John leaned back and rested his arm around Annie’s shoulders. “I agree, Mom. This stuff is great. And if you do the food, it will take a lot off our minds.”
Lucy said, “Seriously, Dad?” and everyone laughed because they all knew John’s involvement with menus was limited to pasta and pizza, fish chowder, and beef stew, all of which were delicious but would be rather understated as a memorable wedding meal.
“You don’t think Rex’s creations would be more delectable?” Claire asked.
“Huh,” John said. “I didn’t even know he was invited. Did you invite him, Annie?”
She love-slapped his leg. “If he’s here, of course he’ll be invited. But he’ll sit on a chair in the great room like everyone else. He will not be hovering in the kitchen.”
Claire smiled.
Mission accomplished, Annie thought. And now she could check one more to-do off her list.
“Another thing,” Annie added, “Lucy came up with a wonderful idea. Lucy, why don’t you ask Francine if it will be okay? You remember, the thing with the sparkles?”
Lucy nodded fervently. “Bella! Can Bella be the flower girl? Annie wasn’t sure if you guys would get here, but you are, so wouldn’t it be fun? Gramma can make her a dress just like mine, can’t you, Gramma?”
“In between shucking scallops and roasting cheese?” John asked.
“Oh, yes, it will be fun!” Francine said. “Bella will love it. And I can help you, Claire.”
“You have classes, Francine,” Claire said.
“The semester ends this week. I’ll have lots of time.” Then she turned back to Annie. “Which reminds me, I have a doctor’s appointment Friday. I got in fast thanks to Claire’s connections.” Between everything else she did, Claire volunteered at the hospital two mornings a week. She said it kept her fit and healthy.
“So it’s good news all around,” Annie said. “Do you want me to watch Bella?” Annie did not—would never—let on that she hoped Francine would say no. Friday was setup day, so Annie would be traipsing to Edgartown with her plastic tubs and decorations for her booth. But Francine—and Bella—needed to come first.
“You’ll be busy with the Fair stuff, won’t you?” Jonas asked. “I can watch her. I need to come to the Inn and take a few of my paintings off the walls so, hopefully, the gallery can sell them this weekend. And while I’m there, can I finish framing a few more for Old Sculpin Gallery if I promise not to make a mess? There’s lots of space for me to spread out in the great room. And Bella’s never in the way.”
“It’s fine with me,” Annie said. “You’ll be doing us a favor, too, because I hate to leave the Inn unsupervised for long. I have no idea how long I’ll be in Edgartown—I have so much more soap this year.”
“That sounds perfect, Jonas,” Francine added. “But I might be late. After my appointment I want to stop at the Kelley House to ask about doing an intern project for next term. Seeing as how we’ll be here.”
Earl’s spikey eyebrows shot up. “So it’s official? You’re not going back to Minnesota?”
Francine laughed. “The baby’s due the first week of May. The season starts three weeks later. As long as you still want me here to work this summer, I see no point in going to Minneapolis for a few weeks, then moving back.”
Everyone smiled, even Annie, who was the only one who knew that the young couple’s presence on the Vineyard might not be forever.
It was a lively evening, but Annie had no chance to talk to John about the TV series. After dinner, she brought Lucy and John back to theOn Time; he suggested that Lucy come back after school the next day, stay overnight, and skip school Friday so that she could help Annie cart her wares over to set up at the Fair. He added, “If you want.”
“Skip school?” Lucy cried. “Seriously, Dad? Wow. Isn’t that an arrestable offense? Ifarrestableis a word?”
“It’s a word,” Annie chimed in, “and under the circumstances, it’s an excellent one.”
John said, “If it makes you feel better, I’ll arrest both of you. Lucy for skipping, Annie for aiding and abetting. Or I could just turn my head and pretend I didn’t know.”
“Turn your head, Dad,” Lucy said.
“Yes,” Annie added. “Please do.”
So it was settled. And Annie felt better that Lucy would be there to help pull her bit together, because right now she felt as if she were hauling around a huge weight made up of her career, her future, and her life. Which might even be an understatement.
* * *
In the morning, when she slogged into the workshop, Annie was reminded that she wasn’t the only one whose mind was feeling heavy; Kevin sat on a stool by the soap-wrapping counter, his face set in a grim expression, his hazel eyes downcast and troubled.
“I’ll wrap; you pack,” she told him.
