Arizona looked down at where their fingers had brushed. Grace followed her glance and suddenly realized she had felt nothing unusual when she accidentally touched the older woman.
“My little phobia seems to have finally disappeared,” she said.
Arizona nodded, pleased. “Good thing, what with you two getting married and all.”
Luther laughed and took the coffee Grace had poured for him. “A very good thing.”
“Waikiki, eh?” Arizona sipped her coffee and assumed a meditative expression, as though she was looking back into the past. “Knew a couple of folks who retired and moved to Waikiki.”
“That right?” Luther said.
“I seem to recall them talkin’ about maybe buying themselves a restaurant or a bar. Petra and Wayne Groves. I’ll never forget ’em. Best sniper team there ever was. I retired from the agency right after they did. They were a few years younger than me. Probably in their sixties by now. Guess we were all a little burned out.”
Grace stilled. Luther’s mug stopped in midair. He looked at Arizona as if she were a ghost.
“You knew Petra and Wayne?” he asked without inflection.
“Hell, yes. They were like you two in a way.” Arizona tapped the side of her head. “Had a sixth sense. This country owes them more than it knows. Folks like that don’t get ribbons or stars but they sure as hell deserve ’em.”
FIFTY-TWO
The wedding took place in the little cove Luther had discovered and made his own. The bride was barefoot and blissfully pregnant.
They closed down the restaurant for the day and invited the regulars and Milly Okada and Julie Hagstrom and her son. Altogether some eighteen people showed up for the sunset ceremony. Everyone got a lei. The bridal couple got eighteen leis each. The fragrant blossoms were stacked so high around Grace’s throat she had to spit out a few petals when she took her vows.
The guests stood around in the warm sand while the sun went down and everyone paid close attention while the minister conducted the service. Afterward Crazy Ray took out his guitar and launched into “Hawaiian Wedding Song,” sounding just like Elvis.
Later they repaired to Milly Okada’s for udon soup. At the close of the meal Milly surprised everyone with a massive cake emblazoned with the words
Grace and Luther, Happy Ever After. There was a bottle of champagne and a lot of beer to go with the cake. Milly and Julie shared the champagne. Grace stuck with sparkling water because of the baby. Everyone else went for the beer.
There were a number of toasts, but Wayne delivered the one that made the day perfect.
“Here’s to Grace and Luther,” he said, hoisting his beer. “And to the baby who’s due to arrive in seven months and eight days, not that anyone’s counting. The kid’s going to have himself one hell of a family. We’re gonna take good care of him. Teach him all the stuff he needs to know.”
“Got a feelin’ about that,” Petra said.
They all looked at her
She chuckled. “A good feelin’.”