Page 6 of Enchanted to Meet You

I wandered over to the mailbox on the side of the house, my Uggs dragging against the hot concrete driveway. I pulled out the large collection of envelopes inside, flipping through them with limited focus since I knew none of them would be for me. The only time I ever got mail was when report cards came around.

The house was lively as I walked inside. I kicked off my shoes and stepped over my dance bag by the front door, promising myself I’d take it upstairs later but knowing it was probably going to sit there until Monday when I had my next dance class again.

I was about to walk in and join my siblings when I reached the final envelope in the stack. It was different than the other ones, more square and heavier. Across the front, in beautiful handwritten calligraphy, was written The Novaks.

I stared at it as I wandered further into the house, letting the sound of my siblings chatting wash over me. They were all set up in the living room, pulling out the containers of food and setting them out on the coffee table. Mum was working today and had already left, so it was just us kids for brunch. Technically, there were only four of us siblings—me, Sebastian, Lavender, and my twin, Imogen—but the living room was crowded with their significant others too.

“What’s that?” Imogen asked, lifting her head from her boyfriend’s shoulder and indicating toward the envelope I was still holding.

“I’m not sure,” I said. I turned the letter over in my hand, then I handed it over to her so she could see. She frowned a little as she looked at the writing. Cole leaned in closer beside her to get a closer look as well.

“What is it?” I asked. “Do you recognize it?”

She chewed on her lip and looked away nervously. And that was pretty much when I knew. If there was one thing Imogen refused to talk about, it was the fact that she had been visiting Dad for months after he had abandoned our whole family. The fact that she hadn’t even told me—her own twin sister— about it hurt the most. I’d forgiven her, of course. I knew the circumstances were weird. I understood why she didn’t want to tell me about it. But the look on her face right now told me there was something about it that was popping into her head now.

“What is it?” I repeated. Everyone was staring at her now, and she looked away, embarrassed. She cleared her throat.

“I’m pretty sure that’s Hilary’s handwriting,” she said.

Lavender gasped. Nora jumped forward to see the writing. Sebastian’s jaw tightened, and I stared at the letter in my hand as if it were a bomb.

“Are you sure?” I asked. My voice came out pitifully meek, the same way it did any time that I thought about Dad.

“Pretty sure,” Imogen said, dragging the word out slowly. “But, you know, maybe it’s nothing.”

“Maybe it’s an invitation to their wedding,” Sebastian said flatly.

“Don’t even joke about that.” Lavender practically snarled the words at him. They stared at each other for a long minute, and then Sebastian sighed and looked away.

“Do you think I should open it?” I asked. I knew the answer. We would have to open it eventually. We didn’t have to respond, but we had to know what was going on. And Sebastian wasn’t completely wrong. The fancy cardstock and everything did make it seem almost like a wedding invitation. And...

“She is pregnant,” Imogen piped up, saying exactly what I’d been thinking. “Maybe they want to get married before she has the baby.”

My stomach turned. I hated the thought of Dad getting another woman pregnant. Hated the idea of having another sibling, which was probably ridiculous of me, given that I was 16 and it wasn’t a big deal at all. I wondered whether I would be upset about it if it had been my actual parents. If it had been any other situation but this one. I glanced around the room. Nobody seemed to want to be the one to open it and confirm.

Finally, Cole sighed and stood up, taking the letter out of my hand. Cole was the most recent addition to our little family. He and Imogen started dating back in January, but unlike Nora and Dean, we hadn’t known him before that. Nora and Dean had lived next door to us for the nearly six years that we had lived here since we’d moved from the UK. Dean was Sebastian’s best friend, and Nora had quickly become mine in recent months. Cole was completely new, and I still sometimes felt like I was on uneven ground with him. But if one thing was for sure, it was that he made my sister happy, and that’s all that mattered to me.

“Let me,” he said. With absolutely no grace at all, he tore the envelope open and pulled out the card inside. We all leaned in to take a look at it.

Cole’s face twisted as he read out, “You’re cordially invited to celebrate new beginnings.”

“Oh no,” Imogen muttered, putting her face in her hands. “They really are getting married.”

“Not exactly,” Cole said. Unable to take the anticipation, I snatched the card stock out of his hand and read it over myself.

You’re Cordially Invited to Celebrate New Beginnings

A Little Love is Growing… With hearts full of joy (and so much gratitude for unexpected blessings), Hilary Lennon requests the pleasure of your company at a baby shower honoring Baby Novak (arriving soon!)

Saturday, May 30

The North Glen Country Club

Dress code: Garden Party Chic in whites or neutrals

Because every moment matters, a light schedule will be followed:

12:00 PM: Arrival & Signature Mocktail (“The Fresh Start”)