by Gina Wilkins
Jason walked beside Madison as they descended the stairs to the sidewalk outside the church. Some of the wedding party had come in their own cars. Because it was such a beautiful day, Madison and a few others who were staying at the hotel had walked the few blocks to the rehearsal. Jason and his brother had already been at the church when she’d arrived.
“I think I’m in trouble,” Jason murmured, his tone both regretful and resigned.
“I don’t think you’re on BiBi’s list of favorite people at the moment,” Madison agreed.
“I know the timing was bad, but I had to take the call. One of my patients needed to consult with me, and I had to make another related call after I talked to her.”
“Your patients have your personal cell number? Don’t your partners handle your calls for you when you’re not in the office?”
“This patient is a longtime friend of the family. Mom gave her my number. It’s a long story.”
“And one that’s not at all my business,” she said breezily, stepping down onto the sidewalk.
Justin met them there. Tall and dark, he looked so much like a younger version of Jason that Madison couldn’t help simply admiring the attractive pair for a moment. Justin wore his near-black hair longer and more casually than Jason’s, and his face hadn’t quite lost the softness of youth to mature into Jason’s more chiseled features, but the resemblance really was striking.
“My car’s in the side parking lot,” Justin informed his brother. “Want a ride back to the hotel? I want you to hear my new speakers.”
“Sure. As long as you don’t blow out my eardrums.”
Justin grinned. “Well, darn. Take all the fun out of it, why don’t you?”
Jason turned to Madison, speaking casually as he introduced his younger brother. “Would you like a ride back? I’m relatively sure the kid can get us there in one piece.”
She smiled, but shook her head. “Thank you, but I’ll walk. It’s such a nice day, and this is my only chance to get any sunshine before the dinner and dance this evening.”
Jason groaned. “I’ve got to say, I’m getting a little partied out.”
“Why do I have the feeling tonight’s going to be really dull?” Justin asked in a low voice.
“Because it will be,” Jason answered bluntly. “Anytime the invitation says ‘semiformal,’ you can bet the party will be a snoozer.”
Justin groaned. “Like Mom’s fundraisers we’re always trying to find excuses to miss?”
“You got it.”
“Maybe the ushers aren’t really expected to attend,” Justin said hopefully. “I mean, BiBi said she’d see me at the rehearsal dinner, but maybe she wouldn’t even notice if I…”
Jason shook his head. “Forget it, bro. I’m already in the doghouse with BiBi. Don’t you get the whole family on her bad side. She considers herself doing you the honor of allowing you to be an usher and attend this dinner thing. You’d better show up.”
While Justin sighed in surrender, Madison glanced toward the church entrance. Speaking of BiBi…
“I’d better go,” she said, addressing both brothers. “I need to change before dinner. Wouldn’t want to be late.”
Following her glance, Jason must have seen BiBi watching them. His eyes narrowed a bit and his voice was just a little clipped when he said, “I could walk with you.”
Already moving away, she shook her head. “Justin wants you to hear his speakers. See you guys later.”
With an airy wave toward both of them, she turned and strode rapidly away, catching up with Hannah and Lucy, who were also strolling toward the hotel. Surely BiBi wouldn’t fault her for chatting with the D’Alessandro brothers on the way out of the church. If so, she was going to have a find time for a long talk with her. As it was, she hoped to find time to chat with BiBi in private that evening. She’d like to know what was bothering her friend, and if there was anything she could do to help.
Whether she would have a chance to talk with Jason in private again—well, that remained to be seen.
Justin didn’t drive straight to the hotel. The brothers had decided there was time for a quick cup of coffee before they had to prepare for the evening, so they stopped at a nearby coffee shop, where Jason ordered espresso and Justin chose a cappuccino and a monster-size chocolate chip cookie.
“She’s pretty,” Justin commented around a mouthful of cookie.
Drawn from his thoughts, Jason looked up from his cup. “What? Who?”
“Madison Baker. The bridesmaid you couldn’t stop staring at. She’s pretty.”
“I wasn’t staring at her.” He hadn’t been, had he? Was that part of the reason BiBi had been giving him the evil eye for missing a portion of the rehearsal?
“Okay, maybe you weren’t staring, but I could tell you like her.”
“You’ve got foam on your lip.”
It was a poor excuse for a distraction and Justin didn’t fall for it. He swiped a paper napkin across his mouth before persisting. “Are you going to ask her out?”
“No.”
“How come?”
“She lives in Arkansas. She’s headed back there after the wedding.”
“Oh.” Justin nodded as if that settled the question. “Bummer.”
“I guess.” Jason wondered if he and Madison would have gotten together if she hadn’t lived in another state. As beautifully as they had meshed this weekend, they’d both known it was only temporary. Did they have enough in common that temporary could have become permanent? He supposed he would never know the answer to that.
“Katie said Aunt Tina’s ticked off with you because you wouldn’t go out with Corinna. Katie said the families have been hoping the two of you would get together since you were kids.”
“Bull. They tried for years to hook me up with BiBi, even pressured me to ask her to the prom. Fortunately, she was never interested. She was crazy about Carl even back then, though they broke up for a few years before getting back together. It wasn’t until they gave up on BiBi and me that they decided to throw Corinna at me as a default,” he said bluntly.
Tina Lovato wasn’t actually their aunt, of course, just a longtime family friend. But the fact that she felt like an aunt to them went a long way toward explaining why Jason couldn’t even imagine dating either BiBi or Corinna, any more than he’d have asked out one of his Walker or D’Alessandro cousins. Maybe they weren’t actually blood kin, but they might as well have been, considering how long they’d known each other. There was just no mystery, no chemistry, no…
No adventure, he thought, the word making him think of Madison again, for some reason.
“I had a thing for Corinna once,” Justin mused, breaking off another piece of cookie. “I think I was twelve and she was about fifteen. I was just starting to notice girls and she…well, she was definitely a girl.”
Jason chuckled, remembering the way Brandon had stared at Corinna when she’d ridden the mechanical bull. Brandon had been in danger of swallowing his Adam’s apple.
Considering the looks Corinna had given Jason that afternoon, he thought it was safe to say that her infatuation with him was over, whether or not she returned Brandon’s interest. And that was fine by him; he just hoped that someday, hopefully sooner than later, they could get back onto the easy “old friend” footing he shared with BiBi. Or had shared with BiBi, until an inconveniently timed telephone call had made her look at him as if he’d deliberately tried to sabotage her fairy-tale wedding.
He was getting a bit tired of trying to keep the Lovato family happy this weekend. He understood bridal jitters, having seen enough of them in his own extended family. But, damn.
His phone beeped. He glanced at it automatically. “Carly.”
“Wonder what she wants from you now?”
“What makes you think she wants something?”
Justin gave him a look.
Jason sighed and lifted the phone to his ear, conceding the point. “Hey, sis. What’s up?”
Madison finally caught up with BiBi later that evening. During the elegant meal set up in a glittering hotel dining room, BiBi had sat at the table of honor, along with her fiancé, their parents and siblings. Seated at another table with several of the bridesmaids and their spouses, Madison had kept an eye on BiBi while they’d dined to the sounds of quiet conversation, clinking silverware and suitably subdued music from a string quartet set up in one corner of the room. BiBi had seemed to enjoy the meal. She’d smiled and even laughed several times, making the others at the table with her look a bit more relaxed than they had earlier when she’d been so stressed.
And yet…
During the past ten years, Madison had seen BiBi in almost every mood, and she could sense that something still wasn’t quite right. So, when BiBi slipped into the restroom while desserts were being served, Madison followed.
BiBi was studying her reflection in the mirror, an uncapped tube of lipstick in one hand.
“You look beautiful, as always,” Madison assured her with a smile, leaning one hip against the counter to study her friend. She’d spoken the truth. With her dark hair swept into a pretty twist and her curvy figure nicely displayed in a jewel-toned silk dress, BiBi had never looked better. Madison had worn a simple black sleeveless sheath chosen both for its flattering cut and wrinkle-resistance. She had dressed it up with a glint of diamonds at her ears and throat and high-heeled strappy sandals.
“I think I’ve gained weight this weekend,” BiBi fretted. “Too many desserts.”
“Don’t be silly, you don’t look as though you’ve gained an ounce. Besides, it’s your special weekend. Enjoy the sweets and diet later.”
“Easy for you to say. You never have to worry about your weight.”
“The closer I get to thirty, the harder I have to work to burn the calories,” Madison said with a shrug.
BiBi muttered something indistinguishable and touched up her lipstick. Madison pulled her lip gloss out of her tiny bag and leaned slightly toward the mirror, speaking casually as she outlined her lips. “Everything has gone remarkably smoothly this weekend. Everyone seems to be having a nice time. You must be pleased.”
“I guess. I didn’t expect so many problems to crop up last minute. I thought I’d planned for everything.”
“You couldn’t have planned for everything,” Madison said logically. “You certainly couldn’t predict Lila would go into labor early, for example.”
“Or that Jason would go AWOL during the rehearsal. Could you believe that?”
“I can see why you’d be irritated,” Madison responded carefully.
BiBi shot her a narrow look. “You’re not going to leap to his defense? Heaven knows everyone else has, except Corinna, who was almost as mad as I was. Mom told me I was being unreasonable. She kept saying Jason’s a doctor, like that makes him so much more important than everyone else.”
“Obviously, I don’t agree with that sentiment. And I think you have every right to be annoyed by the interruption.”
“Jason’s just been sort of a jerk this weekend. Thinks he’s too good for Corinna, and apparently too important to have to rehearse for my wedding.”
Madison thought that was a bit too harsh, but she knew better than to argue Jason’s case just then. It wasn’t her place to do so, anyway. He’d have to find his own way of making amends with BiBi.
Shoving her lipstick into her bag, BiBi muttered, “Nothing to say? You seemed pretty impressed by him earlier.”
Madison turned and crossed her arms over her chest. “Is there something you want to get off your chest, Beebs? I want you to enjoy the rest of your weekend, and I’m not sure you can do that if you’re stewing about something.”
“Don’t go all shrink on me, Maddie. Not tonight.”
“I’m not speaking as a shrink, but as your friend. You’ve seemed tense all day. If there’s anything I can do to help…”
BiBi spun to face her. “Do you think my wedding weekend is pretentious and overdone?”
“What? No, of course I don’t. Why would you think I—”
BiBi held up a hand. “It wasn’t you. I heard these women…”
She stopped and drew a quick breath, then began again. “This morning, I was awake really early. Too wired to sleep. So I slipped down to the lobby coffee shop for a latte. I was sitting at a little corner table going over my lists for today and tomorrow when I heard a couple of women talking on the other side of a stained-glass divider. They didn’t know I was there, I guess, but they were saying my weekend has been pretentious and overdone. They were speculating about how much we’ve paid for everything, and saying we’re flashing our cash and wasting good money.”
“That’s absurd, BiBi. You and Carl have been saving for this wedding for more than a year. And no one who knows you would ever call you pretentious.” Which was the absolute truth. Carl and BiBi both came from financially comfortable families, and Carl, at least, was making good money now, but BiBi wasn’t the type to flaunt her good fortune. She preferred sharing it. As much as BiBi had enjoyed being the center of attention this weekend, the intention behind all her plans was to make sure her guests had a good time, and that they would remember how much fun her wedding had been.
“I know, right? We’ve been saving like crazy. And we aren’t even paying for everything. The costume party was thrown by our friends, the luncheons were hosted by other people, everything this evening is on Carl’s parents.”
Madison waved off the litany, having little interest in who was funding what. “These women you heard. Did you recognize their voices?”
“No. I don’t even think they’re guests of the wedding. I think they’re staying at the hotel and they’ve been hearing about the festivities through gossip. They seemed familiar with Carl’s family by reputation, but I don’t think they know them well, if at all.”
“Then why are you obsessing about this?” Madison asked in genuine bafflement. “A couple of women you don’t even know were being catty, and you’re letting it ruin your wedding weekend?”
“It’s not ruining…I mean, you have to admit a lot of things have gone wrong. Despite all the saving and planning, I can’t help wondering if maybe I got carried away and tried to do too much. And I can’t help wondering if other people are thinking the same thing as those women, but are being too polite to tell me.”
“From what I’ve seen, your guests are having a great time. I know I have been.”
BiBi sighed. “Thanks, Maddie. I can always count on you to cheer me up. Even though I’ve been such a jerk to you. I can’t believe I brought up Steve Gleason. I’m sorry about that.”
Madison was still a bit irked by that, but now wasn’t the time to say so. “You know you can always talk to me,” she said instead.
Glancing toward the door, BiBi wrinkled her nose. “I should probably get back to my guests.”
“Your mom will come looking for you soon,” Madison agreed.
“So, you’re sure you don’t want to get to know Allen better?” BiBi asked with a smile that was both teasing and resigned. “If you married him, we could be cousins-in-law.”
“Or I could not marry him and we could just stay very good friends,” Madison countered fondly.
BiBi linked her arm with Madison’s as they left the restroom. “Funny. I was sure you and Allen would hit it off. You have so much in common.”
Madison couldn’t imagine what common ground BiBi imagined between her and Allen, but she merely shrugged. “Guess I’m just not in the right place for anything serious right now.”
“Well, if you e
ver are in that place, give me a call. Maybe I’ll have someone else picked out for you by then,” BiBi said with a short laugh. “And in the meantime, I’m still going to try to talk you into coming to Dallas for your fellowship. I would so love living that close to you again.”
Madison forced a noncommittal smile. Something told her that no matter how long it would be until she made that unlikely call, she knew who BiBi would not choose for her.
As for whether she would choose to move to Dallas for her fellowship…well, for some reason that choice suddenly seemed much more complicated.
Chapter Eight
The guests who attended the dance after dinner Saturday evening were considerably more dignified than the ones who’d partied so avidly at the Thursday night masquerade. For one thing, the average age of these guests, all invited by the groom’s parents, was older than the contemporaries of the engaged couple who’d thrown the costume party. The alcohol consumption was less conspicuous and the music much more sedate. Even the clothing had much to do with the difference in tone. Masks and costumes had encouraged people to shed some of their usual inhibitions and social decorum, whereas tonight they were on their best behavior in their party dresses and tailored suits.
Madison found herself talking shop quite a bit during the event, as several other physicians were in attendance. She never introduced herself as Dr. Baker, but the mothers of the bride and groom insisted on adding the title whenever they presented her to another guest. That inevitably led to talk of work and her plans for the future.
She’d found that people not in the medical field had either little or incorrect knowledge of psychiatry and mental illness. Some had a little trouble understanding that yes, a psychiatrist was a medical doctor, a fully trained physician. Many didn’t know the difference between psychiatry and psychology, having been misled by unrealistic portrayals in books, on TV and in movies. Those same media often grossly misrepresented people suffering from mental illnesses, the majority of whom would never be a danger to others. She was also accustomed to people sometimes withdrawing from her when they found out she was a “shrink,” as if in concern that she might analyze them and find them lacking in some way. Not to mention those who had to tell her all about their crazy relatives or acquaintances.
