Chasing Chaos: A Novel (17 page)

This
was not a creature Dan Morello could ever be allowed to spoil.

Marlon
spoke first. “How did that come about?” He kept his voice calm.

“I
saw him when I was working at Rivet last night. He asked me then.”

“Why’d
you say yes?” Marlon asked.

Carrie
bristled. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“He’s
old? He’s a jerk?” Marlon said.

Daphne
wanted to laugh but instead kept her face perfectly still. Marlon’s low opinion
of Dan, though, was perhaps influenced by more than just his interest in
Carrie.

“We’re
going as friends. And besides, he’s brilliant.”

“Only
as friends?” Marlon scoffed. “I can promise you there is more to his side of
the story. You just don’t know it yet.”

“Someday
you’re going to have to stop being so protective, Marlon, and accept that I’m
all grown up.”

“I
agree with Marlon, Carrie,” Daphne said. “Dan’s a little rough around the
edges.”

“He
seemed nice enough for you to hang out with.” Carrie’s tone was accusing.

Marlon
interrupted before Daphne could reply. “Daphne is older than you. She’s been
through a lot more than you have. It’s a long road between twenty and thirty.”

Carrie
laughed, then she threw back the last of her coffee. “I’d hoped to have a nice
little get-together here to admire my matchmaking skills, since you two have
obviously hit it off. Instead I’m getting lectured about my fake date for the
wedding.” Setting down her mug, Carrie stood.

“Don’t
go, Carrie,” Daphne said. “Please.”

“It’s
OK. I’ll see you guys tonight. This argument is so ordinary it’s boring. If
you’re going to hang out with Marlon and me, you might as well get used to it.”
She sounded almost cheerful as she left the café.

“That
went awesome,” Daphne said.

“You
need to call Dan and tell him to stay away from my sister.”

The
intensity in Marlon’s voice startled Daphne.

“Oh,
OK. Sure,” Daphne said, her tone appeasing. “As soon as we get back, I’ll call
him.”

“You
make sure he leaves her alone.” Marlon wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“Marlon.”
She waited until he looked at her. “I’ll handle it, OK? Don’t worry.”

“Good.”
He stood and exited the café, leaving her alone at the table.

She
found him outside, standing impatiently with his hands on his hips. He wasn’t
talkative on the walk back to Sandy’s house. She asked him a few questions
about the wedding planning, and he answered with brief, precise answers.

When
they reached Sandy’s front porch, she stopped. “I’m going to move my car down
the street to make room for guests to park,” she said. “I’ll call Dan now too.”

“Good.”
Marlon entered the house, his stiff shoulders telling her how upset he truly
was.

She
dialed Dan’s house as she headed down the hill toward her car, praying he would
answer.

“Hello?”
He answered after six or seven rings.

“Dan,”
she said. “It’s Daphne.”

“What
can I do for you?” he said cheerfully.

She
got in her car and started the engine, tucking her phone behind her ear.

“Right
now,” she said, “you can call Carrie Ademola and tell her you will not be her
date to Greta’s wedding.”

“What
are you talking about? That’s a done deal!”

“Nonsense,”
she said, gritting her teeth to keep the anger from her voice. “Cancelling will
only require a simple phone call. Everyone around here is pretty upset about
it, actually.” She pulled her car out of Sandy’s driveway and turned right up
the hill to park, about a hundred yards from Sandy’s house.

“Who
is everyone?” Dan asked.

She
parked her car in first gear, set the brake and then turned off the engine.
“Dan,” she said. “If I ever meant anything to you, please do this one thing for
me.”

“You
certainly did mean a lot to me, Daphne.” He sounded hurt. “But you showed me
just how little I meant to you.”

He
hung up. She tried calling back, but he didn’t answer.

She
walked down the hill to Sandy’s, wondering how she would explain her failure to
Marlon. Perhaps, Dan would reconsider. Surely he’d realize that entering
Sandy’s home with Marlon’s little sister on his arm—after an explicit request
not to—would be a really bad idea. Given how much power Sandy wielded around town,
doing so could hurt his career. Surely Dan’s own self-interest would lead him
to that conclusion.

Surely
Dan would figure it all out before tonight.

It
was two-thirty, an hour and a half before the wedding, and Daphne was taking
stock of the final details.

Three
Rivet valets would direct parking. At the moment, they were setting up a
temporary valet stand on Sandy’s front porch. The valets would fit as many cars
in Sandy’s driveway as possible by parking them tightly. But at the same time,
the valets would be able to move cars around as necessary so folks could leave.
Not ideal, but it would work. Folks who needed to depart earlier in the evening
might have to wait twenty minutes for their car to be extracted from the
parking situation, but these guys—and girl—were pros. If you needed to be out,
they could get you out.

Luis,
the head doorman from Rivet, walked around the exterior of Sandy’s home,
examining the property. He was excellent at security, and only the best would
do for tonight. He had two more guys with him to assist.

Olivia
had outdone herself with the catering. Small buffet tables were grouped around
Sandy’s spacious living area as though they naturally belonged among the swanky
furniture. Two bars—supervised by Quentin himself—would serve beverages. No one
would have to wait to eat or drink.

And
out on the deck, a supernatural event seemed to have occurred and transformed
the place into, indeed, a magical wedding spot. White flower petals covered the
deck boards. A white flowering vine coiled around the railing of the deck,
turning it into a living thing.

Except
Daphne knew it hadn’t been a supernatural event. She knew it had been Marlon.
She could see him now through the glass doors of the kitchen, the doors that
would be left open throughout the evening to allow guests to come and go as
needed.

He
squatted on the deck, wrapping the same flowering vine around the arbor. The
arbor, of course, was the centerpiece of the deck.

She
slid the door open and stepped through, and a delicate fragrance emanated from
the entire outdoor space.

“It
doesn’t just look amazing, does it?” Daphne took a deep breath through her
nose.

Marlon
didn’t look up when he spoke. “White jasmine vines. Same with the petals on the
ground. They’re pretty fragrant. You reach Dan?”

“I
did. I don’t know what he’s going to do.”

“What
happened on the phone?” Marlon wouldn’t look at her.

“I
asked him to call it off. And then I begged him.”

Marlon
glanced up at her then. “You begged him?”

“I don’t
want him near Carrie. He has his good qualities, but he’s a jaded old man in a
jaded old town. Carrie shouldn’t be around that. Not yet, anyway.”

“Someday,
maybe.” He spoke with something like understanding in his voice.

“Only
after she has some experience of her own.”

Marlon
stood. “Thanks for calling him. I know that wasn’t easy for you to do.”

He
wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him, resting his nose
against her temple and inhaling, as though she smelled as deliciously fragrant as
the jasmine.

~~~~

Daphne
and Greta dressed in the bedroom Sandy had set aside for the bride. Daphne
opted not to tell her friend about the situation with Dan and Carrie. Greta
didn’t need to know about that on her wedding day. Besides, Dan and Carrie’s
date would probably come to nothing. Even Marlon didn’t seem too worried, and
Marlon worried about everything.

Daphne
pulled on her navy blue dress. It was classy but understated—she hadn’t wanted
to outshine Greta.

“Zip
me?” she asked, and Greta complied. The dress was fitted throughout, with cap
sleeves, a scoop neck and a hemline just past her knees.

“Your
turn,” Daphne said to Greta.

Greta
pulled off her bra and slipped the pale dress over her hips, tugging the straps
over her shoulders. Daphne zipped her up. Then they pulled on their shoes and
made sure their hair hadn’t gotten mussed getting dressed. They’d done their
makeup first to ensure they didn’t get any on their clothes.

They
were ready.

They
each held a cardigan to ward off the evening chill. “Give me yours,” Daphne
said. “I’ll find a place out there to stash them.”

“Nothing
better happen to that. It cost a fortune.”

“But
you love it.” Daphne grinned.

“I’d
love it more if it were a darker color and therefore less likely to get grease
stains on it.”

“If
you get grease stains on it I will pay to have it professionally dyed.”

“Deal.”

They
hugged then, and Daphne felt joy.

“I
have to go greet guests,” Daphne said. “And you have to stay hidden here. Do
you want me to send Olivia back here to keep you company?”

“I
brought my laptop,” Greta said. “I was going to quote a show while I waited.”

“Here
I was, worried you might be nervous before getting married.”

“Like
I said, Daphne, nothing’s going to change. So there’s nothing to be nervous
about.”

Daphne
smiled. “I’ll knock on your door right at four o’clock when it’s time for the
ceremony. Make sure it’s me before you open the door. I don’t want anyone else
to see you.” Daphne shut the door behind her and took a deep breath.

It
was time to find Timmy.

She
and Timmy had grown close over the past few years, despite the rough beginning
to their friendship. Back when Daphne had thought she’d been losing Greta to a
man who wasn’t worthy, Daphne had taken desperate measures.

She’d
taken aim at Timmy.

And
then it had turned out that Timmy was, in fact, worthy of her friend.

But
it had taken a long time for Timmy to accept Daphne back into his life, to
trust her again. She understood. She wouldn’t have trusted her either after
what she’d done.

Despite
the passage of time, and the happy memories they’d created, all Daphne could
think about today was that one awful night. And she had a feeling Timmy would
be thinking about it too.

She
saw him standing in Sandy’s living room, looking out through the open door to
the deck. He stared at the arbor, dressed in its gown of jasmine vines.
Daphne’s throat constricted. She joined him, standing beside him and gazing
outside.

“Hey,”
he said.

“Hey.
It’s about time to start greeting your guests.”

He
glanced at his watch. “Wow, yeah. Time is flying.” He nodded toward the deck,
then looked around the room. “I can’t believe you pulled this together so
quickly.”

“I
had a lot of help.”

“Maybe.
But this has Daphne written all over it.”

“Is
that a good thing?” she asked, uncertain.

He
turned to look at her and seemed to carefully consider his words. “What you did
will never be OK.”

Daphne
looked at her feet. She knew that already. He didn’t need to tell her.

“But
we’ve forgiven you over and over. I’ve forgiven you. You don’t have to hurt yourself
with it any more.”

“I
didn’t do all of this for your forgiveness.”

“I
know,” Timmy said. “You did it because you love Greta. Even a dope like me can
see that.”

He
put his arm around her and hugged her to his side. “Let’s get lined up, sis.”

~~~~

At
promptly three-thirty, guests started arriving at Sandy’s house. Daphne had
mentioned on the invitations that the doors would open at that time and not a
minute sooner, and people had listened. Good. Things were already running
smoothly.

Sandy,
Timmy and Daphne stood in a line by the door. Greta’s newly made family took
the place of her real one. They each greeted the guests as they entered. Sandy
was first in line, as this was his home. Timmy, as the groom, was second.
Daphne, the bridesmaid, was third.

Timmy’s
parents arrived, along with Timmy’s uncle Brian and his wife. Olivia arrived,
looking smashing. She’d left for an hour to freshen up. More guests arrived,
friends from Rivet, friends from Timmy and Greta’s work, friends from six years
of living in Los Angeles.

And
then Miranda arrived. She had an uninvited date in tow—problem number one. And
that date was John, the guy Daphne had spent the night with last
weekend—problem number two. Daphne took an inadvertent step backward, John’s
presence kicking her off-balance.

Miranda
and John shook hands with Sandy and then with Timmy. By the time they got to
Daphne, Daphne’s hands were twitching with anger at Miranda. Somehow, she knew
Miranda hadn’t brought John here by accident. Miranda knew exactly who John was
to Daphne.

Miranda
and John stopped in front of her. Miranda looked gorgeous in her designer dress
and flashy lipstick, her mane of hair hanging around her shoulders in waves.
She could have been standing on a red carpet in that outfit.

Miranda
smiled like a viper, making the formal introduction. “John, I want you to meet
my current temporary roommate and old friend from college, Daphne.” John’s eyes
widened when they met Daphne’s.

Ah.
He hadn’t known what he was getting into either.

Daphne
shook John’s hand, but she glanced at Miranda while she did so. Miranda, she
saw, was watching John.

“Nice
to meet you, John,” Daphne said. “What do you do here in LA?”

John
laughed at the inside joke. She had displayed a distinct lack of interest in
his profession last Saturday.

Daphne
refused to let her smile waver.

“I
design websites,” he said.

“How
did you meet Miranda?” Daphne asked.

Miranda
interrupted. “We met at Didier’s, after you left me there yesterday morning. We
got to talking and realized we work in the same field. We just hit it off. I
figured you wouldn’t mind if I brought a date since I don’t know a single one
of these jerk-offs.”

“Don’t
be impolite,” Daphne said, using a condescending tone designed to make Miranda
bristle and run her off. She could tell by the other girl’s expression that it
had worked. Daphne glanced at her watch. “I have to go check in with the
caterer. I’ll see you in a little while.”

Daphne
dashed to the bathroom. She had to get over her surprise at John’s presence and
Miranda’s unexpected betrayal. In the bathroom, Daphne stared at herself in the
mirror. Her makeup was perfect. Her lipstick was an understated neutral tone.
This was a wedding, not a cocktail party, despite Miranda’s flashy appearance.
Daphne couldn’t let John’s presence unsettle her. But no, John had seemed as
surprised to see Daphne as she’d been to see him. This was about Miranda, not
John.

What
was Miranda trying to do to Daphne? And why was she doing it here?

After
a few minutes, Daphne returned to Sandy and Timmy. Tonight wasn’t about her bad
decisions. It was about Greta. She had to keep calm.

Then
Dan and Carrie walked through the door, together.

Sandy
greeted them both, his polite smile never faltering. But he snuck a glance at
Daphne, a severe frown marring his handsome face.

His
unspoken words were clear: Solve this problem.

She
whispered to him: “I’ll handle it. Just as soon as the ceremony is over.”

He
patted her arm in thanks.

Carrie
greeted Daphne coolly. “Hi Daphne. That’s a good color on you.”

“Thanks,
Carrie,” Daphne said. She wanted to win the girl over. Otherwise, later, Carrie
wouldn’t listen to her advice. “You look even more fabulous when you aren’t
dressed as a waiter. I didn’t know that was possible.” Daphne pretended to
leer.

Carrie
giggled.

The
fact was, Carrie did look gorgeous. She wore a short baby-doll style dress with
spaghetti straps and an empire waist. The color was a cornflower blue that set
off her medium-brown skin tone in epic fashion.

Dan,
naturally, was staring down at Carrie’s cleavage.

“Dan.”
Daphne spoke to draw his attention. “Good evening.”

“Hey,
Daph.” He seemed genuinely happy to see her.

As
Dan and Carrie made their way into the house, she glanced around for Marlon.
She knew he would be upset. She wanted to call Rivet’s doorman, Luis, over and
have him throw Dan from the wedding. She considered doing so, but then an even
bigger disaster walked through the door.

“Holy
fuck,” she whispered to Sandy and Timmy.

“Who
is it?” Sandy whispered back.

“That’s
Greta’s dad.”

“Jesus
Christ,” Timmy said.

“What
can you do?” Daphne asked Sandy.

“This
one I can handle for a minute,” Sandy said. “Daphne, go to Greta’s room and
warn her. Stay with her until it’s time. Timmy, get your parents and your aunt
and uncle. Give them the run-down. They’re going to be Greta’s shield tonight.
At least one of them stays with this guy every minute he’s here, and the rest
stay with her.”