by Dee Ernst
Cheryl shook her head. “You’re welcome. But wherever you got last night was all your own doing. I’ll see you tomorrow at the church.”
Cheryl left, and MaryJo went off to shower and change. She was not going to the church rehearsal, but was staying behind to let the caterer in and help Mom with her momentous ascent. I could hear Sam and Alisa upstairs. They were coming with me to the church. Phil was having his best man stand with him at the altar, but had no groomsmen, just Sam and some others walking folks down the aisle.
Regan had gotten her undergraduate degree at the College of Saint Elizabeth, and was getting married in their chapel. It was a beautiful building, and the priest there was young and easygoing.
On the groom’s side of the aisle, Elaine was sitting stiffly in the front row. Edward came in. I hadn’t seen him since I had asked him what to do about Jake. He looked great, gave me a hug and a cool kiss, then went off to do battle. He sat right next to her. He seemed to be enjoying himself. Elaine fidgeted. She tapped her foot, drummed her fingers, and generally could not sit still. And she kept looking over her shoulder, shooting me daggers. Every time she did, I smiled and waved. Alisa and I had fun watching her.
It took less than an hour, and we all headed back to the house. I rushed ahead and found the food looking perfect, smelling delicious, and my mother and MaryJo sitting happily together. Mom looked very nice in a bright red pantsuit. She was in her wheelchair, next to the fireplace.
I smiled and filled a wineglass with seltzer. Everyone arrived in a rush, and the house was crowded and noisy. I had slipped Boone a little doggie Prozac, and she had curled into a corner and was not barking at anyone. Laura and Bobby arrived. Cheese, crackers, and wine flowed. Things were humming along very nicely.
Jeff drew me aside. “I tried to get to you in the church,” he said, “but you refused to take the hint. We’re having a girl.”
I choked up. “A baby girl? Oh, Jeff, I’m so happy.”
Gabe slipped around on my other side. “We’ll tell everyone after the wedding,” he said. “Don’t want to steal the bride’s thunder.”
“Absolutely. But names—we have to think about names.”
“Done,” Gabe said. “My mom is Leighton. So she’ll be Kathleen Leighton Everett-Braun. We’ll call her Kayleigh.”
“Perfect, Gabe. I’m so excited for you both. And for me. When do we start redecorating the guest room?”
“We may be moving to the ’burbs,” Jeff said. “You know, fresh air, green grass, all that good-parent stuff.”
“As long as you don’t move to France. I promise I won’t say a word. Thanks, you guys, for telling me.”
We ate and drank. Well, other people drank. I sipped seltzer until the desserts were laid out, watching everyone happily eating away. I noticed Edward sitting with Mom for a while, and she was positively beaming. After he moved off, I went over and sat beside her.
“How are you doing, Mom? Can I get you anything?”
She shook her head. “No, I’m fine, Kate. I must say, that Edward is quite a nice young man.”
I had to smile at “young.” “Yes, he certainly is.” I reached over and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze. “Adam would have been so proud of her, don’t you think?”
She looked over at Regan, who was laughing and starting to pour champagne into glasses. “Yes. The two of you managed to make some wonderful children.”
I felt sudden, unexpected tears. “Yes. We were good at that.”
Mom pulled her hand away and waved it at me. “You’d better get yourself a glass,” she said.
I stood up, grabbed a glass, and found Edward, and stood next to him as everyone quieted down.
Phil had his glass raised. “Regan and I want to thank everyone here for being a part of this,” he said, his arm around Regan’s shoulder. “I wish that Regan’s dad could have been with us all tonight. I know what that would have meant to her. But I know that he’s looking down on us, and I hope he’s happy with how everything has turned out.”
Regan smiled up at him. “I want to thank you all, too. I miss Daddy, but I’m so grateful to have so many new and wonderful people in my life. So, here’s to your helping us become a brand-new family.”
We all raised our glasses and drank.
Later, MaryJo found me on the deck. “The food was unbelievable.”
“Did you try that potato-pimento-cheese thing? I’ve never met a potato I didn’t love, but that was exceptional.”
“I know. And that Viennese coffee thing they did? Heavenly.”
“Everything has turned out just right,” I said.
“Yes, Kate, it certainly has.”
Edward came up behind us. “Ladies, how are you enjoying this amazing evening?”
“Very much,” I said.
“I could not help noticing,” Edward said, “that your good friend Jake is not here.”
MaryJo waved bye-bye to me and slid back into the house.
I smiled at Edward. “I told Jake that I didn’t want to be with him anymore.”
“Ah. Really? I must say I’m a bit surprised. I thought he was the one you were going to settle on.”
“Me too. But then I decided not to settle. And it wasn’t really as awful as I thought it would be. I’ve discovered in the past few months that a slight change of plan is not such a bad thing.”
“How wise.”
“Yeah, that’s me, all right. Wise. When are you heading back to London?”
“Next Tuesday.”
“Could you maybe stay a little longer?”
He smiled, and took me in his arms. “I can stay just as long as it takes.”
He kissed me.
In that moment, I heard the laughter of my children, felt the autumn breeze on my skin, and saw a serene white mansion, bathed in moonlight.
In that moment, the possibilities were endless.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Once again, in spite of the fact that this book was written while I sat alone in my office, there are many people I need to thank for helping me bring this book to you all.
My agent, Lynn Seligman, comes first and foremost. She was always a believer.
Then there’s Carly Hoffmann and the folks at Montlake, who reached out to me, tapped me on the shoulder, and said, “So, you wanna?” YES! Thank you all so much. I can’t begin to describe what it’s like for a little ol’ indie like me to publish with the big boys.
Big thanks to Tiffany Yates Martin, for—seriously—making this book what it is today.
Karen Y. gets a shout-out for her online dating stories, a few of which are related here—and believe me, they’re the ones you think I MUST have made up.
Please—feel free to contact me at [email protected]. I love hearing from my readers. And you can wander on over to my website, www.DeeErnst.com, check things out, and sign up for my newsletter. I promise you, I’ll only send you real news, like when my next book is coming out.
I’ve gotten a lot of e-mails from women who’ve said they’re happy that I was finally able to make my dream of writing come true. I’m not the only one out there moving to “The Second Act” and making it work. It’s never too late to do what you love.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dee Ernst attended Marshall University, where she majored in journalism. Several years, career changes, and a few daughters later, she heard a guest on a radio show make the suggestion that if you want to be happy, you should go back to what you were doing when you were ten and try to make it a career. Since Dee was writing stories when she was ten, she decided to give writing another go. After three novels and many rejection letters, she self-published Better Off Without Him. In the spring of 2013, she signed with Montlake Publishing. Though Dee finds a lot in common with all her heroines, she is happily married and living in New Jersey.
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