"It's good that we're still irrationally violent," I said. "That keeps things fun."
"She lives in Europe, and you live here," Patrick said to Nick. He flipped open his cuffs and set to rolling his sleeves up to his elbows. "And you're…married. How does that work? How does any of this work?"
"You're right, we do live on separate continents right now," Nick said evenly. "It's not ideal, and the past two years haven't been easy. But there will never be a distance too far or a wait too long for Erin."
I was blushing, but not a delicate, rosy kind of blush. It was the bright, flaming kind of blush, the one that was easily mistaken for a dangerously high fever.
"My grandmother, she was something of a mystic," Nick continued. "She used to say that some people fell in love as easy as a leaf fell from a tree, and only when they were ready to fall." He reached for his wine, drained the glass, and returned it to the table. "Others crashed as hard as lightning bolts. Neither was better or worse, but the lightning bolts? It was never simple for them. It was chaos and electricity, unpredictability and fire, and the fall was hard, but it was worth it." He turned back to me, his hand firm on my thigh. "We're the lightning, Skip."
"And the crash was worth it," I whispered. He leaned to me, and kissed the corner of my mouth.
From across the table, Judy pressed her napkin to her chest and sighed. "Aww," she said. "You two are precious."
"Oh, shit," Matt murmured. "You're serious about this. This is a real thing."
"Goddamn it, Matthew," Riley shouted, dropping the drumstick to his plate. "Catch the fuck up, would you?"
"Are we good now?" I asked, dipping my fork into the mashed potatoes. "Any other questions?"
Sam started to speak but Shannon held up her hand for silence. "We're good," she said. "Congratulations, you two. Someone who isn't pregnant or breastfeeding should pop some champagne."
"Would this be the wrong time to mention that we're engaged?" Andy asked.
"What!" Lauren screamed, slapping the tabletop.
"Lolo, the baby issleeping," Judy said with all the exasperation a sweetheart like her could muster.
Patrick nodded, and held up Andy's arm as if she was a prizefighter claiming another victory. "It's true," he said.
"I'll get the champagne." Will pushed back from the table and clapped his hand over Patrick's shoulder. "Took you long enough."
* * *
Lauren hadme cornered in the living room after dessert, and she was working hard at getting me on board with tomorrow's spa day and shopping plans. "Please come with us," she said, gesturing to Tiel and Andy. Riley was sprawled out on the opposite end of the L-shaped sofa with his baseball cap pulled down over his face. He was alternately moaning about eating too much and requesting more pie.
"I don't think I've ever had a pedicure," I said. My feet lived in steel-toed boots.
She shook her head as if my comment didn't compute. "I'm sorry, honey, it sounded like you said you've never had a pedicure."
"So shiny and pretty," Tiel murmured, gazing at the rock on Andy's finger.
"Um, I haven't had one," I said, bracing myself for the impact of Lauren's reaction. "Not a lot of spas on the glaciers and lava fields, you know?"
"Well, you're definitely coming with us now," she said. "You're not leaving right away, are you?"
I shook my head. In my haste to get back to the States, I hadn't purchased a return ticket. I was due in Reykjavík soon, but it wasn't like I was departing tomorrow.
"Good, good. We have to plan her baby shower," Lauren said, pointing to Tiel. "And now we have another wedding, and a bridal shower, too." She wrapped her arm around Andy's shoulders and squeezed. "Oh! And we need to have a party for you and Nick, of course. How amazing is all this?" She leaned forward and spoke in Riley's direction. "You're the only single one left now, RISD. Time to step up the game."
He pushed back his cap and edged up on an elbow, staring at her for a long beat. "Yeah, about that," he said, almost to himself. "I need another drink."
"Okay, so we're on for pedicures, lunch, and party planning," Lauren said while Riley shuffled into the kitchen. "Right?"
Tiel glanced over at me with a sympathetic grin. "The first time I heard about the pedicure outings, I said a few sassy things that I didn't really mean because it felt a little"—she gestured toward Lauren and Andy—"suffocating. But it's not like that.They'renot like that."
I appreciated this girl. We shared similar definitions ofsuffocating, and we were both prickly as hell. "Okay," I said. "What do I need to know about pedicures?"
"I always go for black polish," Andy said, extending her hand to show off the shade.
