to the nibblers.”
“But no husband? We were looking forward to meeting him.” Wineglass in hand, Celia appeared from around the corner and looked over the scene. She was wearing silky black pants and a flowing black top that made my khakis and powder blue sweater look positively passé. “No problem if he can’t come until later. Our guys aren’t here yet, either, but they’ll be along eventually. You know how traffic is this time of the day.”
“Jim’s out of town on business!” I’d practiced the phrase in the car (and not incidentally, I’d borrowed Norman’s silver Jag for the occasion), and delivered it in a way that made it sound like again! even though I didn’t say it. “He sends his best and says he hopes to meet everyone next time. Oh!” I didn’t have to pretend to be embarrassed. If I wasn’t on a case and hadn’t come there specifically to try to get people to talk, I’d never dream of being that rude. “I mean, if we’re invited next time.”
“Of course you’re invited. We’re neighbors!” Glynis came from the back of the house. She was wearing a linen apron embroidered with spring violets over a pantsuit in an ashen color that matched her hair. She wound an arm through mine and gave it a squeeze. “And next time, you can bring those adorable girls of yours, too. The kids are playing upstairs.” Just as she said this, we heard a sound like thunder from upstairs. One of the doors along the hallway at the top of the steps flew open and a troop of children raced from one room to another. I recognized Beth’s Jeremy, Glynis’s Eli, and Carter, the soccer star. There were a couple older girls with them as well as three older boys I didn’t know and Vickie Monroe’s Henry and Antonia.
“Oh, Edward’s going to be here?” It was, of course, exactly what I was hoping for, so I tried not to look too pleased with myself. “I thought—”
“He’ll be along after work,” Beth said. “His kids came home from school with mine.”
“He needs to relax,” Glynis said.
“He needs to be with friends,” Celia added.
“And Edward has to be here. He’s got an announcement to make, and we’ve all got something to celebrate,” Beth said rather cryptically, and when her friends questioned her, she put a finger to her lips. “You’ll all find out soon enough,” she said in that singsong sort of way people do when they can’t wait to spill a secret.
Before any of us had a chance to say another word, the kids raced across the second-floor landing again.
“If you all settle down, you can go down to the media room and watch your movie,” Beth called up to them. “If not . . .”
The unspoken threat was enough to bring them in line instantly. They streamed down the steps, and Glynis told them to stop in the kitchen on their way to the media room. She had popcorn, sodas, and cookies all ready for them.
“Mine, mine, mine,” Beth said, patting the heads of Jeremy as well as two girls who looked to be twins. “You know Eli,” she said, pointing out Glynis’s son, “and these are her Isabelle and Connor.” The little girl ignored me; the boy smiled and turned pink.
“And these are my Jackson and Mitchell,” Celia added. They were clearly the oldest kids there and even though I wasn’t a mother, I knew exactly what Celia was going to say next. “Keep an eye on the little ones,” she told her sons. “No roughhousing! And if anyone spills anything—”
“We know,” the oldest boy rolled his eyes in a way that said he wasn’t being disrespectful so much as he was just teasing. He’d heard it all before. “Wipe it up and let you know if there’s a stain.”
“Beautiful kids,” I said, because it was true and because I know that’s what mothers are supposed to say to each other.
Glynis still had a hold of my arm. She tugged me toward the kitchen and I just naturally went along. “I suppose you’re wondering why we asked you to come so early,” she said.
“Sonny made flan in cooking class this week,” Celia added, though what this had to do with me arriving early for the wine tasting, I don’t know. “Flan Caraqueño. It’s a recipe from Venezuela.”
“And Celia . . .” Beth slid her friend a look. “Celia mentioned it to Michael. Michael loves flan. And since the celebration has something