3) Six months after they got engaged in Paris, Erin and Charlie got married in church and had their reception at The Green Hour, which we closed for the entire weekend in their honor. Madison was their combined flower girl/ring bearer, and the situation is so friendly that even Charlie’s ex and her husband came to their wedding. Erin still runs the dance studio, which expanded to include a second location two years after she took it over, and Charlie is a detective now. They live in a house not far from where Erin and I grew up, and she’s expecting their first child around the same time I’m expecting my third. She’s having a girl, whose name will be Mia Claudia Dwyer, in honor of Coco and me.
4) The burglar who stole Erin’s things was caught about six months after he robbed her. Charlie never did get to exact the kind of justice he wanted, although Erin assured him she was over it. Since the incident brought them together, she was ready to write the damn thief a thank-you note.
5) I don’t see my friends often enough, but when we do get together, we make it count. We watch our children play a little, ignore our husbands a little, drink wine (if we’re not pregnant), and laugh about the crazy turns life takes. We all agree we wouldn’t be where we are today if not for one another. For our fortieth birthdays—approaching faster than we’d like—we’re going to Paris together to celebrate life, love, and friendship.
If you have those things, you have everything.