“I’m not sure I can handle your enthusiasm,” Mila retorted. Monroe gave her sister a dirty look before pushing her toward a box.
“You can and you will. I know this was where you had your first kiss, right under the chandelier.” Monroe twirled her sister in a circle. “Being here was always so magical. We can be part of the team that brought that back to Cape Harbor High.”
Mila rolled her eyes but smiled at her sister. They proceeded over to the mass quantity of balloons and the portable helium tank. As everyone got to work, the local DJ arrived. He brought in his equipment and tested out his new tracks as the decorations went up. While lights were strung around the room by Brooklyn, Simone put the linens on each table, and Mila and Monroe worked on the balloons. Bouquets of balloons would go on the back of every other chair, while some would be on the floor. In her mind, Brooklyn saw a fairy tale of a dance happening. She wanted to make it special, not just for the other kids but Brystol as well. This was her first homecoming of many, much to Bowie’s apprehension. He was adamant that his daughter be a wallflower because he knew all too well that male hormones were out of control at this age. Brooklyn, on the other hand, was happy to watch her daughter create lasting memories and excited to see her baby girl all dressed up.
As was tradition, the inn offered a dinner special for the teens attending the dance. There weren’t a lot of restaurants in the area to choose from—when Carly had started this, she had wanted to give the teens a fancier option and teach them how to make a reservation for dinner. Brooklyn was doing the same. She kept the menu simple, with roasted chicken or salmon, potatoes, and vegetables, along with rolls, butter, and a dinner salad. Dessert wasn’t offered because there was a cake at the dance, but she did place dinner mints on the table to encourage those who had the fish to freshen up.
There was a valet out front to park cars and open limousine doors. Girls in pretty dresses with corsages on their wrists and young men dressed in suits entered through the double glass doors and were greeted by their principal. The string of lights gave the ballroom enough of an ambience to make the teens feel like they’d been transported anywhere but the Driftwood Inn.
Brooklyn stayed in the shadows as her daughter walked in. She was with her new friends, and the group of them had spent the day downtown getting their hair and nails done. For dinner, they had been treated to a special meal prepared by one of the girls’ parents at their house, instead of coming back to the inn. Brooklyn had kept waiting for an invite from her daughter to take pictures beforehand, but it never came. She was hurt but knew Brystol was spreading her wings and discovering who she was. By the next dance, Brooklyn was confident she would be involved. Besides, she’d had a lot to do at the inn to get it ready.
Inside the ballroom, holding up the corner of the room, stood Bowie and Graham. According to Bowie, they were on hand in the event the jocks got out of control. Brooklyn knew otherwise and kept her comments to herself. The past week, Bowie had been pacing the floor, stressed about tonight. She couldn’t blame him—their daughter was taking her first rite of passage into full-fledged teenage life, and for him it was too soon.
The DJ played all the hits. It didn’t take Brooklyn long to figure out who were the leaders of the school. A small group, much like the one she had been in, took to the dance floor immediately. They danced together, with their hands up in the air, singing along to the songs, and when a slow one came on, they paired off.
“Bring back memories?” Monroe nudged Brooklyn and tilted her head toward the dance floor.
“So many. I was so nervous at my first dance, but you guys made me feel like I was part of your group for years instead of days. I’ll never forget that.”
“You just fit in with us, B. It was like we had known you forever.”
She also knew it had a lot to do with Austin. He had a commanding presence, and people followed him everywhere. She smiled and bumped Monroe with her elbow. “You made it easy to fit in.”
“I’m so happy you decided to stay.”
“Me too.” It was then that she caught Bowie glowering from across the room. She followed the blazing path his eyes were burning into the crowd and saw that Brystol was dancing with a boy. Brooklyn watched her baby girl, with her arms around this boy’s shoulders, sway to the music. She had her hair pinned up, exposing her neck, and had taken her glasses off. She could see but wouldn’t win any distance contests tonight, that was for sure. It was Brystol’s strapless, form-fitting navy-blue dress that really caught Brooklyn by surprise. Her daughter was growing up right in front of her eyes, and there wasn’t anything she could do to stop it.