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“Sounds like the blues. Maybe you s
hould work it into your song.” She squeezed his arm and rejoined her mother just as her father came downstairs. “What are you going to do today, Dad?”
“Absolutely nothing. I’m going for a walk. I’ll find a quiet café and read for a couple of hours. If I get ambitious, I’ll take a nap before the wedding.”
Libby wished she could do the same. Santos made a point of introducing the twins and Fox to everyone. The others all looked so relaxed, but their plans for the day kept running through her mind in a frantic loop. They were going to rehearse about ten minutes before the wedding, but for an informal ceremony on the beach, that ought to be enough.
She went upstairs to shower and dress in clean shorts and a top. She was doing her toenails in a bright pink polish when Patricia rushed into their room.
“Fox is so hot I can’t believe Santos didn’t tell me about him. He’s only seventeen, but that’s old enough for me today. He’s from England and goes to some posh prep school near London. We’re going out on the beach with the twins. When do I have to come in?”
Libby watched her sister toss through her clothes, searching for her bikini. “You left it hanging in the shower. Better be back here by two.”
“Two it is. If I see Victoria on the beach, may I invite her to the wedding?”
Libby gave her little toenail a last swipe of color. “Won’t you want Fox all to yourself?”
“She wouldn’t be interested in him. She likes men.”
“The answer is no. This is a family wedding.”
“All right, but anyone can watch a wedding on the beach, can’t they?”
“I suppose, but you mustn’t mention it to Victoria or anyone else, or we’ll have helicopters circling overhead.”
Patricia left the bathroom, wearing her bikini and carrying a white cover-up and hat. “Does any of this seem real to you?”
“No, not since Santos picked me up at the airport in the Hispano-Suiza. That car tells the whole story.”
“Fantasyland,” Patricia called on her way out the door.
That’s exactly what it was, and she’d signed a contract to extend her stay.
After Linda had dressed that afternoon, she looked in Maggie’s room. “Do you have a minute?”
“Of course, come in,” her daughter responded, and her mother stepped over the threshold.
Linda handed her a velvet box. “These were a gift from Miguel when we married, and I saved them for you.”
Surprised, Maggie opened the oblong box and found a beautiful string of pearls with a diamond clasp. “These are gorgeous!” She hugged her mother and turned so Linda could fasten the clasp.
“They’re perfect for you,” Linda exclaimed. “They could be the something old. There’s blue in your bolero. Do you still need something borrowed?”
“I do.”
Linda handed her a lace handkerchief. “Tuck this into your neckline, and if you need a hankie, you’ll have one.”
“Thank you, but I’m too excited to cry.”
“I was too, both times. You’re sure about this? If you’re not, we can all fly home together.”
“I’m positive. Please don’t worry about us. We’ll be fine.”
Linda managed a shaky smile. “I’m your mother. I’ll always worry about you.”
Maggie let her go and turned to study her reflection in the mirror above the dresser. There was no way she could have refused such a loving gift, but she doubted she’d ever wear the pearls after today. Maybe today was all that mattered, and a gift her father had given her mother to celebrate their love truly did belong with her.
Chapter Seven
