Page 47 of A Nantucket Wedding

“Eeeek!” Luke screamed, giggling, and slid sideways off the pile of pillows, landing on the floor.

The other children giggled like hyenas.

“We need books,” Alison said, and went off to gather a pile while Felicity removed the pillows and lifted her son onto the pile of books Alison had substituted.

Scott opened his mouth to speak again, but Felicity’s daughter, Alice, announced in her clear, high, confident voice, “I’m going to set up a website calledNow, Please. It will be a list of things that need to be invented.”

“Really?” Jane asked. “For example?”

“Well, our teacher keeps telling us we need to save the world, and that even though we’re only in first grade, we should try to help. So far I have two ideas. The first is that we shouldn’t use plastic straws because we need to stop using so much plastic, buteveryoneuses plastic straws, so someone should invent a permanent accordion straw that we’d use over and over again. It could be made from something like aluminum. It would be our own personal straw. It could live folded small in a little aluminum egg that would fit in our pockets. At the end of the day, we’d stick it in the dishwasher and it would be good to go for the next day.”

“Alice,” Patrick said, “that’s a brilliant idea. You’ve given it a lot of thought, haven’t you?”

Daphne, miffed at the sight of her own father praising Alice, quickly spoke up. “Weallhad to think of inventions like that on Earth Day,back in the first grade.”

“What was your idea?” Jane inquired.

“I suggested we use leaves instead of toilet paper. That’s what people did for thousands of years. That would save our forests—”

“Wipe my bum with leaves?” Daphne’s brother, Hunter, shrieked.

“Bum!” Luke echoed. “Leaves!”

The two boys exploded with laughter, yelling, “Wipe my bum with seaweed!” and other hilarious variations, rocking and tilting in their chairs until, no surprise, Luke fell off the chair again. This time, he snatched the tablecloth in an attempt to keep from falling. He pulled his own plate and glass onto the floor before Alison, seated next to Luke, managed to secure the cloth.

Poppy and Felicity removed both boys from the dining room table and set them in the kitchen with paper plates of food.

“I’m standing right here while you two bad little children eat,” Poppy said. “Then you can play outside, but not before.”

Felicity started to speak, then took a deep breath. It was always awkward, watching another mother discipline her own child. It seemed presumptive now. A small voice in Felicity’s mind whined,But your daughter, Daphne, started it by talking about leaves and toilet paper!But she wanted her relationship with Poppy to be cordial, so she simply added, “Luke, you heard what Poppy said.”

“Bum leaf,” Luke whispered with a sly smile.

“That’s enough,” Felicity said sternly.

—

Later, Patrick and Scott watched the Red Sox in the den while Alison, Felicity, and Poppy put the children to bed. Jane stacked the dishwasher and wiped down the counters, taking her time. She hoped Scott was bonding with Poppy’s husband. Patrick seemed like a good guy, and Jane appreciated that Patrick had taken the initiative and asked Scott about his work. Maybe they’d talk in the den. Maybe Patrick would tell Scott that children weren’t always as frenzied as they’d been at the dining room table.

“Hey, sis.” Felicity entered the room, carrying glasses from other parts of the house. She put them in the dishwasher. “Want to take a walk on the beach?”

“Honestly, I was hoping to take a walk on the beach with Scott.”

“It looks like Scott is settled in for the night with the Red Sox and Patrick.”

“Yeah. That’s good, right? For the guys to get to know each other. Okay, yeah, let’s take a walk,” Jane agreed.

“Good. I have something I want to talk to you about.”

“Should we tell the others we’re going?”

“No. Let’s just slip out the door now.”

They padded, barefoot, down the steps from the deck and through the low shrubs to the expanse of beach. The sand was cool beneath their feet. For a while as they strolled in and out of the lazy waves, they chatted casually. They laughed about the boys and their silliness. They agreed that Alice’s idea about a permanent accordion straw was brilliant, except it wouldn’t really work. People, especially children, would lose their straws down the backs of chairs and between seats in cars.

They were silent for a few moments, and then Jane inhaled deeply. “I talked to Scott about children and he’s being a real shit. We got into a terrible fight—in a restaurant, so I didn’t shout or throw things. It’s true, when we married we agreed we wouldn’t have children. But I’ve changed my mind. And Scott won’t even think about it. Honestly, he is so anal, so meticulous, so set in routine—”

“Pot, kettle,” Felicity said.

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