Leslie stayed home the night before Archie and Sharon were to be married, probably to give her liver a rest. I was pretty sure the Gentlemen of the Tap were holding a candlelight vigil at Dunleavy’s Pub, praying for her swift return. She said she’d been challenging old pals to see who could drink the most shots of tequila and stay on the barstool. I was like, what? You turning into a frat boy? How stupid. And she kept saying she still loved Charlie, but I couldn’t tell you why if you gave me a million dollars. In any case, they talked on the phone all the time.

Like I knew she would, Leslie had her way with my appearance, dropping a bunch of money at Stella Nova to transform my looks from the neck up and another small fortune at different retail establishments on King Street to take care of the neck down. This was more money than I had ever spent in one day. Ever. Not even for Christmas.

“Don’t worry about it,” she said. “I’m sending the bill to Charlie.”

We giggled like schoolgirls.

I had to admit I looked pretty amazing; for me, that is. The dress she chose for me was a bold shade of pink, sort of like the color of geraniums. It was linen, sleeveless, and fitted. I could wear fitted clothes because I was on the lean side—probably a result of all that yard work. She found beige strappy sandals with block heels, which were a good idea for an outdoor wedding, so I wouldn’t sink into the ground. Lastly, we bought a gauzy linen wrap, in case it got chilly. The haircut was layered a bit, definitely an improvement as it made me look like I had style, something that had totally eluded me for my whole life up to now.

“Who knew you had a figure like this?” Momma said when I tried on the dress for her to see.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I said.

“You need a pedicure,” Leslie said.

“Why?” I said.

“Because your feet are gnarly and disgusting. Get in the car.”

“Calm down. I have to change first,” I said to Leslie. And then I turned to Momma and said, “I guess I’m getting a pedicure.”

Momma just shook her head and smiled. She was so much happier with Leslie around.

So I had a pedicure and a manicure, and I had to admit, it was really nice to have somebody rub my feet. I didn’t even know they needed it until it was all over, and I felt as light as a dandelion. And the pink polish Leslie chose matched the dress. Of course.