Page 49 of California Waves

“I’ve lined up a series of menus for you to try,” Crystal said, gesturing to the clipboards. “After you and I talked, Tessa, I worked with Francesca to come up with a casually elegant menu suitable for a small garden wedding.”

Obviously, Tessa was the one who would be making all the final choices, but she wanted more opinions. She probably felt a little out of her comfort zone here, but presumably among the three of them, they could find a menu that would work. Mila vowed to be as useful as possible. She didn’t have a very busy day today, and she wasn’t one to turn down delicious free food, though maybe she was slightly disappointed that she hadn’t been able to spend the day with Hersch. She could just imagine how they would have spent it too.

As she looked over the three menus that included a cocktail hour, three courses, dessert, and a late-night snack, she found herself impressed. Everything sounded totally yummy and luxurious. Among the many offerings were mini crab cakes with avocado aioli, creamy lobster bisque, and filet mignon. She read the descriptions, salivating, and noted with pleasure how everything was farm-to-table.

“What do you think?” Crystal asked, and Mila realized she’d been waiting for a reaction.

She said to Crystal, “It all looks great. I’m assuming money’s no object?”

Tessa immediately looked stricken, and the happy flush disappeared from her cheeks. She put a hand to her chest. “Honestly, I don’t need an extravagant wedding. I thought your father’s suggestion that we do hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill was fine.”

Mila put an arm around her soon-to-be sister-in-law. “Don’t mind me. Of course you want a beautiful wedding meal, and we’re going to choose you one. That dig would have been a lot funnier if my brother were here. I’m used to teasing him, and sometimes I forget myself.”

Tessa still looked worried. “I can’t even imagine how much a wedding in Scotland is going to cost, and it’s only a decoy.” Then she lowered her voice. “Mila, Archer is talking about flying us all there on private planes.”

She had to bite back a smile. Tessa’s life was changing in a lot of ways. As she glanced down at the menus, she said, “At least let’s make sure we pick the popcorn for the late-night snack. It’s so perfect, Arch being a movie star and all.”

Tessa and Crystal looked delighted by this idea, and without even trying, one decision had been made. Then Sergio, Francesca’s son, arrived, all Italian and gorgeous. He presented the goat cheese and fig crostini, and all three of them found it delicious. While she tasted, Mila contemplated Tessa. The kind and warmhearted woman who’d won her brother’s heart was being tossed seriously out of her comfort zone. Decoy weddings and private planes, red-carpet events and paparazzi stalking her. It must be super stressful for someone who’d never been in the public eye before.

As she nibbled on the prawn and mango salad, she asked her, “How do you reconcile how much your life has changed? Do you feel like you’re losing your identity?” As soon as she said the words, Mila realized she might have been too blunt. Truth was, she was wondering how much love could change a person.

Tessa wiped her mouth daintily with a napkin and seemed to genuinely consider the question. “I don’t think I am losing my identity. I think I’m embracing a new one, that of Archer’s wife. I’ll still be me. Maybe I won’t work as a caregiver anymore, because I’m selling paintings now, but I was always an artist, and it was Arch who made me see that. I think when I’m with him, I’m a better version of myself.”

Mila thought this was a beautiful answer. She was still considering it when they moved on to tasting cake. As she bit into a chocolate fudge cake that had the most delicious chocolate and coffee icing she’d ever tasted, she continued to contemplate what Tessa had said. Finally, she had to ask, “But how do you know he’s right for you? I mean, how do you actually know he’s The One, out of all the men in the world that you could have met and married?”

Tessa put a star beside the chocolate cake on the checklist they were using and then said, “I don’t know. I just really love him.”

Crystal had been watching this interchange. “These are really good questions. Honestly, as a wedding planner, I wish more couples spent time thinking about these things. It’s not whether you wear a veil or not that matters in the end. It’s whether you chose a compatible partner.”

Tessa laughed. “My wedding dress was the easiest choice I ever made. I’ll be wearing Betsy’s dress, and I couldn’t be happier. But Arch is the person I want to be with. When I wake up in the morning, he’s there beside me. It’s the best feeling. And even if we argue sometimes, or he gets high-handed with me, or I have to remind him that I need time to paint, I know he gets me, and I think I get him.”

Crystal and Mila exchanged a glance, and Crystal said, “Wow, that is true love. You’re not being definitive. You’re just trusting.”

Tessa turned to her. “I think when you’re truly in love, the trust is a natural part of it.”

Trust. It was definitely the cornerstone of a good relationship. Was Mila willing to risk her heart by trusting again? “But what if your heart is wrong?”

Tessa looked over at her and obviously understood. “I get it. I was definitely not looking for love or marriage, especially since I’d been married before and not very happily, if I’m honest. But I think that even with whatever damage we’re carrying around inside ourselves, if we’re listening closely enough to what’s truly inside our hearts, I don’t think the heart can ever steer us wrong.”

* * *

Having eaten a lot of tiny pieces of food and enjoyed her time with Tessa and Crystal more than she could have imagined, Mila checked her watch and then her email as they prepared to leave Francesca’s. Her only client for tomorrow had canceled their appointment, citing a dental emergency. She felt bad for them, but pleased for herself. Now she could spend the whole day with her new lover.

Crystal said, “I’ll tell Francesca what we’ve chosen. It’s a beautiful menu. All this food is paid for. Why don’t you take some of it?”

Mila spied the chocolate fudge cake and thought how much Hersch might enjoy it, so Crystal had the staff cut about a quarter of the cake, wrap it up, and put it in a box for her to take home. She waved away the rest of the food, but that chocolate cake was calling to her. She left first, got in her car, and as if on autopilot, drove straight to Herschel’s place. Then, as she sat in her car outside his house, she thought, What am I doing? I can’t just show up on his doorstep with cake. So she called him.

He sounded delighted to hear from her. “How did the tasting go?”

“Really well. In fact, I’m outside your house with a cake sample.”

He laughed. “What are you doing calling me? Come on in.”

She took in the cake, and they headed to the kitchen, which, second to the bedroom, was becoming their favorite room.

“I have more good news,” she told him. “My only appointment tomorrow afternoon canceled. If you still want to spend the day with me, I’m free.”

“That is excellent news.”

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