Page 97 of A Summer Mismatch

“And Smitty and Horace sure made things tricky.” Harry shook his tartan-hat clad head. “I couldn’t puzzle those two out.”

“Plus your health,” Walt said. He turned to Winnie. “How are you?”

“I’m healthy, other than my blood pressure, and the doctor is keeping an eye on it,” she replied. “I’m ready to take it a little easier, though.”

“But they did get together,” Walt pointed out, “which was the whole point.”

Nancy nodded in agreement, then turned to Winnie. “Did you want to say a few words?”

Winnie stood, marveling at how much more confident she felt now than just a short few months earlier when she’d first introduced Julia as the target. Then, her hands had been shaking and she hadn’t known for sure if she was doing the right thing. She’d wanted to prove to herself, and to Horace somehow, that she could do this without him.

Now, she could stand with her back straight and chin held high, though she still kept one hand on the back of the chair. Her blood pressure made her dizzy when she stood up too quickly, and she needed to be careful. She didn’t feel like she needed to prove anything to anyone. She and Horace were closer than they’d ever been, and she’d noticed that he was deferring to her decisions more than he ever had.

Progress was nice.

She looked out at the group, all smiling at her in expectation. She had known these six individuals were her friends. They had worked closely together for months, helping their grandchildren find love. But now she knew with deeper assurance that these were her closest friends. Friends she could share her real opinion with and ask for help from, who would be there for her when she needed them.

Everyone should have friends like this, and she didn’t know how she got so lucky.

She cleared her throat, realizing that her emotions were starting to build there.

“We did great work, team,” she said, her voice only a little wobbly with unshed, happy tears. “Julia is as happy as I’ve ever seen her.”

“That’s fantastic,” Polly said. “They make the loveliest couple.”

“How are Horace and Smitty?” Don asked.

“I’ve seen them on the green together a couple of times,” Walt replied. “They don’t seem to be talking much, but they’re not fist-fighting either.”

“That’s an improvement,” Rosa said.

“They’re trying.” Winnie was so proud of Horace and how much he was really was trying. He used to joke that you couldn’t teach an old dog new tricks, but in one summer, her husband had learned to text, let his wife lead, gave up an old grudge, and trusted his granddaughter to make the best choices for her life. All in all, it seemed that old dog had certainly learned plenty of new tricks.

And as for Winnie, matchmaking Julia had taken more emotional energy from her than she’d anticipated. She was glad she’d done it. And ideas for who to set Eliana up with were already percolating in the back of her mind. But she couldn’t regret that it was time for someone else to take a turn.

“Thank you all for your help. I gladly concede the floor to Don.”

Everyone clapped as she sat down and Don stood up and strode to the front.

He flipped the picture over and used a magnet to tack it to the board with a decisive click. “This is my grandson. He’s run aground of trouble at work and has been lying low in town for a few weeks. I think it’s about time he found somebody to love.”

Winnie rubbed her hands together excitedly. She couldn’t wait to dive back in.