Anniversary to Die for

Married for thirty years, the Henshaws were giving a party to celebrate this remarkable fact with their many friends and neighbors. Susan had reserved the venue, the historic Landing Inn in Oxford Landing, Connecticut, seven months in advance. She had agonized over every detail of the decorations and planned a menu that included family favorites as well as selections for guests who insisted on dieting or eating vegetarian. She had ordered six cases of Napa Valley Merlot, six cases of French Sauvignon Blanc, and five cases of Dom Perignon. She had taken ten minutes to buy Jed a new tie and had spent three days shopping in New York City before choosing the silver silk shift she wore. Her hair and makeup had been done by professionals just this morning. She had gone on a diet and actually lost seven pounds. So why, she wondered, wasn't anyone paying any attention to her? "Susan, honey? Is something wrong?" She smiled as Jed slipped his arm around her shoulder. "Why? Do I look like something's wrong?" She brushed a sweep of hair off her forehead. Jed knew exactly what she was thinking. "Your hair is fine. You look wonderful. Just a bit distracted. You were staring over the shoulder of that last couple we greeted." "I was just wondering what's happening on the deck. Do you think they thought I was being rude?" "Nope. I think they were too anxious to find the bar. Who were they, anyway?" "Jed! After all the time we spent going over the guest list! That was the Freedmans. You know them. He was Chad's orthodontist, and she was the leader of Chrissy's Brownie troop for two years." "Sue, that was over a decade ago. And I hope they weren't quite so anxious to get to the alcohol in those days." "They're lovely people," Susan protested. "I did hear that he had been drinking a bit too much for the last few years, but Chad's teeth look wonderful. And Chrissy . . . Well, Chrissy was a bit too artistic for that troop. I remember when they were making little Christmas trees out of felt, glitter, and wire coat hangers, and Chrissy . . ." "Susan, how many people did you invite to this party?" Jed interrupted his wife. "There's another large group coming in the door. . . . Ben! Good to see you!" Jed interrupted himself to greet an old friend and golfing partner. For the next fifteen minutes, they were busy with the second wave of guests, many of them friends from the Hancock Field Club. "Do you think we should check out there?" Susan asked when they were finally alone. "Out where?" "On the deck behind the inn." "Why?" Jed asked, mystified. "That's what I've been saying, Jed. All of our guests have been heading there as soon as they finish saying hello to us." "Maybe we should have had the bar set up in here," Jed suggested. He and Susan were greeting their guests in the low-ceilinged living room of one of the oldest inns in Connecticut. A half dozen massive bouquets of summer flowers had been placed around the long, L-shaped room to brighten up its dark paneling. When the inn was built, glass was expensive and homes were heated with wood, so the windows were small and few. Dozens of golden beeswax candles stood in rows on the three fireplace mantels, their glow augmented by dim--and inauthentic--lamplight. "It's a beautiful room," Susan said, "but much more cheerful outside. I'm so glad it didn't rain." "It wouldn't have dared rain on our party," Jed said, taking her hand. She smiled up at him. "It did before. Don't you remember?" "When?" "Oh, Jed, it rained the first night of our honeymoon. I was wearing a silk dress--my very first silk dress--and I was afraid it would waterWolzien, Valerie is the author of 'Anniversary to Die for' with ISBN 9780449007174 and ISBN 0449007170.