Chapter 41 #2
She’d joined the four of us for our traditional “Last Single Woman” night.
Every last night before we’d gotten married, we had a sleepover, watched movies and ate in our pj’s, had a dance party to shake out all the anxiety, and fell asleep surrounded by the women whose love and support had gotten us this far.
My memories were hazy, but I remembered the feelings of sisterhood.
And since Hailey was Stephanie’s cousin, close enough to be a sister, a friend of ours, and single to boot, we’d invited her into our shindig at Liz’s house.
Stephanie snorted. “Of course I do. Do you really think I could have handled not knowing?”
Juliet shrugged. “Some guys take surprises seriously.”
“Did Nash plan it or did you?” Liz asked skeptically.
Stephanie threw up her hands. “I’m not a total control freak. He did all the planning but asked for my input on a few things.”
“Where are you going? I heard Europe,” Hailey cut in.
“Iceland and the UK.” Stephanie sighed dreamily. “You know, one of the last conversations I had with my dad was about how he thought he paid for my trip to Europe in high school, but it was my sister. I’m kind of glad I get a chance to go and make memories with my husband now.”
“Is Hiram coming to the wedding?” I asked cautiously.
Stephanie shook her head, picking a nonexistent speck from her pajama pants. “And I didn’t expect him to, especially with the lawsuit still in progress. Gabe was always going to walk me down the aisle anyways.”
“Are any of the other Addams siblings coming?” Juliet asked.
“Nope.” Stephanie smiled. “We wanted it small and with our favourite people. No drama.”
“Any particular places of interest on the trip?” I asked, sipping my tea.
Stephanie cocked her head, ticking places off on her fingers. “The Northern Lights feels like a stretch in August, but I’m trying to be optimistic. Nash is interested in the hot springs.”
“Of course,” Liz teased.
Stephanie ignored her. “We’ll play tourist for a week around the UK.
There’s honestly so much to see and I hate rushing around, so we’re going to do a sleeper train.
Oh, and Nash has this cute obsession with Big Ben, so we’re taking a tower tour.
Honestly, I think it has something to do with all the extra babysitting shifts he’s been doing for Emmett and Dani since little Livy was born.
The older girls are on a Peter Pan kick.
Most days I catch him humming one of the songs at least once, and he begged me to watch the live-action remake with him. ”
“You booked a ticket, right?” I said. “They book up three months in advance.”
Stephanie blinked. “I had no idea. He was handling that part.” She reached for her phone. “Do you mind if I . . . ?”
Juliet waved at her. “Go ahead.”
“I’m sorry, Steph; I wasn’t trying to stress you out.”
She smiled at me, and it was genuine. “You didn’t. Honestly I’m glad you mentioned it. It’s better than being blindsided.”
“How did you even know that?” Liz asked, stretching out on one of the mattresses covering her living room floor. “You’ve never been to England.”
I tapped my temple. “I know a host of things you’d never dream of, young padawan.”
“He said he’s got it covered.” Stephanie tucked her phone away, dreamy eyed. “I never knew how attractive those words could be. They’re almost better than I love you.”
Hailey sighed. “I need to find a Nash of my own.”
“I thought you were dating,” I said slowly. Now that certain parts of the past were becoming clearer, other parts were still jumbled. I might remember something, but it didn’t mean I remembered when it happened in the timeline.
“I was, but he broke up with me for an actress. Wanted more supermodel than girl-next-door. But we’re not talking about me.
” Hailey fixed her cousin with a mischievous look.
“I think it’s time for a dance off. Do you want to sing Troy or Gabriella’s lines in ‘Gotta Go My Own Way’?
Nash said he would love to see you as Troy this time. ”
“Isn’t that a breakup song?” Liz asked.
Stephanie hucked a pillow at Hailey. “You showed him the video?”
“Of course I did. The man needed a crash course on all things Stephanie!”
“How about a toast?” The girls grew quiet and watched me with interest. I hated being at the center of anyone’s attention, but these were my friends.
My support group. My ride or die. I lifted my chintz china cup with pink and orange spray roses.
“To Stephanie, our wise counselor, life organizer, voice of reason, sweet-souled bestie, who stayed the course with us, waiting and hopeful.” My voice broke a little as I smiled at her.
“You didn’t say it, but I know how much it must have hurt sometimes. ”
We were all teary, even Juliet, and she didn’t bother trying to hide it.
“To Steph,” I said, “and the start of a new chapter. ‘You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin. We are coming with you; or following like hounds.’” There really was a Lord of the Rings line for every occasion.
“To Steph,” the rest of the girls chorused, and we downed our drinks.
“Okay, we really need that dance off after that,” Liz said, grabbing a tissue. “No more tears.”
Hailey cleared her throat and placed a hand over her heart and started quoting The Princess Bride. “‘Mawage is wot bwings us togeder tooday.’”
Liz shoved her shoulder. “You goof!”
“‘Life is pain,’” Juliet added with a smirk.
“Ugh, not you, too,” Liz groaned. “That movie gives me nightmares.”
“Do not desecrate a masterpiece!” Hailey cried.
Stephanie dropped onto the sofa beside me and pulled me into a hug. “You’re amazing, Pais. Thank you for seeing me.”
I squeezed her back, pouring all the love from the words lodged in my throat.
Hailey shimmied her hips, absolutely adorable in her matching two-piece button-up shirt and sleep shorts. “Let’s do this, ladies!”
“Wait!” Stephanie hopped up, then froze, nearly pitching forwards.
Juliet grabbed her arm to keep her steady.
“I’m good!” Stephanie chuckled, patting Juliet’s hand. “Let’s get our group picture before it gets too much later.”
After Stephanie set up her tripod and grabbed her remote, we all squeezed onto the couch.
I might not remember all the details of how we got here, all the memories in the pages of our stories.
But I had no doubts about the love I shared with these women.
They had my back. They were my people. They’d held me together when I fell apart, dropped everything when I needed them, and still made me laugh till my sides ached.
These moments were the golden treasures.