Wedding Woes

by Patti Benning

  “I wouldn’t say that,” Hannah said. “I’ve missed you guys, and I know Sean likes having you around, too.”

  “We’ll still spend plenty of time with you,” her mother said, giving her a peck on the cheek before walking out the door. “We’ll see you tomorrow. It’s at noon, right?”

  “Yep, noon,” she said. “Do you know how to get to the restaurant from the motel?”

  “We’ll figure it out,” her mother assured her. Her father waved and Hannah watched them walk to the car before she shut the door.

  Tomorrow was the rehearsal lunch, though seeing as they had switched venues and wouldn’t be able to set up the restaurant for the wedding until Saturday night, there wouldn’t be much in the way of a rehearsal beforehand. Still, it would be nice to get out with everyone and see both sets of parents. They’d already made reservations at Hawk’s Place, and it made no sense to cancel.

  Hannah made sure that everything was put away properly in the kitchen, then decided to go upstairs for the evening. Rudy had already retired to his makeshift bedroom in her office, and she didn’t want to go through Kiersten’s things alone. She left Eliza and Jasmine chatting in the living room as she retreated to her own space on the floor above. After showering and changing into her pajamas, she just laid in bed for a little while, enjoying the peace that came from being alone. She enjoyed having guests, but it was a big change from what she was used to. There was nothing quite like some peace and quiet to help her relax at the end of yet another long day.

  She woke up the next morning to the smell of bacon cooking and went downstairs in her pajamas to find that her mother had returned from the motel and was making a huge breakfast spread. All of Hannah’s offers of help got rejected, so she left to get dressed, pausing when she found Jennifer coming down the stairs.

  “She’s making a ton of food, isn’t she?” the other woman asked.

  “Yep,” she said. “I guess I got it from her.”

  “I feel bad,” Jennifer said with a sigh. “I’m really trying to keep the calories down until after the wedding, so I’m not going to be able to eat much of it. I hope she won’t be offended.”

  “She knows how big Sean’s appetite is, and I’m sure Rudy can pack in the food, too. It will be fine, trust me. I’m sure she remembers her own wedding and knows what it’s like to want to fit in your wedding dress.”

  “Is it horrible of me that I am going to be really glad when all this is over?” Jennifer asked quietly. “I mean, I’m looking forward to the wedding, of course, it’s just been so stressful. Even without what happened to Kiersten, I never want to plan a wedding again.”

  “Luckily, it’s usually only something you have to do once in your life.”

  Jennifer grinned. “That’s true. I got really lucky with Sean. I can’t wait to get started on our life together.”

  “He’s a good guy,” Hannah agreed. “I might be biased, of course, since I’m his sister, but I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a better man.”

  “Hey, I’m biased, too,” Jen replied. “He’s lucky that he has you, Amy, and your parents. Not everyone has such a loving family.”

  “We were all lucky, growing up. And you’re part of this family, too, Jennifer. I know it’s not official until Sunday, but as far as I’m concerned, you’re my sister-in-law already.”

  “I can’t believe it’s only a few more days until I am officially Jennifer Cooper.” Jen gave a nervous giggle. “Sometimes, I can’t believe it’s happening.”

  “It’s going to be a lovely wedding, I just know it,” Hannah said. “I really can’t wait to give my toast.”

  Jennifer eyed her suspiciously but didn’t ask what Hannah had planned. Hannah had gotten over her annoyance at her brother for forgetting to ask her if they could use her house for the wedding before he sent the invitations out, but she was still looking forward to embarrassing him over it. After all, what else was a sister good for if she couldn’t tease her brother?

  They spent the morning eating, chatting, and doing an impromptu rehearsal in the living room. Afterward, everyone left to go get dressed for lunch. They had agreed to formalwear, and Hannah put on a black dress, which she had worn twice in the past, once when socializing after a chefs’ convention, and the other time after an awards dinner.

  Just before noon, they all piled into their cars, forming a procession into town. Hannah led everyone, since most of her guests had never been to the restaurant before. Sean and Jen parked next to her car, and when Jennifer got out, she immediately hurried over to another vehicle, greeting the two people who got out of it with a hug before happily dragging them over to introduce her parents to Hannah.

  “Mom, Dad, this is Hannah Cooper, Sean’s sister. She’s the one who was going to host the wedding, originally. She owns Hawk’s Place. Hannah, these are my parents, Lily and Adam Carter.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Jennifer’s mother, Lily, said. “It’s so neat that you own a restaurant. Sean told us all about it after he visited you over Thanksgiving. It was so kind of you to let them host the wedding and reception on your property. We were just heartbroken for her when she told us what happened.”

  “I was happy to offer it,” Hannah said. “Sean might drive me crazy sometimes, but there is pretty much nothing I wouldn’t do for him. And Jennifer too, of course.”

  “You’re so kind. We’ve been speaking with your parents, and we can see that the apple didn’t fall far from the trees. We’re so happy that Jennifer is marrying into such a lovely family.”

  “Come on, let’s go sit inside,” Jennifer said, looking eagerly toward the restaurant. “I can’t wait to see the place. From the pictures, it looks lovely.”

  Hannah turned to scour the parking lot as they walked away, trying to figure out where everyone else was. She spotted Rudy getting out of his car slowly, his expression blank. A few cars away, she saw Jasmine and Eliza still in the vehicle they had shared, looking like they were arguing. She started to move toward them but decided against it. It wasn’t her place, and she didn’t know any of them that well. Either of them could have been in that room with Kiersten when she died. That is, if Lorelle didn’t do it. Maybe I should talk to Jennifer about finding a different photographer before the wedding, if she can, she thought as she headed toward the restaurant. Maybe Rudy was right and whoever had killed Kiersten hadn’t meant to, but if he was wrong, if Kiersten’s death had been premeditated, then one of their number was a murderer.

  Chapter Nine

  The lunch was pleasant, if a little bit strained. Kiersten’s death cast a pall over everything, but everyone in their group seemed determined not to mention it. Instead, they talked about the weather, the news, and the food. Half the party had ordered the maple glazed salmon on Hannah’s recommendation, and it was a hit. She was glad; it was one of the dishes they were going to serve at the wedding reception.

  Caroline stopped by their table partway through the meal to introduce herself and say hello, then pulled Jennifer aside to go over what she wanted for the wedding as far as the room’s set up. Since they didn’t have time to find another venue, they would have to hold the ceremony itself in the restaurant, and then take a short break to move the tables and chairs into position for the reception, and clear out a space on the floor for dancing. It wouldn’t be ideal, but it still had the potential be a lovely evening.

  Hannah slipped into the kitchen to check the cake once they reached the dessert course. Caroline had picked it up the day before to keep in the walk-in fridge. It was a three-tiered cake with simple white and silver decorations, and it looked absolutely perfect. One of the upsides of hosting the reception at the restaurant was that they wouldn’t have to worry about moving all of the food to a second location before serving it.

  Satisfied that everything was going as well as it could, Hannah returned to the table. Jasmine and Eliza had claimed seats at the opposite ends of it and were furiously ignoring each other. She waited until they were all on the
ir way out of the restaurant to pull Jennifer aside.

  “Do you know what’s going on with Jasmine and Eliza?” she asked quietly.

  “They seemed to be standoffish during lunch,” Jennifer said. “Is that what you’re talking about?”

  “I saw them arguing in the car before we went in,” she said. “And, I haven’t seen them say a word to each other since.”

  “I’ll ask them about it when we get back,” Jennifer said. “I really hope they haven’t decided to get into a major argument right before the wedding.” She sighed. “I’m a horrible person, aren’t I? I’m so worried about the wedding and my bridesmaids, when someone died just a few days ago.”

  “We are all just doing the best we can,” Hannah said. “Your reasons for wanting to go ahead with the wedding are valid. I don’t think anyone blames you for the choices you made.”

  “Thanks. I still feel kind of terrible, but I just can’t cancel this late in the game.” She shook her head. “I better get going, though. Sean is waiting for me in the car.”

  “All right. I’ll see you guys back at the house in a few minutes. Drive safely.”

  “You, too.”

  Despite Jennifer’s promise to talk to them, tensions between Eliza and Jasmine remained high for the next couple of days. Jasmine ended up sleeping on the couch in the living room, since everyone was still treating Kiersten’s room as off limits. Hannah could tell that the stress was getting to Jennifer, but she thought everything would be fine, at least up until the night before the wedding when, in the middle of dinner, Jennifer broke down in tears without warning.

  “I can’t do it,” she said. “I can’t go through with it. I can’t get married tomorrow.”

  Everyone else at the table fell silent for a moment, then Sean leaned toward her. “What happened? What’s wrong? Did you change your mind about us, Jen?”

  “No!” she said quickly, gripping his hand. “I still want to get married to you, but not like this. Not with Kiersten dead and Jasmine and Eliza not even talking to each other. Not knowing if someone at this table or someone at the wedding might be a killer. What if it is Lorelle? I haven’t been able to find another photographer, and I really want one at the wedding, but if she’s the one who killed Kiersten, that’s all I’ll be able to think about whenever I look at those photos. I love all of you and I trust all of you, but none of you can deny the fact that someone was up there in that room with Kiersten when she fell. Someone’s lying about where they were that day, and I just don’t know what to think, anymore. It’s too much.”

  “The wedding is tomorrow,” Hannah said quietly. She was trying not to lose her temper, but it was hard. “We already announced that the restaurant would be closed all day. Caroline and the employees spent hours cleaning and preparing the ingredients for tomorrow. Sean and Rudy took the decorations over earlier today, and I’m leaving right after dinner to help set them up. All but one of your guests are already in town, and the last one is flying in in the morning. Our parents are all here, we have the food ready to go, and we spent the past week preparing for this. Are you really going to cancel now, Jen?”

  “Leave her alone,” Sean said. “If she wants to delay again, I’m not going to let anyone guilt her over it.”

  “If she didn’t want to go through with it, she should’ve canceled days ago,” Hannah retorted. She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. This is just very frustrating. Do you want to cancel the wedding or not, Jennifer? If you do, let me know now, and I’ll see what we can do to recoup some of our loss.”

  “I – I don’t know…”

  “Jen, sweetie, it makes sense that you’re nervous. A lot of people get pre-wedding jitters, and you had to deal with more than most of them. I think it’s best if we go through with the wedding, but afterward, if you think you have bad memories from it, we can have a second wedding. Plenty of people do. We already have our honeymoon scheduled. It doesn’t make sense to cancel that, and everyone’s taken time off work to travel out here. Give it a year, and if you want to, we can host a lovely traditional wedding somewhere else. We can find a way to keep the costs low again and make it everything you dreamed this one would be. All right?”

  She nodded slowly. “Okay. That’s a good compromise. I’m sorry for going back and forth so much, Hannah. I know how much work you put into making this wedding happen, and, I promise I won’t change my mind, again.”

  “Well, I’m glad we got that settled,” Eliza said from the other end of the table. “I don’t know about you guys, but I think I’m going to turn in early tonight. So, good night, everyone.”

  “Good night,” Hannah said bemused. It wasn’t even seven in the evening yet.

  “I think I’m going to bed early, too,” Jasmine said quickly, standing up. “Good night.”

  Hannah and Jennifer looked at each other with raised eyebrows as the two women vanished. Rudy looked similarly baffled, but Sean didn’t seem to notice anything amiss.

  “I guess they are over their fight,” Jennifer said once she was sure the two women were gone. “I wonder what they’re up to now?”

  “If they have a pre-wedding surprise up their sleeves, they haven’t shared it with me,” Rudy said. “You’d think they’d want to include the best man in whatever they’re doing.”

  “At least they’re talking again,” Jennifer said, apparently deciding not to worry about it.

  “Maybe your outburst helped,” Sean said with a grin. “They probably decided that if they didn’t want to wreck the wedding, they had better be friends again.”

  “If that was all it took, I should’ve had a breakdown a while ago,” Jennifer said, laughing.

  Hannah smiled, glad that they had passed by the drama of earlier. As the meal wound down, she rose to begin clearing the table. While Eliza and Jasmine might be having an early night, she wasn’t. She was going to help set the decorations up at the restaurant, and she had a feeling it was going to make for a late evening.

  Chapter Ten

  When Hannah got back from the restaurant that night, she was exhausted. The restaurant was hardly recognizable now. They had set the seats up in rows, and the tables were ready to move out onto the floor for the reception. Caroline had borrowed some big speakers from one of Dean’s friends for the music, and they had spent hours blowing up balloons, assembling the wedding arch, and arranging flowers.

  She fought back a yawn as she went into the kitchen to grab herself a cold bottle of water before going upstairs. She was halfway down the hall toward her bedroom when she paused. Had she heard a noise coming from Kiersten’s room or had she imagined it? Puzzled, she backtracked until she reached the correct door and opened it. Inside, it was a mess. Jasmine and Eliza were on the floor, sorting through what looked like the entirety of everything Kiersten had brought.

  “What’s going on?” Hannah asked, stepping into the room.

  Both women looked up at her, Jasmine looking somewhat guilty, and Eliza just appearing irritated. “Well, since everyone is leaving tomorrow, and we probably won’t get this chance again, we’re going through Kiersten’s things to see if she’s got anything of ours in here.”

  “Maybe we should have told you, but we didn’t want to worry Jen,” Jasmine added.

  “Rudy and I were planning on doing the same thing,” Hannah admitted with a sigh. She shut the door behind her and approached them, crouching down to see what they had found. “Everything just got so busy, I guess it slipped my mind. Did you find anything?”

  “In her suitcase, we found a little box with a bunch of jewelry and small trinkets that Eliza and I recognize from our houses and Jennifer’s places,” Jasmine said, nudging the box over to Hannah. “There were also a couple of things we didn’t recognize. You might want to look to see if any of it is yours.”

  Hannah settled down into a seated position and took the box, looking through it. “No. None of this is…” She trailed off, picking up a pair of earrings. “Actually, hold on, let me go check my vanity.
I’ll be right back.”

  She left the earrings in the box and hurried to her own room, where she looked inside her jewelry box. Sure enough, her favorite pair of earrings was missing. Further examination showed that she was also missing a chain and pendant her mother had gotten her for her birthday years ago. Fuming, she returned to the bedroom to claim the earrings. It only took a couple more moments of searching to find the necklace as well.

  “These are both mine,” Hannah said. “I bought the earrings for myself after I graduated from culinary school, and the necklace was a gift from my mother. Why would she take these?”

  “It’s just what she did,” Eliza said, pressing her lips together in disapproval. “Maybe now you can see why we dislike her so much. You think we’re horrible for brushing off her death, but we had to put up with her for years. Think what you want about me, but I’m glad she’s not going to be part of our lives, anymore. I don’t know what Rudy saw in her. If he wasn’t Sean’s best friend, we would have banned both of them from our homes.”

  “We’re going to keep this quiet from Jen until after the wedding,” Jasmine said. “Will you promise not to mention anything about it, either?”

  “I’m telling them about it before they leave for their honeymoon,” Hannah said after considering for a moment. “I agree that it’s not best to tell them hours before the wedding, but I won’t keep this secret any longer than I have to.”

  “That works,” Jasmine said, exchanging a look with Eliza. “We’re going to keep looking through her things for little while. Do you want to join us?”

  “I think I’m going to head to bed,” Hannah said. “I’m beat, and I wouldn’t be much help, anyway. I don’t know her or you well enough to know what is hers and what isn’t.”

  “That’s easy,” Eliza said snidely. “If it looks like it’s nice or expensive, it’s not hers.”

  Hannah didn’t know what to say to that, so she just gave them an awkward wave and left the room, heading to her own bedroom. She had a lot to think about, but almost all of it could wait until after the reception tomorrow. All she wanted to do was get through the wedding without any further issues.