“All right let’s eat. We don’t have the entire day to do so. We have to be out of here within the hour if we want to beat the morning sun,” Cora advised.
“Hi, grandma,” Rory greeted, kissing her grandmother’s cheek. Beck slowly raised her hand to caress the side of her face. Rory leaned into it, enjoying the affection. Becky’s hand dropped, and she took her seat.
“I made fresh orange juice,” Josephine announced, going over to the refrigerator to remove the jug and coming to take a seat around the island as well.
“Rory…”
She looked over at her aunt, waiting for her to continue.
“Would you like to say grace?” she asked.
“Um, sure,” she accepted. After indicating that they should hold hands, she started. “Dear Lord, thank you for this meal that we are about to eat, thank you for this family and thank you for love. Amen.”
“Amen,” the others repeated. They dug into the food happily.
“So, Rory, have you decided on the menu for the reception?”
“No. Not yet,” Rory answered her aunt. “I’m still waiting for the list from his side of the family to work from,” she explained.
Josephine’s brows furrowed in thought. “Can I make a suggestion?” she asked.
“Shoot,” Rory directed.
“Work with what you have currently. That way, you will give the caterers ample time to start making their preparations, and you can add and take away as you go. If you wait until the last minute to get this done, things may turn out a lot different than you anticipate,” she suggested.
Rory nodded her understanding.
“Have you decided to use the caterers Kerry suggested?”
“Yes. I discussed it with James, and he’s all for it. I turned their number over to Jenny too.”
“That’s good,” Josephine said, nodding her approval.
“I was also thinking for the ceremony itself to not be so traditional and not have it at the church,” she revealed.
“Where would you have it then?” Andrea turned to her daughter to ask, her eyes registering concern.
“I was thinking about maybe having it here by the dock or by the lawn behind the inn, using the gazebo as the altar,” she suggested.
“That’s a wonderful idea, Rory,” her mother encouraged. “That way, you can have both the wedding and the reception in the same location.”
Rory nodded yes.
After breakfast, the women packed into Cora’s SUV and Andrea’s Jeep and made their way to Double Bluff beach to have a day of fun with the extended family.
They met up with the others at the parking lot. After removing their things from the backs of the cars, they walked over to the grassy area with picnic benches and a barbecue, already fixtures around the area. A family of four was already occupying one of the picnic benches, but there were enough to host them.
“Rory!”
Rory turned around to see her mother standing with a young woman and a young man waving her over.
Placing the igloo on the tabletop, she sauntered over to them.
“Sweetie, this is Natalie and Jordan, Rhonda’s children,” Andrea introduced. “You didn’t meet them because they didn’t get to come to the funeral…”
“We were in England visiting our father’s parents,” Natalie, who looked to be the younger of the two, explained.
“Okay. Well, it’s nice to meet you both,” she replied, holding her hand out to them. “I’m always happy to meet the rest of my family, considering I didn’t get that chance before.” She saw her mother visibly shrink back and wished she had chosen her words more carefully.
