Chapter 43
Nearly two weeks later, Beth’s dining table had disappeared beneath enough fudge to feed half of Sapphire Bay.
She stood at one end, counting the large squares arranged in neat rows across five baking sheets.
Sweet Treats had delivered four flavors that afternoon—chocolate, salted caramel, maple walnut, and huckleberry—and Beth had spent the better part of an hour resisting the temptation to sample them before her friends arrived.
Maria had shown considerably less restraint. “Someone needs to make sure the fudge tastes as delicious as it usually does,” she said as she reached for another piece of maple fudge.
“You said that about the last one,” Laurel pointed out, carefully tying a sage-green ribbon around a cream favor box.
Maria paused with the fudge halfway to her mouth. “That was the salted caramel. It was an entirely different product.”
Beth laughed and moved the tray beyond Maria’s reach. “If you keep testing them, Kayla will have three tables without favors.”
“I’m willing to make sacrifices for your daughter.”
Beth’s eyebrows rose. “That isn’t a sacrifice.”
“It could be. I haven’t had dinner yet.”
Julie came through from the kitchen carrying four mugs of coffee on a tray. “Which is why Beth put cheese and crackers on the counter.”
Maria turned toward her. “There are crackers?”
“There were when I arrived.”
Maria immediately abandoned the fudge and headed into the kitchen.
Beth shook her head and returned to the job in front of her.
Kayla had chosen small cream-colored boxes with a clear window in each lid.
Two large pieces of fudge went inside, separated by waxed paper, and a narrow sage-green ribbon was tied around the outside.
The final touch was a tiny card printed with Kayla and Tyler’s names and the date.
May twenty-third.
Beth picked up another card and ran her thumb across the numbers. After months of appointments, lists, phone calls, dress fittings, flowers, and discussions about everything from napkin colors to cake stands, her daughter was getting married in eleven days.
The thought still had the power to catch Beth unaware.
“You’re doing it again,” Julie said gently.
Beth glanced across the table. “Doing what?”
Julie placed the coffees between the boxes before sitting opposite her. “Looking at that card as though you can stop the wedding by staring at the date.”
“I don’t want to stop it.” Beth attached the card to the next box. “It just seems impossible that it’s almost here.”
Laurel reached for another length of ribbon. “Kayla’s probably thinking the same thing.”
“She’s remarkably calm.” Beth folded waxed paper around two pieces of fudge. “I spoke to her this morning. She was more concerned about whether Tyler will remember to pick up his suit than anything else.”
Maria returned carrying the entire plate of cheese and crackers. “Kayla sounds exactly like her mom.”
Beth smiled. “That’s what everyone says.”
Their laughter filled the dining room, and some of the tightness inside Beth eased. She wished Susan and Rachel could have joined them tonight, but looking at her friends who were here, Beth felt extraordinarily lucky.
There had been years when their friendship meant a quick conversation in the grocery store or promising to catch up when everyone had more time. Somewhere along the way, they’d stopped waiting for more time and started making it.
Laurel finished a perfect bow and slid the box toward the completed pile.
Beth studied it. “How do you do that?”
Laurel looked up. “Do what?”
“Make every ribbon exactly the same.”
Laurel glanced at the uneven bow Beth had been wrestling with. “Patience.”
Maria lowered herself into the chair beside Laurel, still holding the plate of crackers. “Don’t listen to her. It’s magic. Laurel wiggles her nose and wonderful things happen.”
Beth smiled as she tucked two pieces of fudge into another box. “Including fixing Kayla’s seating plan after three guests canceled and two others unexpectedly confirmed. Laurel is a miracle worker.”
Laurel touched the tip of her nose and gave it a wiggle. “That’s for some extra special magic for Kayla’s wedding.”
Julie grinned and pushed another finished box into the growing collection. Instead of reaching for more fudge, she folded her hands on the table.
Beth noticed immediately.
Julie was looking at the three of them with an expression Beth couldn’t quite read.
Maria noticed, too. She slowly put down her cracker. “What have you been up to?”
Julie blinked. “Nothing.”
“That is absolutely not a nothing face.”
Julie laughed. “I don’t have a nothing face.”
“You do,” Maria insisted. “That’s your I-have-something-to-tell-you face.”
Beth leaned her elbows on the table. “She’s right.”
Julie looked at Maria, then Laurel, before finally meeting Beth’s gaze. A smile slowly spread across her face. “Cole and I have chosen a date.”
Beth’s hands stilled above the open favor box.
Maria gave an excited squeal. “Finally!”
Beside her, Laurel sat straighter. “When?”
“August.”
Beth stared at Julie. “This August?”
Julie laughed. “That’s more or less what Cole said when I suggested it.”
Maria’s mouth dropped open. “That’s only three months away.”
“I know.”
Maria hugged their friend. “You’ve been engaged since Christmas and kept telling us there was no hurry.”
Julie picked up a loose piece of ribbon and wound it around one finger. “I changed my mind.”
Beth watched happiness spread across Julie’s face. There was no hesitation in her expression. Only a quiet certainty that made Beth’s heart warm. “What happened?” she asked.
“Nothing dramatic.” Julie’s smile softened. “Cole and I were having breakfast on Sunday. He was reading the newspaper, and I was complaining that he’d left his shoes where I could trip over them. And suddenly I thought, why are we waiting?”
Something about the simplicity of the answer touched Beth.
Julie gave a small shrug. “We know we want to be together. Neither of us wants a huge wedding. Our families are happy for us. So I asked him what he thought about August.”
Laurel stopped tying her ribbon. “What did he say?”
“He put down his newspaper and asked if I meant this year.” Julie laughed at the memory. “When I said yes, he kissed me before I’d even finished explaining.”
Maria pressed a hand dramatically against her chest. “Cole has just gone up considerably in my estimation.”
Julie grinned. “He’ll be relieved to hear it.”
Beth reached across the table and covered Julie’s hand with hers. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Thank you.” Julie squeezed Beth’s fingers. “It’ll be simple. Family, close friends, good food. Maybe outside if we can find the right location.”
“A summer wedding.” Laurel sighed. “How romantic. I’m sure we could find the perfect location. Isn’t there a ranch somewhere around here that’s set themselves up for weddings and corporate events?”
Maria nodded. “Tommy Hardy and his wife opened a wedding venue three weeks ago. From what I’ve heard, they’ve got more bookings coming in than they can handle. We should take a look.”
Julie laughed. “I knew telling all of you would turn into a planning committee.”
Maria grinned. “You know how much we like organizing things.”
Beth sat back and listened as the questions began.
Had Julie looked at dresses? How many guests would they invite? Did Cole want to wear a suit? Would there be dancing?
Julie answered what she could and laughed at everything she couldn’t.
Beth returned to wrapping fudge, but part of her attention remained on her friend.
Once, she might have thought there was something reckless about deciding to marry within a few months.
At their age, surely people were supposed to be sensible.
Careful. They were supposed to consider every possibility before making choices that could change their lives.
Except Beth wasn’t sure she believed that anymore.
Julie and Cole hadn’t rushed into anything. They’d lived enough life to recognize what mattered when they found it. Maybe that was one of the gifts of getting older. You understood that time wasn’t something to save for later.
Her thoughts slipped inevitably to Dave. To dinners that lasted longer than either of them intended. To conversations on her veranda. To the reassuring warmth of his hand at the small of her back. To the way he’d become part of her days without demanding a place in them.
A year ago, Beth couldn’t have imagined any of it. Now she couldn’t imagine wishing it away.
“You’re smiling,” Maria said.
Beth turned toward her. “Julie is getting married. I’m allowed to smile.”
Maria narrowed her eyes. “That wasn’t a Julie smile.”
Beth picked up another box. “There are different kinds?”
“Oh, definitely.”
Laurel ducked her head, but Beth heard her soft laugh.
Julie came to Beth’s rescue. “Let Beth enjoy her thoughts. Tonight we’re wrapping table favors for Kayla.”
Maria grinned as she reached for another cracker. “That’s fine, but only because you’ve given me something better to work with.”
Beth caught Julie’s eye and mouthed, “Thank you.”
Julie gave her a conspiratorial smile before reaching for another box.
They settled into an easy rhythm after that. Fold, fill, close, ribbon, card.
Maria continued stealing pieces of fudge whenever she thought Beth wasn’t watching. Laurel repaired everyone else’s crooked bows, and Julie talked about an August wedding that existed, so far, only as a date circled on a calendar.
By seven-thirty, Beth placed the final favor beside the others and counted the rows twice.
“That’s it. We have more than enough for the guests, and extras for Paris and her team at the Flower Cottage, all the staff at Sweet Treats, the bridal boutique staff, and everyone else who’s making the day special. ”
Maria stretched her arms above her head. “That didn’t take as long as I thought it would. Thank goodness for small weddings.”
Julie looked at the boxes covering the table. “Kayla will love these.”
Beth sighed. Eleven days from now, the fudge would be sitting in a room filled with flowers, music, laughter, and people who loved her daughter. The realization brought a familiar ache to her chest, except this time Beth didn’t try to push it away.
Kayla was happy and that was what mattered. And after the last piece of fudge was eaten, the flowers faded, and Kayla’s wedding dress was carefully packed away, life would keep moving.
Kayla would begin her marriage.
Julie would prepare for hers.
And Beth… She glanced around her dining room.
Lengths of discarded ribbon covered one end of the table. Maria was trying to persuade Laurel that one final piece of huckleberry fudge couldn’t possibly be considered too much. Julie was stacking the empty trays, still wearing the radiant smile she’d had since announcing her news.
Beth smiled, too. For years, she’d believed she knew exactly what the rest of her life would look like. She’d been wrong. And she was beginning to think that might be a good thing.
She didn’t need to know precisely what came next. For now, it was enough to know she was looking forward to finding out.