“The boat’s securely moored,” Margaret told her. “If things get too bad, we can always head back.”
“No, let’s not,” Meredith said. “I mean, not unless we have to. I’ve never been on a boat before. This is very cool.”
“Yeah,” Ava agreed. “Jackie, you should snap some photos.” Everyone agreed that was a super idea, especially before things got too out of hand. When they’d finished swapping Hope’s phone around, Hope eyed Margaret, remembering something. “I thought the water bothered you?”
“The ocean bothers me,” she explained. “Very deep water with no land in sight. Being moored at the dock is as far as I venture.”
“This is a great idea,” Ava said. “I’m so sorry Hope’s not here to join in the fun.”
Hope frowned, thinking of her sister. “Yeah, me, too.”
“Okay.” Sally unzipped a cooler. “We have booze.”
She pulled out a chilled bottle of prosecco, and everyone cheered.
“And party games,” Meredith said mysteriously.
“We’ve brought lots of great eats,” Margaret said. “Plenty to drink, too. That small stove over there is ideal for making up tea or coffee. There’s a French press kit in the cupboard, along with some mugs.”
“That’s living well for sailors,” Meredith teased.
Elsa’s smile brightened. “The Albright men enjoy their simple pleasures.
Meredith ducked her chin with a blush, and Hope wondered if she’d been thinking of Derrick and what sort of pleasures he might enjoy.
“Hey,” Sally said. “It was my idea to bring the French press aboard.”
“That’s true, granddaughter,” Margaret said. “I give you full credit.”
“Do you sail much?” Meredith asked Sally.
“Not as much as I once did. Grandpa Chad used to take me all the time. Sometimes with my brothers, sometimes not.”
“Sally sails better than any of them,” Elsa said. “Except for Derrick, of course.”
“We can all hold our own on the water.” Sally uncorked the prosecco and held up the bottle. “Who’d like a glass?”
Several hands shot up, and Sofia said quietly, “I’ll just take some sparkling water.”
All eyes turned on her, and Elsa asked gently, “Sofia?”
She puffed out a breath, appearing elated yet timid all at once. “All right, you guys. It’s true. I’m pregnant.”
“Oh, Sofia!” Margaret cried happily. “Congratulations.”
“It’s very early.” Her shoulders sagged. “William and I were waiting to tell.”
“Don’t worry, sweetheart.” Elsa hugged her shoulders. “We’ll keep it a secret.” She warmly studied her daughter-in-law. “And will pray for the very best.”
Sofia’s lips trembled. “Thank you.”
After the others hugged and congratulated her as well, Meredith and Sally asked who all was hungry, deciding to serve lunch.
Hope couldn’t believe the spread the others had prepared. There was cheese, prosciutto, and melon. Fresh bread and crackers…and hard sausages. A selection of delicious roasted nuts and marinated olives, too. And chocolate—there was so much chocolate, including yummy truffles and chocolate-covered cashews, and individual chocolate mousse tarts, as well as some delicious lemon tarts.
“How thoughtful,” Sofia said when Sally poured her some non-alcoholic sparkling cider. “How did you guess?”
“Your failure to indulge in wine at dinner was a big tip-off.” Sally smiled and whispered, “So happy for you.”
“Okay,” Meredith said once they were all settled in with their drinks and plenty of delicious things to eat. “Shall we do presents first or play some games?” She was clearly viewing her role as maid of honor seriously and taking charge.
“Presents, too?” Hope asked, chewing happily on a huge slice of bread and a thick wedge of brie. “You’ve all already done too much.”
Meredith gave Hope the side-eye, staring down at her food. Hope was clearly being out of character as Jackie, and somebody might notice.
“Oh yeah, ha-ha. I’ve decided to ease up a little bit on the carb thing,” she announced to no one in particular. “At least for the next few days.”
“And why not?” Ava said. Then she added a little too emphatically, “It’s your wedding week, after all.”
“So true,” Margaret said. “And a girl only gets married once.” She paused in sipping her prosecco. “Optimally, anyway.” She apologetically eyed Ava, the lone divorcée in the room. “Sorry, dear.”
Ava answered gracefully. “It’s fine.”
“Maybe we should play a game while we finish eating?” Sally suggested. “Let’s give Jackie time to finish her food before opening gifts.”
Meredith dug a large stack of notepads out of her tote bag and handed one to each person, along with a pen.
“What are these?” Hope asked.
Meredith grinned wickedly. “Dirty Mad Libs.”
Hope widened her eyes at the group, then stared abashedly at Margaret.
“Don’t worry about me,” the older woman said. “Trust me. I’ve seen—and heard—just about everything.”
Twenty minutes later, they were rolling with laughter at the lurid tales they’d each concocted by soliciting verbs, nouns, and adjectives from one another to fill in the blanks of their absurdly scandalous stories. Every single one of them had blushed at least once when reading her selection out loud, and Hope gave everyone bonus points, particularly the older women, for being such good sports about the game.
“Oh, my,” Margaret said, still chuckling. “I can’t remember when I’ve laughed this hard.” They were raising such a ruckus on the boat they scarcely heard the rain any longer.
“Now that we’re all loosened up,” Meredith said, wiggling her eyebrows. “Maybe we should try one more?”
“Meredith?” Hope eyed her. “What are you up to?”
“Nothing,” she said, but her grin gave her away. “Nothing at all.”
Sally peeked inside the bag she was holding and guffawed. “Okay, then. Let’s see if this group is up for it.”
Hope’s heart beat harder. “If it’s really lewd, maybe we shouldn’t—”