After Mittens decided she’d allowed Christina enough of her time and stalked off to the kitchen to wait indignantly to be fed, Christina fed the cat, took a long, hot shower, and dressed for the party. Andy had told her that their hosts were the Bishops, who lived on Hulbert Avenue. Christina had never met them, but she was looking forward to seeing their house.

She decided to wear her simple black dress and her grandmother’s single strand of pearls with pearl eardrops. Once she would have been intimidated by people with a house on the harbor, but over the years she’d learned that it was the young New York City rich who flaunted their wealth, while the old-moneyed Yankees considered anything more than pearls ostentatious.

Besides, her few moments with Andy earlier in the day had given Christina a glow no jewelry could outdo.

Andy knocked on her door at six-thirty. “I won’t come in,” he said. “If I do, I’ll kiss you, and then we’ll never get to the party.”

“You’re a wise man,” Christina told him. She held his arm and leaned against him as they walked to his car.

The house on Hulbert Avenue was meant for summer, so the décor was casual, with huge paintings of seashells on the walls. The Christmas decorations had been done professionally. Everything was gold and silver and there were frosted white branches and zillions of tiny white lights everywhere.

“This is amazing,” Christina told Andy. “It’s like walking into a different world.”

The other guests were summer people. The women were sleekly gorgeous, glittering with jewels, and the men were tanned and muscular and loud, definitely alpha males. Andy introduced Christina to some of his acquaintances, and she said hello, then listened to conversations about where everyone was flying for Christmas. Secretly, she tried to remember names and which woman wore the emerald earrings or diamond necklace so she could tell Harriet. Several of Andy’s friends were friendly and funny and genuinely interested in what it must be like to live year-round on the island. By the end of the evening, Christina told several couples she hoped they would meet again. And she meant it.

Oscar and Delia arrived together. They made their way through the crowd to greet Andy and Christina. Delia’s diamond earrings were so huge, Christina was surprised her earlobes didn’t sag. Oscar looked distinguished in a red velvet jacket. And as Christina watched him pass through the room, she thought Oscar looked bored out of his mind. Several heavily bejeweled women raced up to him, kissing his cheek, batting their eyelashes. Oscar didn’t look thrilled by the attention. I bet, Christina thought, Oscar seriously misses Janice.