Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 95107 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95107 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
“There’s decaf,” Carin points out.
“I’m not taking the chance she accidentally ingests something else. Not after last year’s coffee debacle. She was so wired, Tuck almost took her to the ER.”
The servers bring out the first round of sandwiches on extravagant three-tiered trays. And for the next hour and a half, the trays keep coming. I feel like I’m acting out a scene from Downton Abbey as we munch on tiny cucumber sandwiches and stuffed macaroons. Despite it being Sabrina’s day, Jamie is the obvious star of the morning. She’s smart as a whip and so damn sweet, reminding me a lot of Tucker. And just when I think she couldn’t get any cuter, I discover she has this weird new habit of asking everyone if they’re okay, which she proceeds to do while skipping around the table.
“Are you okay, Auntie Samanda?” she asks, pausing next to Samantha’s chair.
Sabrina’s Harvard friend is clearly fighting a laugh. “I’m wonderful, thank you for asking.”
“You’re welcome.” With a big, beaming smile, Jamie moves to the next seat, which happens to belong to me.
“Are you okay, Auntie Allie?” she inquires.
My lips twitch. “I’m doing great, princess.”
She moves over. “Are you okay, Auntie ’Annah?”
Hannah smiles indulgently. “I’m great, gumdrop.”
Jamie skips down the line. I gaze at Sabrina and say, “She’s a lot calmer than the last time I saw her.” It was back in the fall, and Jamie had been a total terror, streaking around the room getting into mischief.
“Trust me, she’s still a nightmare,” Sabrina answers. “I made sure she got a nap in after breakfast. Tried to wear her out before we got here so she’d be calmer.”
Our servers return to top off everyone’s teacups, and the conversation shifts from Jamie to tonight’s wedding reception. The ceremony itself is taking place about an hour before that, but it’s a private event. Just Sabrina and Tucker, and Tucker’s mom.
A fact that Carin is pouting over. “I can’t believe we won’t get to see you recite your vows.”
Hope snorts. “I can. No way was this bit—B-I-T-C-H going to pour her heart out in front of two hundred people.”
Sabrina grins at that. “You know me well, Hopeless.” She shrugs. “It was our compromise. Tuck gets a huge reception, and I get to tell him how much I love him without four hundred pairs of eyes staring at me.”
Next to me, Summer is also pouting. “I’m so jealous you’re getting married,” she tells Sabrina. “Honestly, I cannot believe Fitzy hasn’t asked me to marry him yet. The nerve of that man.”
I raise an eyebrow. “You’re only twenty-two,” I remind her.
She tosses her silky golden hair over her shoulder. “So? Twenty-two-year-olds aren’t allowed to get married?”
“No, of course they are. It’s just… It’s young. I’m turning twenty-five soon, and I definitely don’t want to get married right now.”
Summer waves a flippant hand. “Twenty-five? Oh my God. You’re practically an old maid.” Her twinkling green eyes tell me she’s joking. “I don’t know, I just always imagined myself getting married young. And being a young mom,” she admits. “I want to have at least four kids.”
“Four?” I sputter.
She beams. “Four big strapping boys like their dad.”
Sabrina snickers. “Talk to me after the first one. Let’s see if you still want the other three.”
Summer defends her stance. “I love having two brothers, and Fitz is an only child, so I think he’d enjoy having a big family.” She sticks out her bottom lip. “All of that is moot, though, because the jerk is not asking me.” She gasps. “Oh my God. What if he doesn’t think I’m his forever person?” Before anyone can answer, she releases a rushed breath, then starts to laugh. “Okay, that’s just crazy. Of course I’m his forever person. Jeez.”
I just nod along. I learned a long time ago that Summer Heyward-Di Laurentis is capable of having entire conversations all by herself.
Suddenly, she turns it on me. “Wait. Are you actually telling me you wouldn’t marry Dicky if he asked you right now?” she challenges.
Dean’s childhood nickname makes me grin. “Well, he’s not asking, so that question is also moot.”
“But if he was?” she pushes. “You wouldn’t say yes?”
“I…I don’t know. Truthfully, I probably wouldn’t even let him ask.”
“Really?” Hannah looks startled.
I shrug, because I don’t know how to put it into words.
It’s not that I don’t love Dean. Of course I do. And of course I envision us getting married and having a family one day. One day being the operative words.
Grace joins the discussion, one eyebrow raised. “Are you saying he might not be your forever person?”
That summons a growl from Summer. “You better not be saying that, because I already have a design in mind for our custom sisters-in-law Christmas onesies.”
“I’m not saying that at all,” I protest. “Dean is absolutely my forever person. We’re end game. But to me, getting engaged isn’t just one step. It’s, like, three steps all joined together. An engagement should be immediately followed by getting married, which should be closely followed by starting a family, and I’m not ready for any of those steps. Being a mom in the near future sounds terrifying to me.” I glance over at Sabrina. “No offense.”