The Beach Quilt by Holly Chamberlin Page B

been joined at the hip for eight years.
    Marriage was one of the factors that might come between the girls, and for all sorts of reasons. Sarah, she thought, would probably marry later in life if ever. She wanted to make a real difference in the world, and marriage could still inhibit a woman’s freedoms. It was sad, but true.
    On the other hand, Adelaide suspected that Cordelia would be married by the time she was out of her twenties. She would probably have two or three children eventually and be super active with the PTA and . . .
    Adelaide almost laughed out loud. It was a total waste of time to guess at the future. For all she knew, Cordelia would suddenly undergo a spiritual revolution and run off to Tibet and become a nun, if American women were allowed to become Tibetan nuns. It was doubtful, but you never knew in life. The future would sort itself out in its own way no matter how much input you gave it.
    There was a knock on the bedroom door. “Adelaide?”
    She opened it to find Jack, dressed in the tweed blazer and dark slacks that she loved and looking very handsome and dapper in that English gentleman sort of way.
    â€œYou look lovely,” he said, reaching out to take her hand.
    â€œThank you,” she said with a smile.

Chapter 12
    Cindy was in a very good mood. Joe had just gotten paid by one of his biggest clients—and on time at that!—putting them a bit ahead of the game, and the night before they had talked about using the money to replace the fridge and very possibly the oven. Both had been repaired more than once, and the warranties had long been out of effect. A new fridge and oven were hardly glamorous purchases, but Cindy was excited nevertheless.
    Life was really pretty good. The girls seemed happy and were doing well in school. If the family didn’t have a new car every two years and if they couldn’t afford to take vacations very often (well, who needed them when you lived in such a pretty place?) and if putting the girls through college was going to take almost superhuman effort, so be it. Cindy and Joe had each other, a nice house, good kids, and steady jobs. And, soon, they would have new appliances!
    Cindy gave the coffee table a final wipe with the polishing rag and left the living room for the kitchen to make a cup of tea. Good old fridge, she thought, taking the milk out of it. Whatever features came with their new one, the most important would always be the door on which Cindy could post photos.
    She smiled as she looked at the picture of Cordelia and Sarah taken on the first day of kindergarten. Cordelia’s mouth was wide open in laughter. Sarah stared directly at the camera, her mouth closed. They had made a funny little pair, Cordelia bubbly and always chattering away, Sarah pensive and quiet. Still, they seemed to thrive on what the other offered. Cordelia made Sarah laugh with her unconsciously dramatic personality. Sarah kept Cordelia from bumping into furniture and running out into the street without looking first for cars.
    Cindy poured a bit of milk into her tea and took the cup to the table. The girls had been so good about letting Stevie tag along with them once she was mobile. But that stage hadn’t lasted for long. Stevie had always been independent, even more so than Sarah. Though she made friends easily enough, she had never been terribly close to any of them. Even now, Stevie didn’t have a best friend; she got along equally well with a group of three girls with whom she spent her free time. Cindy smiled. Correction. Stevie did have a best friend. The best friend had four legs and a tail and could leap onto the top of the bookcase in Sarah’s room in a single bound. Cats really were pretty extraordinary, Cindy mused. She had never lived with one until the year Stevie was three and Joe had brought home from the local shelter a six-year-old orange tabby in need of love and attention. By the time Stevie was five, she was in