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being so dreary here.” She flashed Paige a worried look. “Sorry I didn’t tell you before now. I wanted to surprise you.”
    “I’m totally cool with it,” Paige said. My bank account, on the other hand… “When are we talking about?” She might have time to save some money, but less would be coming in now that Lane had hijacked some of Sweet Bee’s business. There wouldn’t be much money left beyond what was needed to keep the place running.
    “Cole wanted to tie the knot long before spring training.” Liza absently twisted her engagement ring around and around on her finger and it glistened in the light from the chandelier.
    Paige tucked her hands up under the table, suddenly self-conscious about her ringless ring finger.
    “And he wants to have some time for honeymooning.” Liza blushed.
    Paige instinctively glanced at Lane. Her gaze locked with his, and her blood warmed to a record tropical temperature, heating her face. She looked away quickly. Jeez, she and Liza were just a couple of blushing idiots.
    “But spring training starts next month,” Paige said.
    “The wedding is a week from tomorrow,” the Queen said, as if she’d lost patience waiting for Liza to answer Paige’s question.
    “A week from tomorrow?” Paige practically yelped. Airfare would be astronomical this close to travel time. And that was kind of short notice to ask Cyn to pick up the slack at Sweet Bee’s full-time. She started to panic, then took a deep breath.
    “We’ll work it out,” Sylvia said, as if she’d read Paige’s mind. At least her thoughts about airfare and Sweet Bee’s staffing. Paige smiled at her gratefully. Sylvia was the closest thing she had to a mom now, and she accepted Paige with all of her quirks. Always had.
    “Has Cole picked a best man?” Paige asked hopefully. A catcher, a pitcher, a shortstop?
    Liza shook her head. “Not yet.”
    “We have relationships with the airlines and St. Lucian transportation companies,” Mrs. Hawthorne said with authority, “so we’ll be handling all the travel arrangements. Everything, including accommodations, will be complimentary, of course.”
    Paige’s heart skipped a beat. Her gaze darted to Liza and Sylvia, searching for similar surprise yet finding none. “Holy crap!”
    Mrs. Hawthorne scowled at Paige’s choice of words, but everyone else smiled. “I’ve even worked it out so Cynthia can cover for you at the bakery.”
    Paige gave the Queen a sidelong glance and grinned. “Is this for real?”
    “It is,” Sylvia said, which told Paige that everything had been settled between the Sutherlands and Mrs. Hawthorne. Sylvia turned to Lane, who sat next to her. “Have you ever been to St. Lucia?”
    He shook his head and gave her a crooked, knowing grin that literally made Paige shiver. Or maybe it was just the drafty dining room. “There’ve been a few things limiting my travel time—med school, residency, minor stuff like that. Traveling pops up now and then in my wildest dreams.”
    Paige bit her bottom lip, imagining some of his wildest dreams and wondering if she could make them come true. On second thought, the wildest dreams of a guy as uptight as him probably included pruning bonsai trees and drinking ginger ale. She actually felt a little sorry for him, knowing he’d be hanging out in wintry old Maple Creek while she was living it up in St. Lucia. But then she remembered how unreasonable he’d been and she got over her pity pretty quickly. Reap what you sow, buddy. She’d heard that cliché from her parents nearly every day when she was growing up—except they never called her buddy.
    “Then you deserve a vacation.” Sylvia clutched his hand and, as ridiculous as it was, a pang of envy shot through Paige. “You have a valid passport, right?”
    “Sure,” Lane said. “I keep it updated for my work with Doctors Without Borders.”
    “Then I insist that you come to St. Lucia with us,” Sylvia said. “Your mom and dad are