Page 32 of Friends are Forever (Teton Mountain #6)
Ava Briscoe took a deep breath and leaned into the bamboo-framed mirror above the sink.
“Goodness,” she thought. “This dress and pearls make me look so…tired.” Normally, she wore comfortable, loose-fitted garments, happy and bright-colored.
Her half of the closet was filled with tropical prints, linen trousers she loved to roll at the ankle, and flip-flops.
Over twenty pairs were lined up on the floor, yet she often slipped into the same favorite pair—soft-sole black Reefs.
She pulled the tube of lipstick to her mouth, then leaned a little closer. As Ava drew the color over her lips, she couldn’t help but notice the dark circles under her eyes. No amount of that miracle product she’d ordered online had erased the tell-tale signs that she hadn’t slept in days.
“Mom?” Christel peeked her head through the bathroom door. “I think it’s about time.”
Ava smiled weakly back at her oldest daughter and pushed the lid back on her lipstick tube. “Okay.”
“You alright, Mom?”
Ava forced a brightness in her voice. “Sure, honey. No need to worry.” She moved to join her daughter at the door, smoothed her dress. “I just want to see your dad a minute first.”
Christel slowly nodded. “Yeah, okay. Sure. Want me to go with?—”
“No,” Ava quickly assured her. “I’ll join you in a minute.”
Christel nodded a second time. “Okay. I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too, baby.” Ava turned and took one final glance in the mirror and pressed a stray curl back in place before heading out the door.
Only a few people lingered in the church foyer as she walked across the tiled floor past the open double doors leading outside to the gardens.
A slight breeze carried the scent of plumeria and white ginger and blew that stray curl out of place again.
Ava gave up and tucked the rogue piece of hair behind her ear for good measure.
Wailea Seaside Chapel was located on Molokini Bluff, with breathtaking ocean views and luxurious grounds.
The chapel was like something out of a fairy tale and featured soaring rafters, hand-carved wooden pews, and stained-glass windows.
She and Lincoln had been married here, as had her younger daughter, Katie.
A ukulele played from inside the chapel where the others were gathered. She couldn’t help herself. The corners of her lips turned up slightly as she recognized her favorite song—“Somewhere Over the Rainbow”. The version by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, or Iz, as people on the island called him.
Her hand reached for the knob on the closed door to the right of the potted Bromeliad plant. She pushed the door ajar slightly, listened to make sure only her husband was in the room. Detecting no one, she entered.
“Lincoln, can you hear that? They’re playing our song,” she said as she neared her husband. She reached and straightened his tie, then pulled the lapels of that awful suit into alignment. “Remember? That was the song that was playing that first night at the Grand Wailea.”
Ava had been less than twenty years old when she’d met Lincoln Briscoe at her best friend’s wedding. She was the maid of honor. Lincoln, the best man.
From the moment she laid eyes on him, her focus was scattered, so filled with nervous anticipation, even giddy.
When they were seated next to each other at the luau reception, she couldn’t even hold a conversation.
Her thoughts danced in infinite directions as they lifted glasses in a toast to their friends, the newly married couple.
As their glass clinked, she could picture the scene already—the two of them holding hands on their first date.
He would take her for a long, bare-footed walk on Mokapu Beach and watch the sunset behind craggy black rocks and towering palms.
Amazing thing? It had been just like that.
Of course, years of marriage had rubbed the shine off a bit. Raising four children and running a pineapple plantation could do that to a couple. Even so, their marriage had remained solid, reliable. They loved each other. For that, she was grateful.
“Well, honey. I guess it’s time.” An uninvited tear rolled down Ava’s cheek. Fighting to breathe, she leaned and kissed her husband’s forehead.
For the last time.
“Thank you, Lincoln,” she whispered close to his ear. “You made me very happy. I—Well, I loved you more than I can say.” She choked back a sob and straightened. Now was not the time. There would be months, even years, ahead to miss this man—the man she’d shared her life with.
Lincoln was gone. She wasn’t sure how she was going to go on without him.
She swept her hand across his chest, gave a final pat.
It was then she noticed a tiny corner from a piece of paper peeking out from the pocket of Lincoln’s jacket. Ava scowled with curiosity and tugged the note free, opened it. Scrawled across the paper were the words Ua ola loko i ke aloha .
She scowled.
Who in the world had placed the note in her husband’s pocket? One of the children, perhaps? And what did the words mean?
After living on Maui for as long as she had, Ava had assimilated into Hawaiian culture to some extent, yet her vocabulary still remained somewhat limited.
“Ava. Sweet hoaloha . Are you ready?”
She turned to see her closest friend peeking her head inside the door, her face filled with sympathy. “It’s time,” her friend said gently.
Ava mustered a weak nod. “Yes, Alani. I’m ready.” Ava lifted her chin, bit at her trembling lip. Somehow the words didn’t make their way to her heart. She was anything but ready.
She tucked the note inside her bag. With one final look back over her shoulder, she followed her friend out the door.