On the Way to a Wedding by Suzanne Stengl

minute.” He remembered. “I’ve got her purse.” It was on the front seat of the truck. “I’d better bring it to her.” He started walking back to the street.
    “Yes,” Pro said, falling in beside him, “you could do that.”
    “She’ll need it. For the ER.” And then—yes― “I’ll get her address,” he said, as he reached for the door latch on the truck. “So I can take her luggage to her apartment.”

Chapter Four
    Why had he come into her life now? Would she ever see him again?
    Toria shivered in the car, wishing she’d taken time to get a sweater, wishing her mother didn’t need to have the air conditioning on.
    Did she want to see him again?
    No. He was a blip on her radar, something out of sync in her life.
    She smiled to herself, rubbing her hands over her bare arms. What a silly thought. Out of sync . Like her life wasn’t already horribly out of sync.
    Silence permeated the car as thoughts raced in her head. Doubt was right up there, taking the lead, still asking the question. What if Greg was right? What if her mother was right? What if she simply had cold feet? What if she was afraid of commitment?
    She crossed her arms over her chest and tucked her hands in her armpits, and she thought about all the mistakes she was in danger of making. She thought about how her mother and Greg’s mother were trying to decide everything about her future. And she knew they meant well, but what was the right thing to do? Fear sucked at her. The wedding date advanced, the invitations summoned. The hall waited. Everything was in place.
    Except for her.
    Among all the feelings tumbling through her mind, Loneliness stood out. Always Loneliness, sitting in the back of her mind. She missed her dad so much. And then Responsibility came charging in, demanding, who will take care of your mother? It’s your job.
    And it was. Her job. To take care of Mom, now that Dad was gone.
    And then another voice, from somewhere far away, echoing. No. No. No! I don’t want to take care of her!
    And now Guilt pounded into her thoughts. What a horrible daughter you are.
    If only she could think. That’s why she was driving to Kalispell, to Aunt Glenda. To think. If only she could get some time alone and then―
    “I tried to call you last night.” Her mother clenched the steering wheel.
    “Oh?”
    “You weren’t home.”
    “No.” I was on the road, running to Aunt Glenda. Her answering machine would be full of her mother’s calls.
    “Geraldine wanted to check with you. To be sure you liked the accordion player.”
    Toria closed her eyes. An accordion player to sing at the wedding. The wedding. Not her wedding. It had never been her wedding.
    “You’ll like him,” her mother said, in her cheerful voice. Her fake cheerful voice. And then, “Geraldine told me about the china.”
    “The china,” Toria said, feeling her throat tighten. The traffic was thick near the construction, as they closed in on the hospital.
    “It’s a beautiful pattern.”
    Black and white, clashing angles. She couldn’t do it. Not the china. Not the accordion player. Not any of it. She didn’t want to marry Greg.
    It had been a mistake. All of it. Saying yes on Valentine’s Day, after all that wine. How could she be so stupid?
    But she had said yes. To Valentine’s Day, to happy memories, to trying to change everything back to the way it was when her father was still there.
    “We had to get the pattern in to the bridal registry.” Her mother laughed. “I know you wanted to pick out your own china but you didn’t. You didn’t have time. The school. Always that school. Never any time. Not even for your own wedding.”
    “Mom, I’m not getting married.” She felt her voice shake.
    “Of course you are. You’re just overexcited.”
    Overexcited. Better not get excited. About anything .
    “And you’re not at the school now. That will help. It’s too bad they could only give you three weeks.”
    Make it stop . “You don’t