What? Mason looked toward the lobby. Grant isn't here. Clare stared. You checked from the back seat.
Lily raised her hand. I made him. Clare turned. Why? Lily shrugged.
Last time was complicated. Mason nodded. Risk management. Clare got out of the car. You two need a new committee.
They spent the afternoon walking the harbor. No whale tour. No reservation. Clare only checked the time twice. Near sunset, Mason suggested they walk to the overlook where the three of them had eaten sandwiches during the first trip.
Clare became suspicious immediately. You have a plan. No, that answer was too fast. Lily walked ahead. He has a plan.
Traitor, Mason said. I prefer witness. They reached the bench. Mason stopped. Clare looked at him.
Oh, don't say anything yet. I wasn't. You were about to. Probably. He reached into his jacket.
Clare covered her mouth. Mason held a small ring box. Lily moved closer, then stopped when Mason gave her a look. For once, he said, "I'm trying to finish a sentence." Lily folded her arms.
Mason turned back to Clare. "This isn't replacing anything you lost." Clare's eyes filled. "I don't want your old plan. I don't want mine."
He opened the box. "I want one we make badly, revise often, and occasionally forget to put on the calendar." Clare laughed through her tears. "That sounds terrifying. I know."
Mason took her hand. Clareire Bennett, will you marry me?" She looked at Lily. Lily whispered loudly. Say yes.
Mason closed his eyes. I had a version of this without commentary. Clare laughed. Then she looked at him. Yes.
His whole face changed. He slipped the ring onto her finger. Clare kissed him before Lily could interrupt again. She managed three seconds. Do we still get ice cream?
Clare pulled away. Mason sighed. There it is. Some plans fail because they were never really ours. Some endings hurt because we keep trying to turn them back into beginnings.
Clare had gone to Maine, determined to save a honeymoon. Instead, she discovered that moving forward did not require, pretending the past had never mattered. Rachel still belonged in Mason and Lily's story. Grant still belonged in Claire's.
Neither needed every seat at the table. Sometimes the next life begins when we finally stop forcing the old one to continue. As for Mason, he did eventually learn to book vacations without checking whether anyone's ex would be there. Mostly Clare still checked behind him.