Nantucket Weddings - Pamela M. Kelley Page 0,21

to eat everything.

Penny looked concerned. She’d seen the tears and always knew when Mia was feeling sad. Instead of hopping around the room like she usually did, she rubbed against Mia’s knee and looked up at her as if asking how she could help. Mia thought for a moment and decided that they had time for a walk on the beach to de-stress.

“Want to go outside?” She knew it would be good for both of them.

They took a longer walk than usual and were gone for just over an hour. Mia was about to jump in the shower and start getting ready when her phone rang and it was Izzy.

“Hey, there.”

“Rick doesn’t want to go to the cookout. He’s glued to the TV watching golf. Do you mind picking me up?”

“I’ll be over at a quarter to four.”

Mia pulled up at Izzy’s at ten of four. She just wasn’t moving as fast as she’d hoped. She couldn’t decide what to wear, and then what she settled on needed to be ironed. And it was silly because there was no one she was looking to impress. She was just having a hard time lately making any decisions. It had been like that since Mark died, especially if she was having a bad day. Some days were much better than others, and overall, she felt a little less sad as each week passed. But sometimes all the feelings came rushing back, always when she least expected it.

She was about to get out of the car and go get Izzy when the front door opened, and her sister came out carrying a bakery box and a bottle of wine. She looked amazing, as usual. Mia always admired her sister’s sense of style. She could put anything on, and it would look good. Today she was wearing two tank tops, a sheer yellow long and floaty one layered over a simple white one, and wide white linen pants and gold sandals. Her hair was down, long and curly, the tousled blonde beach look that Mia could never achieve and gave up trying.

She’d instead blown her hair straight, and wore her best jeans and a blue and white striped boatneck top and pale pink Sperry boat shoes. Izzy climbed into the passenger seat and Mia pulled out of the driveway.

At a few minutes past four, they reached Will’s house. He lived on a corner lot and there was plenty of room along the street for parking. There was already a good crowd gathered. Kate and Jack were sitting at one of Will’s picnic tables, and Kristen and Tyler were opening bottles of diet soda as Mia and Izzy walked onto Will’s back deck. Mia knew Kristen often had soda instead of a drink when she was out with Tyler. Will walked over to give them a welcome hug.

“I’m so glad you both came. Help yourself to whatever you want to drink. There’s wine, beer, soda and mixers on the table by Kristen.”

“Where would you like me to put this?” Mia held up her guacamole.

Will’s eyes lit up. “You made your guac!”

She grinned. “Of course, I did.”

“I’d say leave it here with me, but you should probably set it on the big picnic table where Kate is sitting.” He glanced at the bakery box Izzy was carrying. “What’s that?”

“Cannoli from the new Italian bakery.”

“Awesome. Maybe set those in the kitchen for now, so they stay cool till later.”

“Do you have a bowl I could use for the tortilla chips?” Mia asked.

“In the kitchen cupboard, the one closest to the refrigerator.”

They both went inside. Izzy dropped off the cannoli, while Mia poured the chips into a big bowl. They stopped at the drinks table on the deck to pour a glass of wine each and joined Kate and Jack at the big table. Mia set the guac and chips in the middle next to a plate of cheese and crackers that she guessed Kate brought. Jack wandered off to chat with Will, and Izzy saw a friend and went to say hello. So, for a few minutes it was just Kate and Mia.

“This is dangerous, having this all to ourselves,” Kate said as she reached for a chip and loaded it with guacamole. Mia helped herself to the cheese and crackers.

“Will’s making his famous Juicy Lucy burgers, too. So, I probably shouldn’t eat too much of this cheese.” Will’s burgers were the best. He seasoned the meat with a little Worcestershire, garlic, salt and pepper, and stacked