Chapter 5
CHRISTMAS NIGHT
“If that’s not the damnedest thing I’ve ever heard,” Jake’s dad—Jack—says, still wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.
The family is gathered in the living room.
It’s the end of the day. Dinner’s been eaten, stockings and presents have been opened, everyone’s rings have been admired, more wine has been poured—and all the toasts have been made.
The sisters have just finished retelling the story of how they all got engaged on the very same night.
And all in all, it’s been a better Christmas than any of them had hoped for.
Now, there’s nothing left to wish for. As she and Jake cuddle together in an oversized armchair in front of the fire, the visions that dance in Rosa’s head have nothing to do with sugar plums. Rather, they’ve all been pulled straight from her wedding Pinterest board. And yes, she’s making another list.
Bianca, happily talking shop with Jansen and Jake’s parents, is relieved to realize that the fears she’d harbored earlier in the day about the possibility of awkwardness (not unreasonable, given that Jansen’s winery used to belong to Jake’s parents, and to his grandparents before them) were unwarranted.
Jack was quick to point out that the sale of the winery was what paid for the medical care that’s kept Lucy alive—a bargain he’d happily make time and again.
And Lucy confided that since she’s always viewed the Martinelli girls as bonus daughters, it feels like the winery is still in the family.
And stretched out on the carpet, Allegra and Clay play with their new pup and brainstorm names. “Chrissie—short for Christmas. Because that’s when we got her.”
“Belle—short for Jingle Bell. Because she’s such a pretty girl. You are, aren’t you, baby?”
“Fluffball, because that’s what she is.”
They’ll come up with something, eventually. Just hopefully not one of those.
And just where and how did Clay find time in the middle of his workday to procure a dog and a ring—and on Christmas Day, no less? Well, that’s a story for another time. But right now…
“So, have any of you girls set a date yet?” Lucy asks.
“A date?” They stare at her in surprise.
“Yes, of course. For your weddings. It’s never too soon to start planning, you know.”
Three sisters smile at their partners. And then, more or less in unison they say, “Next June.”
A stunned silence greets this announcement. It doesn’t last long.
“No, really, It has to be June,” Rosa insists. “Because that’s when our anniversary is. We can’t have two different wedding dates. How would that even work?”
“Well, us too,” Allegra argues. “We met when I threw a Midsummer Night’s Dream party. I want to recreate that for our wedding. And you can’t call it a midsummer party if it’s not on midsummer. Right?” she adds, turning to Clay, knowing he’ll back her up.
Clay shrugs. “Does it really matter what we call it, though?”
“Oh, you don’t think it matters now?” she demands, glaring at him over the puppy’s head. Because, yeah, she might end up being a bit of a Bridezilla.
“What about us?” Jansen asks Bianca, who’s been biting her lip and scrolling through an imaginary calendar in her head. “We don’t have to do it in June, do we?”
“I mean…yes?” she replies. “It’s tradition, for one thing. For another, they say it’s bad luck to marry in May. Besides, any sooner than that and we’d have no time to plan. And, if we wait until later in the season, it’s too risky. If harvest comes early, we’d have no time for a honeymoon.”
“Okay, look,” Jake says at last. “Why are we arguing? June is months away—” He stops to wave away everyone’s objections. “No, seriously. There are thirty days in the month—thirty, count ’em—and all we need to agree on is three of them. How hard could that be?”
Eventually, the sisters nod and shrug and tacitly agree. And then someone with forethought pops open another bottle of wine, and they toast to the month of June itself, because, however it shakes out, it’s sure to be epic!
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