Chapter Twenty-Eight

April 2019

Mandy's phone would not stop buzzing as she sat half-dressed in the back of the limousine. She had been partly tempted to ask the chauffeur to zip her up but realized how awkward that would be, so she slid inside, waiting to ask Mom to do it when she got to the park where they were meeting the photographer for pictures. But it was taking forever to get there.

The little separator from the front seat to the back had been rolled up by Mandy as soon as she got inside (since half her body could pop out and into view at any moment). But as she gazed out the tinted window at the same car that had been next to them five minutes ago that stood next to the same tree on the same sidewalk next to that, she had to do something.

She hit the button, lowering the screen enough to get a view of the top of the driver's face, and turned the open side of her dress away from him. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

The driver looked into his rearview mirror, making eye contact with Mandy. "The traffic isn't moving. I'm not sure why."

"Can we get off this road?" It was a ridiculous question. They were in a giant limousine with cars that weren't moving on either side of them.

"Yes, miss. I'll see what I can do."

"I'm sorry," Mandy said. "This isn't your fault. I'm just stressed is all."

"Most brides are." The skin around his eyes wrinkled at the corners. "There's champagne chilling back there if you'd like." There wasn't just champagne but a fully loaded bar—crystal decanters filled with all sorts of different kinds of liquors, ranging from clear to a golden, honey brown. Most likely scotch. Edmund enjoyed an occasional scotch after dinner—and sometimes before dinner. Mandy never really developed a taste for it. But she couldn't deny it always did kind of calm her. Or maybe it was the soothing tone of Edmund's voice— Nothing to get so worked up about , he'd say.

However, the margarita and blueberry muffin Mandy ate already sat like a brick in her stomach. "I probably shouldn't."

"Very good, miss."

"You can call me Mandy. It seems like we're going to be together for a while."

"Roger," he replied, and it took her a moment to realize it was his name and not him saying, Okay, sounds good .

Mandy tugged the fabric on her dress over and attempted to get more comfortable. "So, Roger, are most brides as late as I am?"

His gaze shifted to the dash, then back to her. "The ceremony doesn't start till four thirty. You have plenty of time." Four thirty, because Mandy decided she wanted to start on an upswing instead of the minute hand ticking down. It seemed even sillier now considering how her day had already been. "Might not get to all the pictures you wanted before, but photographers are used to it, and there will be time after the ceremony and before dinner is served. Who's the photographer?"

Well, that was a good question. Mom had picked them out. She had been thumbing through some magazine when she declared she found the best wedding photographer in all of Southern California—those had become Mom's favorite words. Now whether that was what the magazine said or actually had any truth behind it, Mandy never found out for sure, but less than twenty-four hours later, the contracts were signed, and Mandy had a photographer named—Stupendous. Suspicious. "Serendipitous something?"

Roger chuckled. "Sweet Serendipity. Whitney is excellent. Very professional. You're in good hands."

"You've been doing this awhile?" Like the art world or the marketing world, there was probably a wedding world—where everyone knew each other because they likely hung out almost every weekend.

"Twenty years," Roger answered. Mandy didn't really get a good look at him when she got into the car—if he had been a kidnapper and she was required to do a drawing for identification purposes, it would be a blank page—but now that she studied his eyes in the mirror, they did seem to be the kind that said he'd seen a lot of things. Roger had wise eyes.

"You like it then?"

"It keeps me busy."

Mandy nodded. Living in LA where limo sightings were common probably kept him booked year-round. "I bet you've met some interesting people."

Roger's eyes wrinkled again. "That I have."

"Not a name-dropper, are you, Roger?"

"When it's a name worth dropping." He winked.

The car slowly moved forward as Mandy shot off another message to her mother: On my way.

A reply came almost immediately: And where is that exactly?

Mandy locked the phone and sat it next to her. "You got any hobbies?"

"Driving is my hobby. Started the business so I didn't have to work in banking anymore, and when my husband passed, well, this is what I do to occupy my time."

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. We had a wonderful life together for thirty-five years. Married for almost six of them."

"That's incredible. Got any advice for a newbie?"

"Don't sweat the small stuff. Money comes and goes, but it's the people you surround yourself with that will keep you happy. So when times get tough, 'cause they always do, remember what brought you to this moment right here."

Mandy had to stop and stare at Roger for a moment. "That's really good advice." She hoped her voice didn't sound as surprised as she was. And why should she be? She didn't know him, or anything about him, but he just dropped probably the best thing Mandy had heard since announcing her engagement.

"It served me well."

Mandy relaxed into the seat. For the first time that day it really felt like maybe everything was going to be okay—not just her attempting to be mostly positive about it.

And then her phone buzzed again.

Roger flipped on his turn signal. "Looks like plans have changed," he said as Mandy checked the message from her wedding planner.

Candy: Moving photo location

Candy: Don't worry

Candy: Everything is in hand

"What's going on?" Mandy asked, but just then Roger flipped his wipers on. Rain. Nothing ruined an outdoor wedding faster than rain. Oh god, she was cursed. The entire day was cursed.

"This doesn't look like it's going to stick around too long, so don't you worry." Roger tried to sound reassuring. "And they say rain is good luck."

Mandy wanted to believe him. She truly did.