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practically bursting at the seams all afternoon,” said their mother.
    Abby looked at Carol’s face and then was suddenly struck with a feeling. A very bad feeling. “Oh, God. You’re not, like, going to the Congo for the summer with Greenpeace or something, are you?”
    “No, nothing like that,” Carol said, clasping her fingers together. “I’m getting married !”
    Carol lifted up her hand and turned the silver band on her finger around, revealing a big, square diamond. Abby felt the earth tilt beneath her and she gripped the brushed-steel countertop for balance.
    This was not possible.
    “You’re what?” Abby’s mother was the first to find her tongue.
    “To who?” Abby blurted out. She felt dizzy and her heart was pounding, like maybe she was about to pass out.
    “To Tucker, Abby,” Carol said. “Duh!” She rolled her eyes and then grinned. “Isn’t it amazing? He asked me last night, but I wanted to tell you guys in person.”
    Wait a minute, Tucker Robb? Abby thought, reeling. Carol had only been dating Tucker for two months! And didn’t the guy live in Colorado most of the year?
    “Carol, we haven’t even met this boy,” their father said, looking confused. “You only just received your diploma.”
    “You would have met him, Dad,” Carol said, sighing. “He still can’t believe he had to miss my graduation, but his grandfather’s health came first.” Apparently Tucker’s grandfather had emergency heart surgery in Ohio the day Carol graduated. “But you’ll meet him soon. And he’s not a boy. He’s twenty-six. And if I remember correctly, you and Mom were married right after college.”
    “Yes, but we’d known each other for years,” Abby’s mother said. “Are you sure you’re not rushing this?”
    “You know me,” Carol said confidently. “I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t know it was right.”
    There was a moment of silence as Abby’s parents exchanged a look. Abby waited for one of them to say something. For them to let Carol have it. For them to forbid her to make this huge mistake, which was exactly what this was. A huge, huge mistake. Well, if no one was going to say anything, then Abby was. “But— but—Tucker lives on a ranch, Carol! A ranch! And you’re—you’re a vegetarian!”
    But Carol just laughed. “Be happy for me,” Carol said, stepping toward her parents. “Think about it. You get to plan my wedding! We’re thinking August. And we want to have it right here, at the Dove’s Roost.”
    “What?” Abby screeched. She looked over at her parents and realized they actually looked okay with this. They even looked like they were getting a little excited at the idea of planning Carol’s nuptials.
    Carol couldn’t. She . . . she wouldn’t. A Dove’s Roost Bridezilla? It went against everything they had ever believed. It went against every fiber of Carol’s being.
    “But—but August is the hottest month of the year,” Abby said, unable to come up with anything else.
    “Abby,” Carol said, approaching her with a smile. She reached out and took Abby’s trembling hands. “You have to be my maid of honor.”
    “Me?”
    Carol hugged her. “Who else would it be? Isn’t this great?”
    Abby stepped away from her sister, her mind reeling. There were so many things wrong with this whole situation, she could barely put them in comprehensible order.
    “No! It’s not great! What are you thinking?” Abby exploded. “You’ve only known this guy for, like, five seconds! And Dad’s right! We’ve never even met him! And P.S., he lives halfway across the country! What’re you gonna do, move to Colorado to tend cattle or something? What about your job?”
    Carol’s face dropped. “Actually, I’ve already declined my internship so I can concentrate on planning the wedding. But after the summer, yeah. We’ll probably live out there.”
    “You declined your internship?” Abby stared at her sister. “Carol, you’ve been wanting that job