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groomsmen?”
    “Yes.” Ryan grinned at Erin’s husband. “Sam, if he’ll do it, and Peter and Luke.”
    A hush fell over the table.
    John cleared his throat. “I’m sure that’ll be perfect.”
    Elizabeth stared at her plate. The mention of Luke cast a quiet over a part of her heart, a tight, pinched feeling that choked out all other thoughts and feelings save one: He was gone. Her son, the golden boy whose laughter and promise had graced their home, was gone. No one knew when—or if—he was coming back.
    She sniffed and worked the muscles in her throat to keep from giving sadness an edge. John was always so sure everything was going to work out. But what if it didn’t? Luke hadn’t shown up for this dinner party. What made John so sure he’d come to the wedding? Every week his absence made him feel more distant, less like the boy she’d raised. Less like he was even part of the family.
    The conversation did a pinball bounce from the date and wedding party to the type of reception they wanted—formal, with assigned seating and a ballroom floor for dancing. But the details that had occupied so much of Elizabeth’s mind the last few weeks were suddenly small and unimportant compared with the fact that Luke hadn’t come. Elizabeth smiled and nodded and tried to look interested. But inside, in the hallways of her heart, she was reliving the phone call with Reagan.
    How had the girl started the conversation? Hadn’t it been something about having some kind of news, something she wanted to tell Luke? But then they’d gotten to the truth about Luke’s new lifestyle, and talk had never gotten back to Reagan.
    Elizabeth nodded at something Erin said about planning a wedding shower, but she was only half listening. What could Reagan have to tell Luke, and why had she been so adamant about not telling him she’d called? Had she been trying to get ahold of him to tell him she still cared for him, that she wanted to have another chance at a relationship? If so, then it was no wonder the news of his new girlfriend had frightened her off, made her want to never talk to Luke again.
    The party wound down, and by eight o’clock Erin, Brooke, and Ashley were finalizing plans to meet with Kari the following week to scan the catalogues for bridesmaid dresses. Kari was the last to leave, and she gave Elizabeth a longer hug than usual. Ryan was buckling Jessie into her car seat in the truck, and John had gone upstairs, so Kari and Elizabeth were alone. For the first time that night, Kari’s eyes glistened with tears.
    “I can’t believe it, Mom…I mean, really. After all these years, we’re getting married!”
    “He’s perfect for you.” Elizabeth’s heart swelled as she cupped the side of Kari’s face. “Perfect for Jessie, too.”
    “I know.” Kari wiped at an errant tear. “I think Tim would’ve been glad that Jessie and I are getting on with life.”
    “Yes.” Elizabeth kissed her daughter’s forehead. “Everything’s going to work out just right.”
    Kari hesitated for a second and brought her hand to her mouth. “Sorry. I didn’t think I’d be so emotional now.” She uttered a sound that was more laugh than cry. “The big announcement’s over.” For a moment she seemed to steady herself, and her eyes locked on Elizabeth’s. “But I wanted to thank you, Mom. You’ve…you’ve been amazing through this whole thing. You’ve always known what to say, what to do.” She sniffed. “You’re the best mom in the world. I want you to know that.”
    Elizabeth’s throat grew thick. Mirrored in her daughter’s eyes were a hundred memories. Kari had shared each of them with her, every incident. She swallowed and the cloud of memories lifted. “It’s been a long road, my dear.”
    “And you’ve prayed me through every inch of it.”
    “Yes…” She gave Kari a wry smile. “The last few years have given your father and me calloused knees. But not just because of you.”
    They were silent, both