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classy matching red hat, and Mel and whoever he chooses to stand up for him can wear ties and cummerbunds to match my hat and blouse. We’ve already struck out on pink and taupe.“
    “You’re not old enough to wear a red hat,“ Shelley said firmly.
    “Why not?“
    “Because you’re not fifty years old yet.“
    “Who made that rule?“Jane asked. “You?“
    “The Red Hats Society. I think that’s what they’re called.“
    Jane sniffed and said, “You made that up. Admit it.“
    “No, I didn’t. You can look it up on the Internet. The head of it is in her eighties I’ve been told. The local chapters `Lunch,“ Shelley said, with verbal quotes around it. “Then there are big conventions that any member in good standing can attend.“
    “Beware! I’m going to look this group up on the Internet.“
    “Go ahead. By the way, is this color thing one of the rules you set up for Mel’s mother?“
    “Not really. But I did say she can’t choose flocks of bridesmaids and groomsmen. By the time she realizes this, if we find what I want and make a down payment on the men’s tuxes, it will be a fait accompli.“
    Jane called around and found a tux rental place that had the charcoal-colored tuxes and got a fabric sample. “I can’t shop for the dress today, Shelley. I need to let Willard out in the yard. He hasn’t been out since seven this morning.“
    Jane went home and she found Willard, her big old dog sitting by the back door, which he’d almost scratched clear through over the years. Instead of running outside barking as he’d usually done, he walked slowly into the backyard. And as he raised one leg to pee, he fell over.
    Jane ran to him, her heart racing. He was lying on his side, his eyes open, and a little blood oozing out of his mouth. Jane ran back to the house and called Todd.
    “Todd, I need help quickly. It’s Willard. Get that old quilt he likes and put it in the back of the Jeep. We need to get him to the vet.“
    Todd had instead put Willard’s old dog bed in the back of the Jeep and they both had to carry the heavy dog to the car. Jane drove almost as fast as Shelley did. And two of the girls at the front desk helped them carry Willard inside. Dr. Roberts was waiting and they laid the dog on the examining table. The doctor got out his stethoscope and put it on Willard’s chest. “How did this happen?“ he asked Jane.
    She told him.
    “He was probably dead before he hit the ground. A merciful sudden death. He didn’t feel anything. You know he had an enlarged heart for the last several years.“
    “Can we take him home and bury him in the yard?“ Todd asked.
    “There’s probably some health code that forbids this,“ the doctor said. “How about this: we’ll cremate him and put his ashes in a little enclosed box? Then you can get one of those kits for making concrete stepping-stones to write on. You can write his name on it and the date of his birth and death.“
    “You know his date of birth?“ Jane asked through her tears.
    “Of course. Remember you adopted him here. Willard’s mother was a car chaser and was killed when her two puppies were ten weeks old. They were brought here so they could be adopted. It’s all in my file. I’ll write down the date. You subtract ten weeks. Todd and Ms. Jeffry, he was loved by the whole family. He had a good long happy life. Keep that in mind.“
    He shook Todd’s hand and held it with both of his. “He was a good dog. I know you’ll miss him.“
    They left behind the dog bed and were both crying on the way home. To Jane’s knowledge Todd hadn’t cried since he was eight when Thelma’s husband died and they had attended his funeral.
    As the doctor had suggested they stopped by a hobby store and bought the kit for the stepping-stone. Jane thought that making the stone now might ease Todd’s grief.
    Janie had suspected for the last few weeks that Willard wouldn’t be with them for much longer. He’d been sleeping too much, not