Make-Believe Wedding

by Vivi Holt

  She sighed and wandered over to greet the ever-eager Nancy Tottingham, the local expert on all things fried. “Hi, Nancy. How’s it going this year?”

  Nancy grinned, waving a fryer ladle around as if it were a conductor’s baton. “It’s going just fine – we got ourselves a crowd today. How’re you doin’?”

  “I’m … fine.”

  Nancy’s eyebrows shot up. “That don’t sound too good to me.”

  “Just feeling a bit blah, you know?”

  “Bless your heart – I know just what you mean, honey. But I’ve got somethin’ here that’ll perk you right up.” She pulled a white paper plate from the makeshift counter in front of her and held it out to Molly. “Funnel cake, fresh from the fryer.”

  Molly sighed and shook her head. “I don’t think I need a funnel cake.”

  “Oh, honey, no one needs a funnel cake. But it’s tradition and it’s delicious, plus I think the sugar does somethin’ to a woman’s hormones – makes her happy, at least for a while. Does the trick for me.” She chuckled, patted the fryer ladle against the apron stretched over her generous stomach and pushed the delicacy toward Molly again.

  Molly took it from her with a half-hearted smile. “Thanks, Nancy. I appreciate it.” She waved goodbye and set off again down the street, tearing pieces of pastry free and popping them into her mouth. It did taste good, and perhaps she was being overly dramatic. She felt as though she’d been through a break-up and her heart was in pieces, but she and Tim had never really been in a relationship. They’d toyed with the idea, and might have given it a try had everything not blown up in their faces, but they’d never truly taken the plunge.

  “Molly Beluga!”

  The deep voice startled her and she almost dropped her cake in the middle of the street. She caught it and spun around to see Peter Johnson, the new mayor of Greensboro, headed toward her. “Mr. Mayor,” she said with a smile. “How nice to see you. Congratulations on the election – I was very happy to read you’d won.” She wiped her hand clean on the napkin Nancy had provided and offered it to him.

  He shook it with a grin, his dark skin gleaming with sweat. He was Greensboro’s youngest mayor in decades – at least that’s what she’d read in the local paper. It had caused quite a stir when he’d unseated the incumbent, who’d been in the position for over a decade.

  “Thank you, Molly. It’s been an education, I’ll say that.” He chuckled and shoved his hands deep in the pockets of his navy suit jacket. His wide brown eyes studied her intently, she always had the impression that he knew just how to read people.

  She shifted her feet uncomfortably. “I’m sure it has been. I’m just glad to be able to come to the festival again. They’d planned on giving the story to one of the junior reporters this year, but I asked for it – I really wanted to get out of town and it’s so lovely here this time of year.”

  The truth was, since the failed wedding party three weeks earlier, she hadn’t taken a single call from anyone in her family except Amanda, and refused to discuss anything but work with her. Her parents were still angry, and though Tim called every day, she wasn’t taking his calls. Her only refuge had been daily runs with Daisy and time at home with Vicky, who’d been doing everything she could think of to pull Molly from her slump. She’d looked for any story she could find that would get her out of the office, and preferably out of Atlanta.

  “Well, I’m glad you came. It seems too long between visits. You only make it out here once a year, and we love seeing you.”

  His eyes gleamed and Molly felt a tug at her heart. It felt good to be around people who appreciated her and liked her. Folks in Greensboro were always so welcoming, and she always enjoyed her time there. Pete had just been a local realtor the last time she was there, but he’d always been warm toward her. “Thank you. It’s nice to be here.”

  They fell into step beside each other as Molly continued eating her funnel cake.

  “Have you swung by the vintage cars yet?”

  “No, Mr. Mayor, I haven’t. But I will – I love seeing them. They’re so stylish in a way modern cars could never be, don’t you think?”

  He nodded, his hands linked behind his back as he walked. “They sure are. And please, call me Peter. You always have before.”

  She laughed. “Okay, Peter, I’d be happy to.”

  They turned down another street and Molly saw pony rides, face-painting and other activities for children lining the street. Kids ran in every direction shouting and squealing, and she couldn’t help smiling at their enthusiasm.

  “I hope you don’t mind me asking this …” Peter began, glancing in her direction. “Are you seeing anyone?”

  Molly’s eyes widened. “Uh … no, not exactly.”

  “What does that mean?” He stopped to grin at her.

  She frowned. “Well, I guess it means that no, I’m not. Not any longer.”

  “Would you have dinner with me tonight?”

  Her stomach twisted into a knot. Have dinner with someone who wasn’t Tim? She hadn’t considered it, but now she knew she’d have to answer. “That would be lovely,” she replied, even as it made her heart ache.

  His grin widened. “Great.” They made plans to meet in her hotel lobby later that evening, and Peter headed off to meet more constituents.

  All the while Molly’s stomach churned. Things were over between her and Tim, she knew that. They’d come out with the truth and it had opened a gulf between them she knew couldn’t be bridged. They’d tried to bring their families together and failed, and in the process ruined any chance they might have had of being together. No relationship between them now would be approved by either family, and she wasn’t sure she could live with bringing that kind of disruption and tension into Tim’s life, let alone her own. The best thing was to move on.

  Still, Peter’s invitation had taken her by surprise. She was single, but her heart hadn’t absorbed that yet, and she wasn’t sure when it would catch up. Still, there was no reason she shouldn’t go out with Peter – it was a one-time thing. She enjoyed spending time with him, and she’d be back in Atlanta in a few days. She just hoped he wouldn’t ask more than that, because that was all she was capable of giving.

  14

  Molly slumped onto the bed in her hotel room and kicked off her silver pumps. She lay back on the pillows and rested her hands on her face. That had been a debacle.

  She’d gone out to eat with the mayor, but had spent the entire night mooning over Tim, talking about him until she saw poor Peter’s eyes glaze over. What was wrong with her? It was like she’d never been on a date before. Just because she had no intention of building a relationship with the man didn’t mean she should be so thoughtless as to discuss her ex with him the entire night.

  At least the food was good – snow crab legs and salad. But even before their meal arrived, she’d begun telling him all about their failed ruse. She could tell he wasn’t impressed, but strangely couldn’t stop herself from continuing the story. She’d watched herself, as if from a distance, like a train wreck – unable to stop or look away.

  She groaned and rubbed her face. Well, it didn’t matter – it wasn’t as though she planned on going out with him again. She just hoped she hadn’t ruined their friendship, even if it was only an annual one.

  Her cell phone rang and she answered it without looking at the screen. “Hello?”

  “It’s Tim.”

  Her eyes flew wide and she sat up on the bed. “Um … Tim. Hi, how are you?”

  “I’m doing fine. It’s good to hear your voice.” He sounded funny, distant.

  “Sorry I haven’t been around …”

  “You’ve been avoiding me.”

  She scrunched up her face. This was a conversation she hadn’t been looking forward to. “I know. I’m sorry, it was just … a lot to deal with.”

  “I know. But I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry about it all – about everything that happened. It was a lovely party and I thought it was goin
g to change everything, make our families see they could forgive and move on. I guess I didn’t count on Grandpa saying the things he said. He can be a real old goat sometimes.”

  She chuckled. “Yeah, he was something. So was my Granddad.”

  “And then everyone got in on it. They were shouting so loud I couldn’t really hear what they were saying, but it was easy enough to get the meaning.”

  Molly’s heart ached and she lay down again. “Yeah, I know. I just couldn’t take it any longer. We started the whole thing with such good intentions, but we made everything worse.”

  She heard him sigh and her throat tightened. She wished he could hold her in his arms and tell her everything would be okay and her tell him the same right back. But nothing would be okay again, not between the two of them. It was over.

  “I’d like to see you. There are a few things to be said and it should be face to face.” His voice was low and soft and it made her insides quiver.

  “I’d like that too … but …”

  “Are you free now?”

  She shook her head, even though she knew he couldn’t see her. It was as much for herself as for anyone – no, not now, ideally not ever. She couldn’t trust herself around him. If he were there with her now, she’d give everything up for him, but it wouldn’t be right. “I’m out of town at the moment. I’m in Greensboro for the Southland Jubilee – I won’t be home until Thursday.”

  “So Thursday night, then?”

  She paused before answering. It wasn’t a good idea – couldn’t he see that? “I don’t think so, Tim.”

  “Why not?”

  “If I see you, I’ll forget all the hurt, the suffering, the lies … it wouldn’t be fair to you or our families. It wouldn’t be right for me either. We need to move on, get our lives back on track. I’ve made your family angry at you and both our families hate each other more than ever, and I have to face that and deal with it. If you come over, I know what will happen …”

  “I just want to talk.”

  “Yes, we’ll talk, then we’ll kiss, then …”

  “Is that so bad,” he chuckled.

  “No … but it couldn’t work and I’ll only get hurt. So will you and everyone we love.” Her throat constricted and tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I know. Me too.”

  “I want us to be friends. I’m not sure I can …” His voice wavered and he didn’t finish the sentence, but let it hang there between them like a kite.

  “Me too,” she whispered, tears winding down her cheeks and wetting the bedspread beneath her head. Friends. It sounded so final. And yet she clung to it, since it was all she had, all she could expect.

  “We’ll talk when you get back, then.”

  “Yeah, we’ll talk then.” Molly hung up, rolled onto her side and wept. Since the party, she’d kept her emotions balled up inside her and hadn’t cried once. Now it all came pouring out – the grief over the lies she’d told and the pain she’d caused, the heartache over losing Tim and how much she missed him, talking to him and hearing him laugh.

  Tim’s eyes flicked open. He was lying in bed at the station. The room was lit by a dull light. Men buzzed quietly around, dressing and tidying their things. There wasn’t much space in the firehouse. Outside the bedroom was the living area, a third of which was a small but functional kitchen with a long dining table. The rest was a large den with a television and pool table. Two men were seated on a sofa, playing a game on the Playstation. One laughed, and the other punched him in the arm in response.

  The men all took turns sleeping at night. But even though he’d gotten a few hours, he felt as though he’d just shut his eyes. He rubbed them, yawned and sat up, his thoughts returning to his conversation with Molly the night before. He’d been trying to catch her for three weeks now, and she’d finally taken his call, but things hadn’t gone the way he’d hoped. She didn’t want anything more to do with him. He couldn’t blame her, but it made his heart hurt to think about it.

  Callum had paid up – the bet had only required him to be in a relationship for a month or longer, and he’d done that. But the money, now tucked in his wallet, didn’t bring him the satisfaction he’d thought it would. He’d done what Callum was sure he couldn’t do, but he didn’t feel good about it – it was wrong, all wrong. The relationship had been a fake, but his feelings for Molly were real.

  And now she was gone.

  Just then, the siren blared. He jumped out of bed and dressed quickly as everyone leaped into action. A voice on the radio announced a house fire a short drive from the station. He hurried to Engine One, a pumper truck, even as Tower One, the ladder truck, pulled out of the drive, its lights flashing. He took the driver’s seat and Grant climbed into the passenger side. “Ready?”

  Grant quickly nodded and grabbed hold of the handle above the door.

  Tim accelerated in reverse, threw the vehicle into first and it shot out the front door of the station and down the short drive. He turned right, then left onto the main road, following the trail forged by the ladder truck ahead of them. Grant turned their lights and sirens on, then leaned back into his seat while Tim got an update from the exchange operator. Neighbors had called the fire in, but no one knew if there were people still inside or not. It hadn’t been burning long, so the operator thought they had a good chance of controlling the blaze.

  “Did you have a good couple of days off?” asked Tim.

  Grant nodded. “Yep. Went mountain biking up north. It was great.”

  “Sounds good. Glad to see you came back in one piece.”

  Grant chuckled. “Come on, old man. You can come with us next time – I promise to get you home to bed on time.”

  Tim laughed. “Old man, huh? I guess we’ll see about that.”

  They pulled up behind the ladder truck and jumped out, leaving the lights flashing. The blaze had engulfed half the house and with the homes next door only a few feet away, Tim knew there was a real danger of the fire spreading. “Let’s go!” he shouted to his team, who were all climbing down from the ladder truck and getting the equipment set to go.

  He put on his fire gear with the mask on his helmet up, grabbed a hook and a halligan – a crowbar-like tool for forcible entry – and took a good look at the house. The fire cracked and howled, and the heat scorched his chest. He threw on a fire jacket and strapped an oxygen tank to his back. Around him, firemen were doing the same, everyone focused on the job to be done.

  Nearby, neighbors were huddled behind a newly-formed police line. Police cruisers blocked the street, lights flashing, and officers enforced crowd control. Tim ran over to one of the policemen – he always liked to get what information he could before he went in. “Hey, officer, what do we know?”

  “The neighbor over there says she ain’t seen anyone come out and she knows for sure there were a couple of kids inside, probably their mom as well.”

  Tim nodded in acknowledgement and jogged back to the ladder truck. The team was still putting on their oxygen tanks and masks. “Okay, listen up. We’ve got three probable victims inside, two children. Left side of the truck is the outside team – Vent, Enter, Search! You make sure there’s a floor before you go in – if the floor goes, I want everyone out. Right side of the truck, you’re on hose and lower level. Make sure you get that nozzle up close. Got it?”

  There were nods and murmurs of agreement all around. Tim watched the crew break into two groups. “Grant, you’re with me.”

  Grant grabbed a ladder, hoisted it over his shoulder and followed Tim toward the building. He braced one end of the ladder on the ground, swung the other end up until it smashed through a window on the second story and tugged it so the hooks were steady on the windowsill, then nodded to Tim. Tim set his hook and halligan over rungs on the ladder and removed his helmet to fit the oxygen mask over his face. One quick look up at the building revealed they were running out of time.

  The other team had two hoses
pointed at the flames through the first floor windows, dampening the fire’s progress. He smiled grimly – it would buy them more time, but to find three victims in that mess they were going to need all the time they could get.

  As he climbed the ladder and smashed the rest of the glass from the window frame with his hook, he couldn’t help thinking of Molly. What was she doing? Was she thinking of him? He hoped she was, but couldn’t be sure – she’d seemed very determined to put their time together behind her.

  He tested for floor strength with the hook, then set it on the window, satisfied the floor would hold their weight for now. He waved Grant up and climbed through the window.

  Immediately smoke engulfed him – he couldn’t see more than a few inches in front of his face. Halligan in hand, he inched forward, his face to the ground where the smoke wasn’t so thick. He scanned the room, noting a bed on one side and a closet on the other. He crawled toward the bed, crouching as low as he could, then felt the top of it with both hands.

  Someone was there – but they weren’t moving! Adrenaline shot through him as he grabbed the body, threw it over his shoulder and returned to the window. He handed it to Grant, who hurried down the ladder with what he could now see was a boy slung over his shoulder.

  Not waiting a moment, Tim crouched low again and crawled for the bedroom door. He found it ajar, pushed it further open and put his cheek to the floor to look down the hall. He didn’t see flames, but the entire passage was filled with billowing gray and black smoke. He glanced across the hallway and saw another door, shut. He opened it and peered inside – no flames. He tested the floor with the halligan, then scurried in to find a young girl lying on the bed. She moaned and rolled over, and his heart leaped – she was in better shape than her brother had been.

  He threw her carefully over his shoulder and went back to the window where Grant was already waiting. He handed her over, watched Grant descend the ladder, and sighed deeply, drinking in the oxygen. It was possible the other team had already found the mother, but he didn’t see her outside yet. He turned and headed for the hallway, where he crouched yet again to crawl through the thickening smoke.