Chapter One, Part 2

An Accidental Greek Wedding
by Carol Grace

(Page 2 of 3)

Jane glanced toward the island as the tiny port came into view, its shore lined with pink and white tamarisk blooms. Crowds of people were waiting to greet the passengers who disembarked at Mios, but Sofia was not among them.

"She's not here," Jane said, pulling her suitcase behind her as they walked toward the street lined with taxis and tour leaders holding signs that said AMERICAN EXPRESS, SILVIA PARTY and ARGO TOURS.

"Frankly," Alex said, "I didn't expect her."

Jane half expected him to say, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." But of course he gave a damn; he was getting married in a few days!

Alex hailed a taxi for the short ride, and they sat in the backseat with Jane's capacious purse between them. She turned her head from side to side to take in the rocky cliffs and the clear, azure water of the Aegean on their right, and the green fields dotted with wild red poppies on their left. Alex was staring straight ahead of him, oblivious to it all. Of course, he'd been there before. But Jane was enthralled with the views and the smell of the cypress trees that lined the road.

"I was hoping Nikos would meet me," he said at last. "I wanted to talk to him before things got too hectic."

"Oh?" Jane said. She wanted to say, What about? But it was none of her business. An awkward silence followed. "It's so exciting about your being made vice president," she ventured.

Alex turned to stare at her, his mouth open in surprise. "What?"

Jane could have kicked herself. Sofia had told her in confidence about Alex's promotion a few weeks ago, so she assumed he'd been told by now. When did they plan to tell him?

"I thought you knew," Jane said. "You can't be too surprised, right?" Please say you're not. Please say you're happy about it. "I mean, Sofia's father thinks you're the best. Why shouldn't you be vice president?"

"Because it smacks of nepotism — promoting me, his son-in-law, ahead of other guys who've been there longer. Besides, I have other plans. I can't work for Nikos anymore. I can't design another office building or a warehouse store. That's why I need to talk to him."

"Does Sofia know about this?"

"I've told her, but she doesn't want to hear it. She won't believe I'm actually going to quit."

"I'm sure she'll be supportive of whatever you want to do," Jane said primly. What else could she say? It better be something lucrative, because Sofia has certain standards, certain expectations? If Alex didn't know that by now, it was too late to inform him. "What do you want to do?"

"What I've always wanted to do," he said with a faraway look in his eyes. "Start my own business. Use my own designs."

Jane knew he'd had student loans to pay off, and that the Leonakises had made him an offer he couldn't refuse when he graduated. "But how will you ...?"

"Support Sofia in the manner to which she's accustomed?" he asked dryly. "It won't be easy, at first. I've saved some money so we won't starve, but we won't be dining out on king crab every night, either."

But Sofia's parents had always made sure she had the best of everything. They'd bought her a condo, a car, and still supplemented the income from her job so she could dine at a five-star restaurant every night if she wanted to.

Looking at Alex leaning back in the seat, his eyes half closed, his forehead creased with worry lines, Jane wished she hadn't spilled the beans about the promotion. She squelched a desire to reach over, put her hand on his shoulder, and tell him everything was going to be all right. But he'd just laugh at her concern and ask her why she thought he was worried. Alex was not the type to admit to weakness, jitters, or worries, even to her. She suspected it was the stiff-upper-lip attitude he'd used to cope with his childhood. She decided to change the subject, but the only subjects that came to her mind were connected to the wedding.

"Will your family be there for the wedding?" she asked brightly.

Alex shook his head. "I think I told you once that my dad walked out on us early on, and he died a few years ago. My mom is remarried. It's too far and too expensive for them to come."

"Who's your best man?"

"Sofia's brother George," he said. "He's here and it saves one of my friends from making the trip. I know what you're thinking; that I'm not taking this wedding thing seriously. But it's a guy thing."

"I understand that. It's just the contrast. Sofia's been planning her wedding on the island since she was old enough to dress her Barbie dolls in white and parade them down the imaginary aisle with her Ken doll waiting at the altar. And you show up with no extra shoes, no family, and no best man. It blows my mind." But maybe contrast was what it was all about — opposites did attract, after all.

Jane knew Sofia's goal in college had been to find a husband. She was smart enough to finesse her classes and graduate, even though she'd often spent her time sketching bridal dresses instead of taking class notes.

Jane was relieved when the taxi pulled up in front of the villa. There was no more time for conversation. No more time for her to say the wrong thing, no more time to hear any more of Alex's secrets, or worry about what would happen when the Leonakises learned them, too.

They got out of the taxi and Jane stood gaping at the big house with the cream-colored facade and twin towers flanking a huge set of central windows. All of the doors and windows were open to the sea, and the driveway was full of cars and delivery trucks.

Alex bounded up the stairs with Jane behind him. A man with an armload of flowers brushed past them, and three women in black dresses and white aprons came rushing down the circular staircase carrying stacks of towels.

Sofia and Alex dropped their bags in the vestibule and walked into the high-ceilinged living room. Sofia stood there on a pedestal in her white satin wedding dress, like a queen surrounded by her ladies-in-waiting.

"It's ruined," Sofia moaned loudly, staring at her reflection in a full-length mirror that shared the pedestal with her. "My whole wedding is ruined. Why is this happening to me? Why can't anything go right for a change? First the flowers, then the caterer, now the dress. Worse, the wedding is Saturday and my bridesmaid and my groom aren't even here yet!"

The women's voices sounded like birds chirping, bright, cheery, and soothing at the same time.

"Now, Sofia ..."

"Everything's going to be fine."

"Hold still. Let me fix it."

Jane stared at the dress with its high neck, the row of tiny buttons marching down the front of the bodice, and the acres of shimmering satin that cascaded to the floor. It was exquisite, and Sofia looked like a dream with her long, dark curly hair brushing her shoulders and framing her face. What could possibly be wrong with her dress?

Suddenly Sofia saw them, and she turned pale. "Alex, stop!" she shouted, holding her hand out like a traffic cop. "You can't come in. You can't see me in my dress. It's bad luck."

All heads turned in his direction. Female voices rose and swelled. "Get out, get out! You can't see her. It's bad luck. No, no, no!" The women rushed at him, grabbed his arms, and though they were half his size, pushed him out of the room. The ridiculous sight of a big, broad-shouldered man being shoved out of the room by these determined little ladies brought a smile to Jane's face.

As Alex passed her, he winked and muttered just loud enough for her to hear, "See what I mean? I'm irrelevant. I told you it's a circus."

"Jane!" Sofia got down from her pedestal and crossed the room, her train billowing behind her, to hug her best friend. "I'm so glad you're here. We have to talk," she added urgently under her breath.

Everything was urgent with Sofia. Everything was a drama, and she was indeed the drama queen. "Look at my dress," she said, pointing to an infinitesimal spot on the skirt.

"That's nothing. I can fix that." Jane opened her purse and pulled out her tube of Zout, the miracle spot remover.

"See? I told you Jane would fix everything," Sofia announced to everyone with a bright smile.

Sofia's grandmother closed her eyes and crossed herself. Sofia's aunts gathered around Jane and kissed her on both cheeks. Sofia's mother came down the stairs, followed by a man in a black suit, and pressed Jane to her large bosom. Then she held her at arm's length.

"Look at her. She's so thin. And so pale. We have to put some color back in those cheeks to match her dress." She turned back to Sofia. "The caterer called. So far she hasn't been able to find caviar anywhere. And the florist phoned to say there are no lilies on the island for your bouquet. What about roses?"

"Roses?" Sofia's voice was full of disbelief, as if her mother had suggested cactus. "Roses are so common." She sighed loudly. "Honestly, if one more thing goes wrong ..."

Jane held her breath. What would she do if one more thing went wrong? What would she do when she found out Alex was serious about going into business for himself?

Sofia waltzed out of the room to change so that Jane could fix her dress.

Copyright © 2004 by Carol Culver

About the Author

Carol Grace was born with wanderlust. She was raised in Illinois but longed to go to other places so she spent her junior year in college at the Sorbonne. After college she went to San Francisco to work at KQED-TV where she met her future husband. At KQED she was the switchboard operator and did on-the-air promotions (in French) for her idol, Julia Child, proving to her parents that French was a useful major after all. She left TV to sail with the hospital ship HOPE for three voyages. After marrying, she and her husband went to Algeria and Iran to teach English. The returned to California to raise their children in the mountain-top home overlooking the ocean. Carol says that writing is another way of making life exciting.