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“We’ve had to make it a home,” Alana breathed.
“A refuge, more like,” Julia corrected. “But Alana’s even used the residency side to teach acting lessons.”
Ella’s lips parted with surprise. “Does that have something to do with this play Mom told me about?”
“I’m sure she didn’t mention that she was the one who wrote the play,” Alana countered. “Decades ago.”
Ella’s eyes dampened. A hand over her heart, she whispered, her voice catching, “I never, ever, in my wildest dreams imagined…”
But suddenly, Greta, Laura, and Danny appeared in the living room, each nibbling on cookies. Gorgeous Laura ate daintily while Danny rushed through. His hunger was such contrast to a teenage girl’s primal fear around food.
“You know I don’t like watching the parade from anywhere but Main Street. We have to get a good spot,” Greta explained.
It was as though they hadn’t just skipped the past twenty-five years of parades.
As though they could just pick up where they left off.
At the door, Alana glanced back toward the staircase that led to Bernard’s quarters. Julia splayed a hand across Alana’s arm and whispered, “I asked him already. He said it’s just too many people. It’s overwhelming for him.”
“I wouldn’t want anyone to give him any trouble,” Alana said with a firm nod.
The parade felt like an out-of-body experience. Alana stood along Main Street between Greta and Julia and watched the chaos erupting beneath the gorgeous eggshell blue sky. Confetti streamed down around them. Nantucketers tossed out candy, which little kids scrambled to collect. The marching band played a never-ending rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” in front of the old courthouse as Nantucketers and tourists placed their hands on their hearts, honoring the flag.
Danny and Laura both looked shocked at the pomp and circumstance. As city kids, they had very little in common with Nantucketers. Still, Danny rushed to grab two pieces of candy, which he and his sister popped into their mouths and sucked on, watching as the parade marched past.
Alana was surprised to realize that she looked for Jeremy, somewhere in the crowd or in the parade itself. He was an employee at the Nantucket Courthouse, after all. Perhaps he had to sit on some float and wave. She would have loved to see that, if only because it would make him miserable.
“When are you meeting the girls?” Julia called over the chaos of the crowd.
“At three!”
“Wow.” Julia nudged her sister knowingly. “You nervous?”
“I have to pretend not to be, for their sake,” Alana joked.
When Alana headed off to the festival arena, where a large stage was set up for bands to play, important people to speak, and their production ofNantucket Dreamsto be performed, her heart performed an anxious tap dance across her diaphragm.
From a distance, she waved an arm toward the four of them: Evie, Harlow, Nora, and her darling Sarah. Already, they’d dressed up in their costumes, each of which encapsulated the spirit of a nearly forgotten time.
“Girls! You look fantastic!” Alana cried in greeting.
The girls beamed up at her. Behind them was a selection of crackers, cheeses, fruits, and sliced peppers, all ready for pre-production snacking. Sarah handed Alana a cracker, blushing as she ate another. Alana wanted to tell her never to feel shame for nourishing herself. She wanted to tell her it was the only thing you could do to survive.
“Are your families coming today?” Alana asked the girls instead.
“My parents are,” Harlow said.
“Mine, too,” Evie agreed.
“My mom can make it,” Nora said.
Sarah shrugged. “My dad’s coming, but he’s a huge jock. I’m sure he’ll hate it.”
Alana shook her head, drawing her hands over Sarah’s slender shoulders.How she adored the feeling of cushion around those bones. How she adored the curve of Sarah’s beautiful cheeks.
“There’s no way your father will hate this performance,” Alana told her firmly. “The four of you are stars. That’s just a fact.”
