark. "I think Heather said they were going to close early. She said you're worth it."
I was taken aback. That was a lot of money since the diner was full every night now. The gesture spoke volumes to me and for a moment, I couldn't speak.
Then she started giggling beside me.
"What?"
She pointed at the cake. Logan hadn't cut the cake in small sections. He cut it into the exact amount of pieces needed. There were nine people there, so the cake was cut into nine large pieces. Six of the pieces were double in size and he delivered those to the guys. The last three were smaller, but still bigger than I wanted.