“I remember that feeling,” Lila said, a little wistfully. “It all goes too fast.”
“We have gifts,” Lila said. “For our beautiful bride.”
“You didn’t need to get me anything,” I said.
“Don’t be silly,” Delphine said. “This is what best friends do.”
“But it may be an adult-only moment,” Seraphina said, with a nod toward Madison.
“Madison, honey, why don’t you head downstairs and find Grace,” I said. “She knows where you’re supposed to be when we start the ceremony.”
Madison popped up out of the chair, blowing kisses as if she were a starlet on a red carpet. “Tootles.” She slipped out to the hallway, her shoes clicking against the hardwood floors.
“Tootles?” Lila asked, laughing. “Where did she get that?”
“From Grace,” Gillian said, rolling her eyes. “It’s one of her new things.”
“These kids never cease to entertain,” Delphine said.
My four friends gathered around me.
“This is something old,” Seraphina said, handing me a small frame.
Inside, pressed flat and perfectly preserved, were a sprig of lavender, a miniature rose, and a tiny fern frond.
“These are from the arrangement you made for my very first book launch. I saved them.” Seraphina turned the frame over. On the back, each of them had written something.
My guess? Mary Oliver would be proud of how you’ve lived your life thus far. I can’t wait to see this next chapter unfold for you. May it be wild and precious and full of love. - Seraphina
You are brave and beautiful and more powerful than you’ll ever know. Be happy, my darling friend. You deserve it. - Gillian
A happy ending is yours at last. The path may not have been without curves, but I suspect it was worth the wait. We’ll all be friends until we’re old ladies and then in heaven running through the most beautiful garden ever planted. - Lila
You make the world more beautiful. It’s just a fact. I’m lucky to have you. We all are. - Delphine
I pressed the frame to my chest and closed my eyes.
“Don’t cry yet,” Delphine said. “We’re not finished.”
“Something borrowed,” Gillian said, handing me a small box. “And something blue.”
I opened it. Inside, nestled in tissue paper, was a pale blue lace garter.
“It’s the one I wore on my wedding night,” Gillian said, patting her belly. “Clearly it has potent energy, so consider yourself warned. Use it with care.”
We all laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind,” I said.
“It might have been better to get her a package of birth control,” Delphine said.
“You’re no fun,” Gillian said, poking Delphine with her elbow.
“I’ll save the garter foryourwedding, Delphine,” I said saucily.
“By the time I walk down an aisle, that garter won’t be something borrowed anymore—it’ll be something old,” Delphine said.
Lila stepped forward, handing me a rectangular velvet box. “And lastly, something new. This is from all of us.”
I opened the box. Inside, on a delicate gold chain, was a sunflower pendant, its petals sculpted in gold, its center filled with tiny pavé diamonds that caught the light from the bedroom window and scattered it like lightning bugs on a summer evening.
