Nantucket Weddings - Pamela M. Kelley Page 0,22

two patties with American cheese in the middle.

“Those are good,” Kate agreed. “But I’m having some cheese, too.” They snacked for a few minutes and chatted about her friend Sam that had just recently moved back to the island.

“I lost touch with him when we both went off to college. He never came back after graduating. Instead, he got married and settled down. He’s back now, though, with his twin daughters, but unfortunately he lost his wife about a year ago.”

“Oh, no, how awful for him.” Mia’s heart went out to Kate’s friend that she didn’t even know. As hard as it had been for Mia, at least they didn’t have any kids yet. That seemed like it would be harder, for all of them.

Kate explained how long it had taken them to get pregnant and then how his wife Mary got sick. Mia wondered sometimes, as awful as it had been to lose Mark, if it might have been worse to know he was going to die and be helpless to stop it from happening. It was awful either way.

“So, anyway, Sam was telling me about this bereavement group his mother made him go to. He said it’s been really helpful. I didn’t realize there was a group like that here, did you?”

Mia nodded. “Yeah. Izzy tried to get me to go when Mark first died. I never did, though.” The idea of it had seemed intimidating at the time, to join a group full of strangers. Mia imagined they were mostly older people that she wouldn’t have anything in common with.

“Sam said he wasn’t too keen on the idea, either, but his mother pushed him. And he said it’s been great to talk about what he’s going through with people that understand. He said it’s all ages, too. I think you should go.”

Mia shook her head. “I don’t know. It’s probably too late now.”

Kate took a slip of paper and handed it to Mia. It had the name of the group, time they met, address and phone number.

“The phone number is only if you have questions. It’s open to all and you can just show up. And it’s not too late. Sam’s wife passed a month before Mark did. You might be a good friend for him. He doesn’t know many people here.”

Mia frowned. “You’re not trying to play matchmaker; are you? I thought you said Sam grew up here?”

Kate laughed. “I’m not. At all, I swear. I just thought it might be good for you to have people to talk to that understand. And Sam did grow up here, but he’s been away for years. I’m one of the few people left here that he knows. Anyway, just think about it. You don’t have to decide now.”

“Okay, I’ll think about it. Thanks for thinking of me.”

Angela and Izzy joined them at the table a few minutes later and before they knew it, Will was hollering for everyone to come and get their burgers. They were as good as Mia remembered, and it was a fun few hours.

A bit later, she went to get more wine and stopped to chat with Will as he set out Izzy’s cannoli. Kristen brought peanut butter chocolate chip cookies for dessert, too, and Angela had made a cheesecake. Mia and Will both grabbed a cannoli and ate them as they leaned against the deck railing.

“Your burgers were awesome as usual. Where did you learn to make them like that?”

“My mom was from Minneapolis and she always made them that way. She said that’s where it started.”

“Oh, heads up, I told my neighbor, Ben, that you make furniture. He seemed really interested, so he might be in touch. He bought the unit next to mine.”

Will grinned. “Thanks. He’s already called and might have me build out his office. Since I’m doing the restoration anyway, I can just work that in. It’s going to be a cool project. He said he wants everything—desk, cabinets, bookcases, the works.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful. I’m sure it will be beautiful.”

Izzy walked up and put a few cannoli on a paper plate. “They’re not all for me. I’m bringing one for Angela, Kate and Kristen.”

“Sure, you are,” Will teased her.

Izzy laughed. “I’ll catch up with you two later.” She wandered off to deliver the desserts, and Mia saw that Will watched her with a concerned expression.

“Is everything okay with your sister?”

“What do you mean?”

“I was chatting with her a bit earlier, and she’s not her usually bubbly self, just quieter