“Maybe ask them to keep next Saturday afternoon and night free?” Laura suggested. “Tell them they’ll find out why in a couple of days, but it’s important that their parents don’t make other plans.” The sisters thought this was a sensible idea and Ryan and Erin were assigned the task of sorting the rest of the art cards and putting the resulting twenty sets into envelopes while Laura worked with Lydia and Ella to get the invitations ready to send, the girls writing the names on and signing the cards themselves in gold marker-pen while Laura addressed the envelopes. “There we go!” she declared proudly a few minutes later. “All done! I’ll pop stamps on these and we’ll get them sent out this morning. I’ll let you two get back to your mum for a bit and we’ll see you this afternoon, okay?” The sisters nodded enthusiastically. “Did you still want to sleep over?”

“Yes please!” Ella nodded. “If that’s okay?”

“Of course it is!” Laura beamed. “It will be our pleasure!” Erin got up to see her friends to the door and wave them off then, happy that she had the sisters approval, Laura went to her computer to send the digital version of the invitation to all the other girls who had been at the party – Willow, Nadine, Rachel and, of course, Amelia. She worried that little Rosie might feel a little left out but, at not even three years old, she would not really have been a good fit with the rest of the girls and she was sure that her parents would be able to explain that it was a party of big girls and that there would be plenty she could go to once she was older. She did wonder if Rachel, who was the oldest invitee by nearly five years, would actually want to come but felt that it should be her choice.

Once the emails were sent, Laura got her trusty notepad out and jotted down all the names, including the four that the girls had given her just now. If everyone accepted their invitations, including Lydia and Ella themselves, as well as Erin of course, there would be eleven girls at the party which seemed like a good number considering they would just be holding the party in the house rather than booking a hall or anything, and should be perfectly manageable for three adults, potentially four if Josh stayed but she had not really discussed his plans with him yet. Before she could close her computer down and go back to the kitchen to finish the pizza dough, a reply arrived from her brother, accepting the invitation on Willow’s behalf and offering an invitation of their own for Ryan to go spend that night at theirs for a boy’s night with Merlin, an offer she felt sure her son would be keen to take up!

Back in the kitchen, the three of them finished making the dough and put it in the fridge. Assembling the pizzas themselves would be an activity for everyone to join in with later, like when Amelia had first stayed over. It was a fun and practical activity that Laura knew from experience children tended to enjoy and it gave them a sense of achievement and ownership over the meal later. Once that was done, she declared that it was time to go to the local shops to buy the rest of the ingredients, taking the sparkly pink envelopes with them to post on the way.

When they got back from the supermarket, with everything they needed for the evening as well as some muffins to toast for lunch, Josh was back from work. Both children ran to hug him with Erin giving him a sweet and basically innocent but somewhat lingering kiss on the lips. Laura kissed him on the cheek as she went to put the shopping bags down on the kitchen table.

“So?” she smiled. “What did they say?”

“I can have the rest of the time off until you go back to school,” Josh smiled, “then one week paid every month for the next six months, on top of my standard holiday allowance.”

“That’s great!” Laura beamed and the children looked very happy, knowing that their new dad would be around a lot while they got settled into their new home. As everyone unpacked the groceries together, they discussed some practical matters, such as whether they wanted their bedroom painted or were happy with it as it was and whether they were happy to continue sharing Samantha’s standard double bed or if they wanted twin or bunk beds. Since it was promised that they would be getting their own rooms by the end of the Summer holidays, they assured their parents that they were happy to share for the time being and that they had always shared a bed when they lived with their Grandma so it was something they were used to. Besides, as Erin pointed out, it was more practical for when they had friends to stay, like Lydia and Ella would be that night.

This led onto a discussion about the Sidney party and the sleeping arrangements for that. Since they already had the blow-up mattresses and sleeping bags from Christmas, it seemed like the best idea to clear space in the living room and putting them down there. Having forgotten to mention it earlier, Laura told Ryan about the invitation to spend that night at Merlin’s house and, just as she had expected, he accepted readily. While getting to hang out in a room full of naked girls was not without its appeal for the pre-teen boy, they were still girls and would want to do girly things and, while he got on perfectly fine with his sister and other girls on an individual basis, being the only boy among a large group of girls was an intimidating prospect and he would much rather go do boy-stuff with his new cousin.

“What about you?” Laura asked Josh. “I’m sure you’d be welcome to go hang out with the boys too. My Mum’s coming to help chaperone the party and Miranda too. Up to you of course.” Unlike in many relationships, Josh knew that when his wife told him something was up to him, it was not a trap but genuinely leaving it in his hands. He had been assuming that he would be there to help with the party but if the other two women were coming then he probably would be surplus to requirements. Plus, four of the guests would be young girls he had never met before and he wanted them to feel relaxed enough to join Lydia and Ella in getting naked if they wanted to, since he was sure that’s how Erin, Amelia and Willow would be, and they may not feel comfortable with an unfamiliar man around, not to mention what their parents might think.

“You know, that’s probably not a bad idea.” he agreed. “If you think you can cope okay?”

“I’m sure we’ll manage!” Laura chuckled. “And don’t worry,” she tapped him on the nose, “I’ll make sure there’s a few group photographs for you to enjoy so you don’t miss out!” Josh blushed a little and wondered if Amelia would be upset that he was not there, but when he reflected on the matter a little further, he realised that it was probably for the best and that she would join in with and enjoy the party more if he was not there as a distraction. He would, he promised himself, do something nice with her in the week to make up for it since neither his wife nor his new children seemed to get jealous or possessive about the time he spent with her, presumably because they were very aware of the relationship’s built-in end date.

Checking the special party RSVP email, Laura found two more replies confirming that Nadine and Rachel would both be coming. Having the teen there would definitely make Willow happy, she thought, as the two had seemed to really hit it off at the party despite their age gap. That only left Amelia, who had pretty much already confirmed her attendance and was probably too busy catching up with her parents who she hadn’t seen since before Christmas to bother about things like checking her emails and, of course, the four friends Ella and Lydia had invited who they were communicating directly with. On the list in her note-pad she ticked off the names and started to think about what else she would need to arrange.

The party just so happened to fall on Twelfth Night so it seemed perfectly reasonable to leave their Christmas decorations up until then, taking them down the next day once everybody had gone home, but they should probably have some dedicated decorations for the party too. She made a note to look for pink, white and silver balloons and to see what else the party store had that was pink and sparkly. That afternoon and evening, she decided, would be a perfect opportunity to chat with the girls about the kinds of games and activities they wanted at their party.

The family had lunch at the smaller kitchen table then spent the next hour or so doing some of the basic housework together that had been rather neglected with everything else that was going on. With Erin and Amelia both having taken what they wanted, Laura got the rest of Samantha’s clothes bagged up ready to donate and put them in the garage for the time being to get them out of the way. There was still a lot of her stuff to go through but really no hurry to get it sorted. It was out of the bedroom so Erin and Ryan had space for their own things and that was what mattered. At half past two, they all went upstairs to change into some slightly nicer clothes ready for their guests and by ten to three they were back in the living room and trying to get through that slightly awkward stage everyone experiences in the time between being ready for guests and them actually arriving!

“Do you think they’ll show up naked?” Erin asked with a giggle.

“I wouldn’t put it past them!” chuckled Ryan. Laura reminded them that they had managed to put clothes on to come and see the invitations earlier and they would probably think it polite to put on nice clothes since they were coming over to someone else’s house for dinner but she wasn’t holding her breath about them wearing their pyjamas later, if they even bothered to bring them and, although she did not say so out loud, she was fairly sure that all the girls’ clothes would be off long before bed-time, and the chances of Ryan joining them were fifty-fifty.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang and both sibling ran to answer it, finding Lydia and Ella on the doorstep dressed in casual but nice clothes and light makeup as if they had made an effort without going as fancy as for the Christmas party. Lydia had small kit-bag over her shoulder, the kind that someone her age might take swimming, presumably holding overnight essential for both of them, while Ella was clutching a bottle of wine. The four children exchanged hugs and kisses on the doorstep then the young hosts ushered the girls inside.

“This is for you.” Ella smiled, holding out the bottle to Laura. “To say thank you for having us.”

“Oh that’s very sweet of you!” Laura smiled. “Thank you!” She took the offered gift and put it in the fridge next to the bottle Amelia and Josh had brought back from their night at the Roebuck International. “We got the invitations posted,” she informed then happily, “and we’ve already had responses to nearly all the emails. Did you warn your friends to save the date?”

“Yes!” Lydia grinned. “And they’ve all promised to, but they’re intrigued because we won’t tell them why!”

“Always fun to keep a little mystery!” Laura grinned. “They should get their invites tomorrow or Monday so they won’t be in suspense for too long! What have you two been up to today?”

“We’ve been helping Mummy go through our things.” Ella explained brightly. “Working out what she wants to keep, what’s worth trying to sell and what can be given away or donated.” She did not sound at all upset as she described what effectively amounted to winding down and wrapping up their lives, knowing that they would be coming to an end in just over two weeks. “We’ve kept some clothes and stuff out and the stuff we use or play with all the time,” she continued, “but most of it is packed up now.”

“That’s very sensible!” Laura nodded. “I rather wish I’d thought to do that with Sammie, but there just seemed to be so much going on, what with organising the party and everything, so we never really got around to it.”

“Mummy says that’s the handy things about us being cooked at Sidney’s!” Lydia giggled. “All she has to do is drop us off on the big day and they handle the rest!”

“That’s a definite advantage!” laughed Laura. “Any idea what she’s going to spend the money on?” She hoped this was not an indelicate question.

“She’s always wanted to take up pottery.” Lydia replied, clearly not in the least offended. “So she’s going to get herself a wheel and a kiln and turn our bedroom into a sort of studio.”

“Ooh that sounds good!” Laura smiled. “I’ll look forward to seeing that! But speaking of bedrooms,” she turned to her children with a grin, “these two have been working hard on getting their room set up how they want. Why don’t you take the girls upstairs and show them?” she suggested to Ryan and Erin who excitedly agreed.

“Such sweethearts, those two!” Josh observed as the sisters from across the road followed his own children up the stairs.

“Aren’t they just?” Laura smiled warmly. “I’d say it seems like a pity if I didn’t know how excited they were to get eaten, just like our Sammie!”

“There seems to be a lot of it about!” Josh chuckled, putting an arm around his wife’s waist and kissing her. “I guess it’s lucky for me that Sidney wasn’t born ten or fifteen years earlier!”

“Oh?” Laura looked a little puzzled. “Why’s that?”

“Because then you’d have been just the right age to follow her and I might never have got to meet you!” He kissed her again. “Or had the chance to make our delicious little girl with you!” Laura giggled and tapped him on the nose before pulling him in for another kiss.

“I don’t know how I’d have felt back then, honestly…” Laura observed as they set up the kitchen table with baking trays, chopping boards, knives, flour to keep the dough from sticking and the various ingredients from the supermarket. “Of course it wasn’t really something anyone ever talked about back then, other than the occasional joke of course, so I never had to give it much thought! I do admit ‘though,” she smiled a little naughtily, “it did feel good when Sammie said I still looked delicious!”

“Of course you do!” Josh gave her denim-clad rump a playful squeeze. “Of course you’ve committed yourself now to waiting at least another seven years! Even if Erin ends up roasting in five, you have to wait until Ryan turns eighteen!”