“You’ll do no such thing,” Cora Jane said, looking horrified. “Get Wade in here right this minute, and I’ll set him straight about that.”
“He’s putting the baby down,” Gabi said. “And he and I are agreed about this. No hoopla when our time comes. Just a quiet ceremony with family.”
Samantha noticed the color rising in Emily’s cheeks at Gabi’s words.
“Are you suggesting that my wedding is over-the-top?” Emily asked, an edge to her voice.
“No one is saying any such thing, honey bun,” Cora Jane said quickly, shooting a pointed look in Gabi’s direction.
“I’m just saying it’s a lot of work and stress for a party,” Gabi said defensively. “But I certainly don’t begrudge you and Boone for having the wedding of your dreams. It’s just not Wade and me.”
Emily burst into tears at that and fled out the back door.
“That girl’s nerves are getting to her,” Cora Jane assessed. “I don’t think it’s all about the wedding, either. I suspect there’s something else on her mind.”
“Such as?” Samantha asked.
Cora Jane huffed a sigh of frustration. “No idea.”
“I’d better go,” Gabi said with a sigh. “I should have kept my big mouth shut. I know she’s sensitive about the wedding spinning a little out of control.”
Samantha held up a hand. “I’ll go. I know I’m not the traditional peacemaker around her, but I’m thinking she might not want to hear anything you have to say right now.”
“Go ahead,” Cora Jane said. “I’ll finish up here and get dinner on the table. Don’t be too long, okay?”
Samantha kicked off her shoes on the porch and walked barefoot through the grass down to the pier. Emily was sitting on the bench at the end, her shoulders hunched, her face streaked with tears.
“You probably agree with Gabi,” she accused when Samantha sat next to her.
“Not the way you’re thinking,” Samantha said.
“See, I knew it! You always think I make lousy choices.”
Samantha was saddened by yet more evidence that the two of them had a long way to go before they’d ever understand each other.
“And you always anticipate the worst from me,” Samantha replied quietly. “Did you not hear what I said? I told you that though I agreed with Gabi, it was probably not in the way you were thinking.”
Emily scowled at her. “You either agree or you don’t.”
“Does everything always have to be either black or white to you?”
“It generally is,” Emily said.
“Oh, sweetie, there is an awful lot of gray in the world. Believe me, you’ll figure that out eventually.”
“And now you’re saying I’m not that experienced or wise or something,” Emily said, obviously taking offense when none had been intended.
Samantha frowned at her. “And people think I’m the drama queen in the family,” she murmured dryly, knowing the comment would only add fuel to the fire. “Will you please just listen for two seconds?”
“Go ahead,” Emily muttered.
“I agree with Gabi that the two of you are very different people. In fact, the three of us are very different women, despite a few similarities here and there. I think you started dreaming about the perfect wedding on the day you first laid eyes on Boone. When things fell apart and you went off to follow your career, that dream didn’t die. It was just put on hold.”
She took heart from the fact that Emily was still paying attention. “The minute the two of you were reunited and engaged, it’s not even a tiny bit surprising that you wanted the whole fairy-tale wedding you’d always envisioned.” She tucked a finger under Emily’s chin. “And there is nothing wrong with that, you hear me. Nothing! None of us begrudge you this moment, Em. Not even a tiny bit. Every woman should have the wedding of her dreams.”
“But Gabi said—”
Samantha interrupted. “All Gabi said was that she didn’t want this same kind of hoopla. Gabi probably doesn’t even want to take off a couple of hours from work to go down to the courthouse to get married.”
Emily giggled at that just as Samantha had hoped she would.
“You’re probably right,” Emily conceded. “She’s pretty focused on the studio these days, and the baby, and Wade. The ceremony is just some kind of technicality to get out of the way.”
“Exactly,” Samantha said. “And that’s okay, too, if it suits the two of them.”
“I suppose, even if I do think it’s kind of sad.” Emily studied her curiously. “What about you? What kind of wedding do you want?”
“I haven’t looked that far ahead,” Samantha said, her tone neutral. “After all, there’s not even a man in my life at the moment.”
“Liar,” Emily taunted. “You’ve seen every kind of wedding imaginable on those soaps you used to do from time to time. Which one struck you as the most devastatingly romantic?”
Samantha leaned back, finally relaxing now that the crisis appeared past, and gave Emily’s question some thought.
“A destination wedding,” she said eventually. “On the beach, maybe, with the wind in my hair and the sand beneath my feet.”
When she glanced at Emily, there was a sheen of tears in her eyes.
“It sounds perfect,” Emily whispered. “And it does sound like you. It needs to be at sunset, though, with all that glorious color in the sky.” She glanced over at Samantha and added, “I hope you get it.”
“One of these days, if I’m lucky,” Samantha said.
“Maybe it’ll be even sooner than you think,” Emily replied, a glint in her eyes. “And last time I looked, Sand Castle Bay was known all over as a terrific spot for a destination wedding.”
Samantha frowned at her. “Do not even go there, you hear me? Or I will take back every nice thing I just said about you.”
“I can take it,” Emily said, grinning. “It’ll be worth it to watch this thing with you and Ethan unfold. Don’t forget I was right there with the two of you today when you came back inside the restaurant. Sparks were flying all over the place. It’s a wonder Greg and I didn’t get burned.”
“Didn’t it occur to you that those sparks were anger directed your way for the meddling you did to throw us together for the second time in one day?”
Emily waved off the suggestion. “Not a chance. This was all about a man and a woman who’ve taken a real shine to each other. Pheromones, chemistry, whatever you want to call it.”
“Enough!” Samantha said, her voice rising as she tried to get the point across once and for all. “Ethan and I agreed to be friends, nothing more.”
Emily merely laughed. “I know. I can just hear the two of you being all rational and determined. I had a similar conversation with Boone when I first came back to town.” A grin spread. “I’ll tell you now exactly what you told me then.”
“What?”
“That all that denial is what’s going to make this so much fun to watch.”
“Enjoy yourself, but I think you’re going to be disappointed,” Samantha told her. “Now I have another question for you before we go back inside and you make peace with Gabi.”
“What’s